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This caramel flan recipe is perfect for every occasion.

Photo courtesy MASA’s Cooking ABC

From the Bachelor’s Kitchen

By Samuel Cheng

Published 12:26 PDT, Fri October 13, 2023

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The subject of food and drinks have been a universal language across cultures and nations around the world. Today I’m going to share a recipe prepared in my kitchen, caramel flan.

First here are the utensils required:

• 7-inch mold

• Baking pan

• A pot

• A sifter

• A butter knife

• A whisk (non-electric one is sufficient)

• Mixing bowls

• Aluminum foil

• A toothpick or paper towel

Ingredients:

Caramel sauce

• Granulated sugar: 100 grams

• Water: 30 mL/cc

Flan

• Eggs: 5

• Milk: 450 mL/cc

• Heavy cream: 50 mL/cc (can be substituted with milk)

• Granulated sugar: 125 grams

Miscellaneous:

• A bowl or a pan of ice

• Hot water

Steps:

• To begin making the caramel component of the flan, pour in the 100 grams of sugar in an empty pot. Proceed by adding just enough water so that it covers all the sugar. (Note: This is not the 30 mL/cc water that will be used later.)

• Turn the heat on to low. Be sure to keep the pot level and to not shake or stir the mixture.

• As the color of the mixture starts to become darker from outer edge, slowly and carefully tilt the pot from side to side to ensure that the color is consistent throughout the mixture.

• When the mixture has turned brown or caramel in colour, add in 30 mL/cc of water into the pot. (Note: The mixture is extremely hot and it may splash when + cold water is added to it. Gloves are advised. Please proceed with this step with caution.)

• Slowly pour the hot caramel into a 7-inch mold. Tilt the mold if necessary to make sure that the caramel covers the bottom of the mold.

• Set the mold aside in a bowl or a pan of ice to cool.

• To begin making the flan recipe, start by adding in 5 eggs into the mixing bowl. Use a whisk to mix the eggs together. Be sure to sift the egg mixture to ensure a smooth and silky texture.

• Add in 125 grams of white granulated sugar into the egg mixture and stir. Set aside when done.

• In an empty pot, add in 450 mL/cc of milk and 50 mL/cc of heavy cream and stir to a boil point. Slowly pour the milk and cream mixture into the eggs and sugar mixture and stir well.

• Sift the flan mixture before slowly pouring it into the mold. (Note:

Please be sure that the caramel has hardened before pouring the flan mixture. Otherwise the caramel and the flan will be mixed together as one.

• Use a toothpick or paper towel to lightly get rid of any bubbles.

• Place a sheet of aluminum foil over the top of mold. It does not need to be sealed. This is to prevent the surface of the flan from becoming dry.

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (150 degrees Celsius)

• Lightly place the mold in a baking pan. Add hot water to the baking pan until it has reached the halfway mark of the mold.

• Place the mold along with the pan of hot water into the oven. Let it bake for 40 minutes. (Note: The baking pan will be extremely hot. Please use baking gloves and ask for assistance if needed.)

• After 40 minutes, before taking the mold out of the oven, use a fork to lightly tap on the side of the mold to check to see if the flan is still runny at the center. If it is, let it bake for 5 more minutes.

• Once the center of the flan has solidified, carefully take the mold out of the oven and let it cool in a pan of cold water and ice.

• When it is cooled, the flan is now ready to be served. (Note: The flan can be refrigerated overnight before serving).

• To properly remove the flan from the mold, carefully run a butter knife around the rim of the mold to separate the flan.

• Cover the mold with a large enough plate before flipping it upside down.

• Carefully remove the mold.

Voila! A delicious caramel flan is ready for you to share with family and friends.

The history of flan, also known as crème caramel, can be traced all the way back to the Roman Empire. The word flan itself came from a French word “flaon”, which is derived from the Latin word “fladon”, which originated from the Old High German word “flado” meaning flat cake.

Upon the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 A.D., flan was one of the many things that survived and passed to today. Flan was initially a savory dish, made from common poultry and fish. It was the Spaniards who had taken the century-old recipe and put a twist on it by adding caramel sauce.

The Europeans brought many treasures with them, including flan, when they first discovered America. Throughout the years, the recipes of the flan have mostly remained the same with egg, cream and sugar being the core ingredients of the dish. Today, flan is known to be the custard-based dessert topped off with caramel sauce. Many variations such as chocolate flan and mango flan are used. This flan caramel version was baked by me as take from youtube.com/watch?v=PlA09FSd22E