Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Caramel Custard
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
Boil the pint of milk in a double boiler.
Mix the flour with 3 tablespoons of milk until smooth.
Add half of the boiling milk to the flour mixture and stir well.
Pour the flour and milk mixture into the double boiler.
Stir the mixture for 5 minutes.
Cover the double boiler.
Cook the contents for 10 minutes.
In a small frying pan, heat 3 tablespoons of sugar until it melts and turns brown.
Remove the pan from heat.
Add 3 tablespoons of hot water to the melted sugar.
Let the mixture simmer for 15 minutes until the sugar becomes liquid again.
Stir the caramel into the mixture in the double boiler.
Cook for 15 minutes, stirring every 3-4 minutes.
Strain the custard into a pitcher or bowl.
Refrigerate the custard until needed.
Serve
Pour the custard into a glass dish about 10 minutes before serving.
Whip the cream until stiff.
Gradually add the powdered sugar to the whipped cream.
Drop the whipped cream on the custard with a tablespoon.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Milk + creamtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Milk
- Forms the body of the custard and thickens into a smooth, creamy base when heated.
- Flour
- Thickens the milk as it heats, giving the custard its set and smooth texture.
- Granulated sugar
- Melts and browns to make the caramel, adding colour, aroma and sweetness.
- Cream
- Whipped into a light topping that adds richness and a soft, airy texture.
The step that matters
Browning the sugar for the caramel. Dry sugar melts and then darkens quickly, and it can burn and turn bitter if left too long. Stop at a rich amber colour. Adding hot water to the caramel can make it spatter, so add it carefully off the heat.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
More caramel custard recipes
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.