Purin (Japanese Flan)

A silky smooth baked custard with a sweet caramel sauce. This purin aka creme caramel is wobbly, sweet and delicious!

What is purin?

Purin is essentially the Japanese version of a pudding otherwise known as creme caramel, flan or baked custard around the world. Purin are so popular in Japan that you will find them in everywhere from convenience stores to patisseries. You can even find powdered purin to make at home!

The Japanese obsession for purin isn't unwarranted. How can you resist a silky smooth wobbly pudding covered in caramel sauce?

How to create the perfect flan?

When creating purin the most important thing is the texture. You want to create the smoothest pudding possible as that is the main event. The biggest obstacle is air bubbles. Air bubbles can affect the texture of the pudding and it doesn't look great either. Here are some tips to create a silky smooth flan.

Whisk as little as possible

Only whisk the batter until the eggs have been dispersed. There is no need to beat the eggs as it will only create air bubbles

Pour the mixture through a sieve

Pouring the batter through a sieve will filter out any air bubbles that were created during the mixing process.

Bake on low for a longer time

Baking the puddings on a high heat can cause the batter to bubble up as it bakes. A low temperature prevents this.

Place a tea towel underneath the ramekins

Air bubbles will form when the heat is too high. By placing a tea towel beneath the ramekins prevents the bottoms of the puddings from getting direct heat. No direct heat = less air bubbles!

How to remove flan from the ramekin

Now you have baked your purin you need to unmould it. This can be a bit of a difficult task, but with a few tips there shouldn't be any problems.

1. Heat the sides of your ramekin: You can run it under hot water or heat the sides with a blow torch
2. Run a thin knife along the top edge of the pudding
3. Invert the ramekin onto a plate
4. Holding the ramekin to the plate give it a few strong shakes until you hear the pudding release
5. Slowly lift the ramekin up to reveal your perfect flan!

Let's Get Baking!

I hope these tips help you create the silky purin of your dreams.

If you liked this recipe make sure to leave me a comment and rating down below, I would love to know how you went.

Also, don't forget to tag me on Instagram @catherine.desserts and hashtag #cattycakes so I can see and share your desserts. Follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Youtube, and TikTok for more of my baking creations and updates! Until next time... happy baking!

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