There are a lot of western (mostly French) cake shops everywhere in Japan. Some cake shops sell more delicate and sophisticated concoctions, and others simpler, everyday snack types. Wherever you go, though, you will definitely find Purin (プリン) in most shops in Japan. There are often millions of new cakes and other desserts to choose from there, but people always come back to something they ate in childhood. Purin is exactly like that. It is a comfort dessert for Japanese people.
There is an instant Purin mix you can buy at grocery stores in Japan, and it’s very popular, too. Add some milk, mix and chill, and there you are, easy Purin. This is a different kind of Purin though. Gelatin is used in this type of Purin. Because of the gelatin, it has a texture more like Jello rather than egg custard. It is very easy to make and tastes good in its own way, but we think baked custard is much better.
Purin Recipe
Ingredients
Caramel
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 Tbsp water ( )
Custard
- 2 cups plus 1 Tbsp milk
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup sugar ( )
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Caramel Syrup
- In a heavy pot, put in sugar and water, but do not stir. Put it on the stove at medium heat until the water and sugar turns to dark brown. Pour the syrup into 8 small (3″ diameter x 2″ high) pudding cups or ramekins (may have some leftover).
Custard
- Heat milk until just before boiling. Whisk together eggs and sugar, and add hot milk very slowly to avoid eggs curdling. Strain the mixture to make the liquid smooth, and add vanilla. Pour the mixture over the hardened syrup.
- In a baking pan such as 13x9x3, place purin cups, and pour hot water around the cups (not in the cups!) about 3/4 up the side of the cups.
- Bake at 350 F for 40-45 mins or until custard sets.
- Refrigerate at least 3 hours or preferably overnight. You could decorate with whipped cream and cherries before serving if you wish.
Video
52 Comments
Where did you get your individual baking cups? I can’t seem to find it.
Edison,
I don’t remember, but bought at some kitchen store. You can use ramekins too.
I’m trying to making this recipe but I only have a small oven. What would happen if we are not using a 13x9x3 baking pan? Would it limited the amount of water I should put in it? And the amount of cups I could put? If so what time should I put the pudding in the oven? Would it be 30-35 mins or just the regular mins? I’m truly sorry for the many questions it’s just that I want to be able to make a dessert for my family that they will enjoy.
Ashley Joy,
as long as the hight of water comes up to more than half of Purin molds, it’s ok.
I got mine at the Dollar Store. 4 glass cups for $1.00. I’ve used them in the oven using the Bain Marie technique (bath water).
Love this recipe! Thank you so much for posting it and for the helpful video. I am waiting patiently for mine to cool. I look forward to eating them!
Thank you Noriko and Yuko,
Chelsea
Chelsea,
hope you like it!
It was very good but I think I made the caramel a little too dark. Next time I think I will try and get the caramel a little bit lighter. =)
Thank you again!
Chelsea,
I love my caramel to be dark and bitter…Glad you liked the recipe!
Could I use a muffin/cupcake tray in place of the pudding cup? I know it would mean having to take out all the purin at once, but would it work?
Yadira,
I’ve never done that way…if you did, let us know!
hi! should i use a powdered sugar or the table sugar? and can i use soy milk instead?
thanks ^_^
Dawn,
granulated sugar, which is I believe “table sugar.”
Do you have to invert ramekin or can the Purin be left in ramekin and served?
Mary,
either way is fine.
Made it and the pudding was delicious! I loved the texture and taste of it, although I think the vanilla extract was a bit too overpowering and the taste of the egg didn’t really shine through.
By the way, I tried to make the caramel but it didn’t melt completely even though I put it on the heat for a good number of minutes. Are there any tips to mastering the caramel? Thank you so much!!
Faith,
you could omit vanilla extract if you don’t like its flavor.
I don’t know why sugar didn’t melt…was it granulated sugar? Hope you have better luck next time!
I’m soooo happy i found your website!! I just got back from a 3 month stay in Japan and i’m seriously going through withdrawals. I can’t wait to try this purin recipe! Thank you!
dani,
glad you found us too! We have other sweets like Dorayaki and Kasutera. Try them too!
Hey,
I made it but the purin came out like pudding, not firm like yours. Is it suppose to be like that? Can you eat it like that or is that food poisoning? What did I do wrong?
Oh, I also steamed it instead of baking it. Do you think I should steam it again to make it firmer?
Sarah,
I’ve never steamed Purin. Did you like it? How long did you cook at what heat?
Sarah,
as long as the milk mixture is set, it is cooked through. It may not get as hard when you cook in a steamer.
I only have a toaster oven and a microwave oven at home, is there still any way for me to bake the purins? Really look forward to cooking it too 🙁
Yewmei,
you may be able to make Purin in a steamer just like Chawanmushi. However, I’ve never tried that and I don’t know how long it need to be cooked…
I tried to make carmel sauce with cane sugar but it didn’t work. Do you think it needs to be white sugar? Is that why it didn’t work?
kenboomama,
if it’s pure sugar, it should work. I don’t know what you mean by cane sugar because white granulated sugar is also cane sugar. Powder sugar would not work because it contains cornstarch.
This weekend my Cousin and I are going to make this, wish us luck
Joe,
hope you had good Purin!
Hi Noriko and Yuko,
I have a small question. When ever I make the caramel, whenever I add water to the sugar, it ends up becoming hard and sticking to the bottom of the pan and never becomes golden brown. What am I doing wrong?
Also I tried replacing the vanilla with Banana and it turned out really good.
the guy,
do you mix sugar and water first? If you add water to hot sugar, it gets hard. It takes for a while the color becomes brown.
Hi may i know if I can go without sugar for pudding? Maybe replace it with honey or something natural?
Thanks
Jos,
you may not replace the sugar with honey in this recipe. The honey will change the water content, and then we have to alter the amounts of other ingredients too.
Hi,
Can I put the mixture in a bottle? similar to the stores in Japan?
Mary Ann,
as long as they are oven proof containers.
Hi I tried this today and I love it! But I now have a thick layer of caramel stuck to the bottom of my ramekins. Did I put too much? And any pointers on how to get it out??
Vi,
carmel will melt over time (about 2 days), but you will have enough carmel melted over night. You can soak in water to get it out.
Okay, thanks!
I made these for my student counsel at my high school, and everyone loved them very much! They asked me to make more. I could have not been more pleased! <3 Thank you so much for this lovely recipe ^~^
Lilium,
glad you liked our Purin recipe!
Hi Noriko, can i change the white sugar to brown sugar for the caramel syrup?
Jojo,
never tried before, but it may work. Good luck!
It is the same as a “leche flan” here on the Philippines, we sometimes put a drop of lime juice and lime zest to the syrup to add some aroma
Could you use glass cups? ?
Faith,
Yes,as long as they are oven safe.
I just finished making these. I attempted to half the recipe so we’ll see how this blows over…
Super excited despite!
Im really excited to see how this turns out though I had to make it in a cupcake tin.
Overall the pudding was yummy however the tin ended up burning the caramel sauce and ruined the pudding.
Trying this for the first time unsure how the Carmel got the sugar didn’t want to melt n turn brown. Otherwise super excited to see how it turns out
Hi, thank you for the recipe. I just tried making it today but it tasted very eggy, and there were a lot of tiny little bubbles in it. What might cause this? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I would love to try making this again. I tried the green tea custard pudding at a Tensuke market and just love it. Thank you so much!
Can we make it in a baking tin of aluminium used for cakes
ummm! my pudding has pores how do i prevent that from happening?
if use could email me how at
jordantrinder@hotmail.com
Thank you! <3