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
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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
Edison Chiu
October 12, 2013 at 10:53 pmWhere did you get your individual baking cups? I can’t seem to find it.
Noriko
October 15, 2013 at 8:48 pmEdison,
I don’t remember, but bought at some kitchen store. You can use ramekins too.
Ashley Joy
March 19, 2016 at 5:55 pmI’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.
Noriko
March 22, 2016 at 4:53 pmAshley Joy,
as long as the hight of water comes up to more than half of Purin molds, it’s ok.
Rowena
July 28, 2016 at 9:45 pmI 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).
Chelsea
January 9, 2014 at 1:39 pmLove 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
Noriko
January 12, 2014 at 9:16 pmChelsea,
hope you like it!
Chelsea
January 17, 2014 at 1:59 pmIt 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!
Noriko
February 1, 2014 at 11:52 amChelsea,
I love my caramel to be dark and bitter…Glad you liked the recipe!
Yadira Aguilar
January 24, 2014 at 9:44 amCould 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?
Noriko
February 1, 2014 at 11:32 amYadira,
I’ve never done that way…if you did, let us know!
Dawn
February 21, 2014 at 3:04 amhi! should i use a powdered sugar or the table sugar? and can i use soy milk instead?
thanks ^_^
Noriko
February 23, 2014 at 5:49 pmDawn,
granulated sugar, which is I believe “table sugar.”
Mary
March 28, 2014 at 9:31 amDo you have to invert ramekin or can the Purin be left in ramekin and served?
Noriko
March 28, 2014 at 8:23 pmMary,
either way is fine.
Faith
April 9, 2014 at 5:50 amMade 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!!
Noriko
May 12, 2014 at 10:30 pmFaith,
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!
dani
June 5, 2014 at 1:55 pmI’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!
Noriko
September 14, 2014 at 3:16 pmdani,
glad you found us too! We have other sweets like Dorayaki and Kasutera. Try them too!
Sarah
June 16, 2014 at 12:09 pmHey,
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?
Sarah
June 16, 2014 at 12:18 pmOh, I also steamed it instead of baking it. Do you think I should steam it again to make it firmer?
Noriko
September 13, 2014 at 11:43 pmSarah,
I’ve never steamed Purin. Did you like it? How long did you cook at what heat?
Noriko
September 13, 2014 at 11:45 pmSarah,
as long as the milk mixture is set, it is cooked through. It may not get as hard when you cook in a steamer.
Yewmei
June 18, 2014 at 8:14 amI 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 🙁
Noriko
September 13, 2014 at 11:14 pmYewmei,
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…
kenboomama
July 1, 2014 at 6:43 pmI 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?
Noriko
September 13, 2014 at 10:13 pmkenboomama,
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.
Joe Zednik
July 9, 2014 at 6:36 amThis weekend my Cousin and I are going to make this, wish us luck
Noriko
September 13, 2014 at 8:38 pmJoe,
hope you had good Purin!
the guy
August 9, 2014 at 11:35 pmHi 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.
Noriko
September 12, 2014 at 1:51 amthe 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.
Jos
September 23, 2014 at 1:11 amHi may i know if I can go without sugar for pudding? Maybe replace it with honey or something natural?
Thanks
Noriko
September 23, 2014 at 11:52 pmJos,
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.
Mary Ann
October 15, 2014 at 10:51 pmHi,
Can I put the mixture in a bottle? similar to the stores in Japan?
Noriko
October 24, 2014 at 6:01 pmMary Ann,
as long as they are oven proof containers.
Vi
December 29, 2015 at 4:25 amHi 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??
Noriko
December 29, 2015 at 11:07 pmVi,
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.
Vi
December 30, 2015 at 9:15 amOkay, thanks!
Lilium
January 5, 2016 at 6:13 pmI 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 ^~^
Noriko
January 7, 2016 at 9:42 amLilium,
glad you liked our Purin recipe!
Jojo
January 16, 2016 at 5:07 pmHi Noriko, can i change the white sugar to brown sugar for the caramel syrup?
Noriko
January 18, 2016 at 10:49 pmJojo,
never tried before, but it may work. Good luck!
Nirl
January 17, 2016 at 8:12 amIt 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
faith
February 2, 2016 at 11:56 amCould you use glass cups? ?
Noriko
February 5, 2016 at 1:14 pmFaith,
Yes,as long as they are oven safe.
Holly
February 17, 2016 at 9:41 pmI just finished making these. I attempted to half the recipe so we’ll see how this blows over…
Super excited despite!
Kyra
March 31, 2016 at 7:37 amIm really excited to see how this turns out though I had to make it in a cupcake tin.
Kyra
March 31, 2016 at 8:42 amOverall the pudding was yummy however the tin ended up burning the caramel sauce and ruined the pudding.
Rebecca
August 24, 2016 at 12:39 pmTrying 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
Nicole
October 24, 2016 at 12:49 pmHi, 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!
Jeannette
November 1, 2016 at 4:01 amCan we make it in a baking tin of aluminium used for cakes
Jordan
December 28, 2016 at 10:59 amummm! my pudding has pores how do i prevent that from happening?
if use could email me how at
jordantrinder@hotmail.com
Thank you! <3