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Monday, August 9, 2010

Kem Flan (Vietnamese Crème Flan)

Espresso Caramel Flan

My family used to run a coffee house when we were still in Vietnam. One of the specialty desserts we served was Flan which is a delicious custard dessert inherited from French colonialism. I was under 10 years old at that time but i still remember how the flan was served; perhaps it was one of my favorite desserts or perhaps it was just anything culinary related that captured my selective memory.

I love the delicate, beautiful amber color and its smooth, velvety texture. The cold of shaved ice reduces the sweetness of the flan's caramel, maintains it's texture and keeps it nice and cool. 

I remembered each flan was made in a very small round, 2/3 inch thick tin cup, about the size of a condense milk can. After it was done, the flan was flipped into a plate, and topped with shaved ice. Flan was made of eggs, milk and condense milk and these ingredients were expensive; therefore, flan was one of those expensive desserts in the 80's. 

A couple weeks ago it was my husband's birthday so I decided to make flan as one of the desserts. Instead of eating plain flan, I garnished fruits on top of the flan to enhance its taste and beauty. 
RECIPE: Kem Flan

Ingredients


Caramel
1/2 cup Sugar
1 tablespoon Espresso, optional

Flan
5 eggs 
5 egg yolks 
1 can 14oz sweet condensed milk 
1 can boiling hot water (use the condensed milk can to measure)
1 can whole milk 
1 bag of vanilla or 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
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Directions

Caramelizing the Sugar


Cook sugar in a sauce pan over a moderate heat. Watch the sugar closely as it heats. As the sugar begins to melt and turn from a clear liquid to a golden brown color around the edges, use a spatula move the liquefied sugar from the edges of the saucepan to the center. Be careful not to over stir the caramel- the sugar may start to clump up before it has a chance to melt. Caramel is done when it is just past the smoking point, and it has a deep amber color. At this point, turn off the heat and add the espresso if you like the taste of it.


Immediately pour the caramel into a baking pan and tilt the pan to make sure that the caramel is coated evenly at the bottom of the baking pan. 

At this point, preheat oven at 350 degree.  Make a water bath for flan by placing a baking tray in the middle rack of the oven and add hot water to 2/3 of the tray. 
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Making Flan


Whisk eggs until blended. In a separate mixing bowl, stir boiling hot water and condensed milk until dissolved. Add whole milk and mix well. Pour the mixture into the eggs bowl and do a quick whisk. Add 1 bag of vanilla or vanilla extract.  Strain it.

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Baking Flan


Pour flan mixture in a baking pan, place baking pan in the hot water bath.  Place a piece of foil loosely on top of the baking pan to prevent flan from burning.

Bake for about 45 minutes to 50 minutes depend on the type and size of your baking pan. The flan is ready to be removed from the oven when the edges are set. Gently shake the baking pan, the center of the custard should jiggle slightly. You can also insert the tip of a toothpick into the custard near the center. If the flan is still liquid, it needs more time in the oven.  Remove from the water bath and let them cool down.

disposable foil cake pans make a convenient carrier for flan to-go

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Presentation


Transfer flan to the fridge and chill it for a few hours. Refrigerating the flan overnight is best.  When it's ready to serve, loosen it from the pan with a knife and transfer onto a dessert plate and top with your choice of fruits or just eat it plain.


Enjoy!

26 comments:

  1. When do you add the whole milk?

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  2. Add WHOLE MILK after you mixed condensed milk with hot water. I missed this step. Thanks for pointing it out.

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  3. did you just use the egg yolks or did you use the whole egg?

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  4. I used 6 of whole eggs and 6 of egg yolks.

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  5. WHAT TEMPERATURE DO YOU BAKE THE FLAN IN?

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  6. The texture of my flan turned out not as smooth like yours! It had like bubbles in it. Do you know the reason?

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  7. If your flan is not smooth and has bubbles in it, it has to do with the oven heat and how long you bake it. I had the same problem when I made it for the first time. So when i make flan, I just make sure not to bake it too long. As you can see in the first pix, there were holes around the flan but the texture was smooth. The second time I made it and it was smooth, nice texture and no bubbles, as you see the pix in the bottom. Hope this help.

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  8. I noticed that you poured your mixture into a baking pan. Can you tell me what size it is? Also, if I baked them in 6 oz ramekins, how long would I have to set the timer for? I like to make single servings because there's just two of us. Can leaving the mixture in the fridge overnight eliminate the bubbling problem?

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  9. I think it probably takes about 10-15 minutes. You might want to try 10 minutes first then use a toothpick to test it out. I have never left the mixture in the fridge overnight so I don't have the answer for it. But you might try to leave 1 ramekin of mixture overnight and bake it the next day. Please let me know the result. Thanks

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  10. How does beating eggs in one direction prevent rising? I'm under the impression that egg yolks don't rise, only egg whites. And, I know for a fact that over-beaten egg whites don't rise properly. I'd think not to over beat the eggs in this case just to prevent air bubbles which affect the texture of the flan.

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  11. just tried this at home with my 8 year old nephew! it was so easy to follow and we had a blast making it. Thanks a lot, taste just like the ones in Vietnam, not too sweet and perfect with the crushed ice.

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  12. Thanks! I followed your instruction and it turned out perfectly!

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  13. I have a question I'm having a hard time making the caramel. It gets to hard to fast for me when I'm trying to mix my wet ingred. Am I doing it wrong? What happens when I pour the caramel into my ramekin and my caramels hardens? is it still good to make my flan. Thanks for your help.

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  14. Whenever I make my caramel it hardens fast when I pour it into my ramekin. Is this normal? What can I fix this problem? I turn on medium heat when I'm stirring my sugar. Will my flan still come out okay if my caramel is hard? While I'm leaving this post I'm waiting for my flan to come out from the oven.

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  15. You're doing it right. The caramelized sugar will harden almost immediately and may even crack. And that's what you want. The caramel will dissolve after flan is done.

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  16. Thanks Loan, it came out perfect! My whole family loves it and are requesting it for our next party.

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  17. HI Loan, very impressed of your passion of cooking. I just tried your flan recipe, but I failed making caramel. My caramel is kind of thick and quickly harden. It is difficult to get coated evenly in the mold. Do I need lower the heat after adding sugar, or do I need to add water. I used brown sugar. Thank you very much. can"t wait to hear from you. Best wishes to your family

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  18. Following this recipe, how much would this serve?

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  19. Wow, love your post about the kem flan! I appreciate the details of the instruction along with the photos! Can't wait to try it out tomorrow =)

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  20. This looks really delicious and my husband loves Flan so I will definitely have to try your recipe. I do want to follow it right so would you happen to know the size/measurement of your glass baking pan that you used in this post? Thank you!

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  21. The size of the round glass baking pan is 8 1/2 in x 2 1/2 in. I always use this glass pan to make flan as I like the thickness of it.

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  22. I made this and the texture was different from normal flan. It was firmer and wasn't as smooth. Nevertheless, everyone said it was very tasty!! Thank u for sharing and pls keep sharing more easy, yummy recipes

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    Replies
    1. A better flan recipe will be posted real soon. Stay tuned!

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  23. Excited for more recipes!! :D i love how your directions are easy to follow and the dishes are very tasty!!

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