If you’re looking for an easy-to-make dessert that’s crazy delicious with an absolute knock-out wow factor—this creamy, citrusy Puerto Rican-style flan is where it’s at! You can make it up to a week ahead, and it’s ridiculously budget-friendly. Are you ready for a new family favorite?
What Is Flan?
Puerto Rican-style flan is a chilled custard made with eggs, milk, sugar, and vanilla extract. The custard base is poured over a layer of caramelized sugar, and then baked in a water bath, ensuring even cooking and preventing the flan from cracking. Once the flan is baked, it’s cooled completely before being inverted onto a serving plate. The caramel sauce flows over the flan, creating a gorgeous, glossy presentation.
Ingredients for Flan
I love how truly simple this recipe is. You probably have everything you need right in your pantry! Here’s what you need to make my easy recipe for Puerto Rican-style flan:
- White Sugar: Creates the caramel sauce for our flan.
- Orange: The juice and zest of this fruit help flavor the custard.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk and Evaporated Milk: Create the base of our custard. You can substitute with Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk and Evaporated Coconut milk.
- Heavy Cream: Adds a velvety mouthfeel to the custard. You can substitute it with unsweetened coconut cream.
- Bay Leaf: Adds an earthy note to the custard to balance the sweetness. If you don’t have a bay leaf, skip it.
- Eggs: Thicken the custard and give it a buttery yellow hue. You need eggs to make this an authentic flan. But if you are trying to make this a plant-based dessert, mix 1/2 cup of cornstarch in 3/4 cup of water and add it to the milk mixture.
- Vanilla Extract: Adds a floral note to the custard and helps balance the sweetness.
What To Serve With Flan
In Puerto Rico, flan is usually served plain, but you can top yours with Homemade Whipped Cream or shaved chocolate. Citrus zest is also lovely with this recipe, as are sliced fresh berries. If you want to lean in on the fruit angle, Strawberry Sauce or Cherry Sauce are fantastic with it as well.
How To Store Flan
Flan shouldn’t be left at room temperature for more than two hours. Store leftovers in an airtight container with a sheet of plastic or parchment directly on the surface. It will keep for up to 2 days in the fridge. To freeze flan for up to 2 months, slice leftovers and wrap well, then place in an airtight container. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
Flan
Servings 8 slicesIngredients
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar ($0.18)
- 1 orange, zested into thick strips and juiced ($0.78)
- 1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk ($1.99)
- 1 12oz. can evaporated milk ($1.50)
- 1 cup heavy cream ($1.50)
- 1 bay leaf ($0.10)
- 1 pinch salt ($0.01)
- 4 large eggs ($0.36)
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract ($1.74)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Find a baking sheet large enough to accommodate a 9-inch pie dish or cake round with a flat top. It must lay flat for the flan to come out of it and onto a serving dish without breaking.
- Set a light-colored sauce pot over medium heat and add the sugar and 1/4 cup of orange juice. (If the orange didn’t release a ¼ cup of juice, make up the difference with water.) Heat the sugar and melt it until it turns light golden brown, then take the pot off the heat. The sugar will continue to brown off the heat. Do not stir the sugar, which can cause it to recrystallize and get grainy. Instead, swirl the pan.
- Pour the hot sugar syrup into the 9-inch pie dish or cake round, coating the bottom in an even layer. Set aside.
- Add the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream, bay leaf, strips of orange zest, and a pinch of salt to a medium pot. Heat until steaming, then take off the heat, cover, and steep for 20 minutes.
- When the milk mixture has finished steeping, beat 4 eggs with 1 tablespoon of vanilla in a large bowl. Pour the steeped milk mixture through a fine mesh sieve into the egg mixture and mix. Do not whip; you don't want to incorporate air into the liquid.
- Meanwhile, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil for the water bath. Pour the milk and egg mixture into the prepared 9-inch pie dish or cake round, then place the pie dish or cake round onto the baking pan. Place the baking pan in the oven and fill halfway with boiling water to surround the pie dish or cake round, creating a water bath.
- Lower the temperature of the oven to 350°F. Bake the flan for 60 to 70 minutes until the custard has set but still jiggles like thick lava in the middle. Let the flan cool completely. Then, place it in the fridge to set for at least 8 hours.
- To serve the flan, run a knife around the edges of the pan. Then, top the 9-inch pie dish or cake round with the serving plate and carefully flip it over. Tap the baking dish gently to help the flan release. When you hear the flan release from the pie dish, remove the pie dish carefully and let caramel sauce flow over the flan.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Flan
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Find a baking pan large enough to accommodate a 9-inch pie dish or cake round with a flat top. It must lay flat for the flan to come out of it and onto a serving dish without breaking.
Set a light-colored pot or skillet over medium heat and add ¾ cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of orange juice. (If the orange didn’t release a ¼ cup of juice, make up the difference with water.) Heat the sugar and melt it until it turns light golden brown, then take the pot off the heat. The sugar will continue to brown off the heat. Do not stir the sugar, which can cause it to recrystallize and get grainy. Instead, swirl the pan.
Pour the hot sugar syrup into the 9-inch pie dish or cake round, coating the bottom in an even layer. Set aside.
Add one 14oz. can of sweetened condensed milk, one 12oz. can of evaporated milk, one cup heavy cream, one bay leaf, strips of zest of one orange, and one pinch of salt to a medium pot. Heat until steaming, then take off the heat, cover, and steep for 20 minutes.
When the milk mixture has finished steeping, beat 4 eggs with 1 tablespoon of vanilla in a large bowl. Pour the steeped milk mixture through a fine mesh sieve into the egg mixture and mix. Do not whip; you don’t want to incorporate air into the liquid.
Pour the milk and egg mixture into the prepared 9-inch pie dish or cake round. Place the pie dish or cake round into the baking pan.
Boil 2 quarts of water. Place the baking pan in the oven and fill halfway with boiling water to create a water bath around the pie pan. Lower the temperature of the oven to 350°F.
Bake the flan for 60 to 70 minutes until the custard has set but still jiggles like thick lava in the middle. Let the flan cool completely. Then, place it in the fridge to set for at least 8 hours.
To serve the flan, run a knife around the edges of the pan. Then, top the 9-inch pie dish or cake round with the serving plate and carefully flip it over. Tap the baking dish gently to help the flan release. When you hear the flan release from the pie dish, remove the pie dish carefully and let caramel sauce flow over the flan.
I didn’t see any reviews from anyone who had made it yet so I thought I’d leave one. The flan was delicious, I followed the baking instructions exactly and it came out great. The orange is subtle but adds a nice citrusy tang combined with the vanilla. It wasn’t the prettiest since all I had on hand was a pie pan with slanted sides, but still tastes great. I even had to re-make my caramel and I didn’t miss the original orange juice flavored caramel.
One small suggestion for the recipe in general, is to add a bit more instruction for the “novice” cook. For example, a typical range of time you should be cooking the caramel (my first batch was undercooked). I know it’s always different depending on your stove and pot/pan, but I ended up having to look up another recipe for the caramel portion to help me cook it properly, which had a bit more examples of how to tell it was done & a time range. Still 5 stars because I figured it out and it tasted great, and if you already know how to make caramel, won’t be an issue for you!
This is similar to the flan my Brazilian mother-in-law has made for me and I for her, though we just used vanilla to flavor instead of orange and bay! Love orange flavored sweets, will definitely have to give that a try.
For Brazilian pudim de leite condensado I’ve never bothered to steam the milks, I just threw all the custard ingredients into a blender. If I left out the bay leaf and orange zest, could I do that for this flan too?
I just want to thank you for providing instructions for veganizing this predominantly no -vegan recipe. I am not a fan of flan – but I appreciate this all the same.
It’s looks delicious
Sugar syrup is terrifically hot and sticks to skin in a way that is dangerous, so be super careful when pouring this into the pan.
You are the Best
I’m not sure how useful “jiggles like thick lava” is as a measure of doneness, but it did make me laugh 😊
@Monti – I’d love to see your take on a cream cheese flan if you’re familiar with them.