Banh Flan

Banh Flan is Vietnam's silky-smooth version of creme caramel – a legacy of the French colonial era that has taken on a life of its own on street corners and in cafes. A dark, slightly bitter caramel is poured into the bottom of the mold and covered with a creamy egg custard made with sweetened condensed milk. The dessert is gently steamed until just set, then inverted so the caramel runs down like a sauce, and served chilled. In Vietnam, it's often topped with strong, cold coffee (cà phê) and crushed ice – an irresistible combination of sweet, bitter, and cool. The key is gentle steaming to ensure the custard is smooth and free of bubbles.

• Cuisine: Vietnamese
• Prep time: 1 hour (plus chilling time)
• Servings: 4 people
• Difficulty: Medium

Instructions

1. Make the caramel: melt 1 dl sugar in a dry saucepan over medium heat without stirring until golden brown. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully add 1 tbsp water – be careful, it will sputter.
2. Immediately pour the caramel into the bottom of four small individual molds or ramekins and let it set.
3. Lightly whisk 3 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks together in a bowl – stir gently to avoid too many air bubbles.
4. Heat 3 dl whole milk until lukewarm (not boiling), then stir in 1/2 can of sweetened condensed milk and 1/2 tsp vanilla sugar.
5. Slowly pour the lukewarm milk into the eggs while stirring constantly to prevent the eggs from curdling.
6. Strain the egg mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a jug – this will result in a perfectly smooth custard without lumps.
7. Distribute the egg mixture into the molds over the set caramel.
8. Cover each mold with foil and steam over low heat for 25-30 minutes, until the custard is fully set at the edges and only slightly jiggly in the center. A skewer inserted should come out clean.
9. Remove the molds, let them cool, and then chill them in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours until completely cold and firm.
10. Run a knife along the edge, invert each flan onto a plate so the caramel runs down, and optionally top with a splash of strong cold coffee and crushed ice.

Tips

• Steam gently: too much heat will create bubbles and an airy, holey custard instead of a silky-smooth flan.
• Always strain the egg mixture – it's the simple step that makes the difference between grainy and velvety smooth flan.
• The custard should still jiggle slightly in the center when removed; it will firm up further in the refrigerator.
• The cold coffee topping is classic Vietnamese – use a strong, dark coffee for a lovely, bitter contrast to the sweetness.
• Make the flan the day before; it only gets better by resting overnight in the refrigerator.