What is the secret of crème brûlée?

Chill custard overnight . To get the smoothest, most gorgeous crème brûlée, cover the bowl and chill overnight. If you don't have the time, you can continue with the baking, but you'll get the silkiest custards by chilling the mix for at least a few hours.

What is the best sugar for crème brûlée?

For the caramelized sugar crust, we recommend turbinado or Demerara sugar . Regular granulated sugar will work, too, but use only 1 scant teaspoon on each ramekin or 1 teaspoon on each shallow fluted dish.

Why won t my crème brûlée set?

This is most likely due to underbaking . Creme Brulee is perfectly baked when it is set and firm around the edges but still has a wobble / jiggle in the middle when shaken. Additionally, it is important to chill thoroughly, ideally overnight, before diving in.

How do you keep crème brûlée crispy?

Don't chill too long after adding topping : Once you caramelize the topping, don't refrigerate the crème brûlée longer than 30 minutes because the gorgeous hardened top will deteriorate and become soft.

Why is my crème brûlée not creamy?

Undercooked: It's possible that you didn't bake it long enough . Crème brûlée should be set around the edges but still slightly wobbly in the center when you take it out. It will continue to set as it cools. Too much liquid: Make sure you're using the right proportion of cream to egg yolks.

Is it better to overcook or undercook creme brulee?

Undercook the creme brulee and it will still be liquid. Overcook it, and it might curdle . It's why during this step you carefully cook the egg yolks. In a creme brulee you want the entire filling to be set, smooth and firm.

Can you cook creme brulee too long?

Even with this gentle method, it's still possible to over bake the custards, resulting in curdled texture . When it comes to crème brûlée, accuracy and precision with temperature control matter.

Is it better to use white or brown sugar for brûlée?

"You really need to use white granulated sugar ," says senior food editor Chris Morocco. The small granules caramelize quickly, meaning the sugar won't get overly burnt and the pudding won't melt. Also, he points out: The white crystals provide a visual cue as you're torching it.

Can I caramelized the sugar on creme brulee ahead of time?

After you've melted and caramelized the crème brûlée top, let it rest and harden for up to half an hour. You can do this before dinner , put them in the fridge, and then eat after you're done with your meal.

Is turbinado sugar better for creme brulee?

I've tried topping this creme brulee recipe with everything from superfine (caster) sugar to coarse turbinado sugar, and honestly all of them have worked for me. My preference for the most even sugar coating is just regular granulated sugar though.

How long does it take for creme brulee to set?

Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes . Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top.

What temperature should creme brulee be cooked to?

Bake until the center internal temperature reads 170-175°F (77-79°C)—about 25-30 minutes. Set Extra Big and Loud Timer for 20 minutes, and start checking the internal temperature 5 minutes before the recommended cooking time. When done the custards should be smooth without bubbles on the surface, and no browning.

Why is my crème brûlée puffing up?

Sometimes Creme Brulee is not smooth If you over whisk the eggs, they incorporate too much air and puff up in the oven . You can see this happen if you watch through the oven door. Another possible cause is under baking. The custard should be set but still jiggle when shaken gently, not remain liquid.

Black Sesame Creme Brulee Recipe (2024)

Oct 4, 2017 • Author: Joyce Lee • 15 Comments • This post may contain Amazon affiliate links.

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5 from 4 votes

This black sesame creme brulee is a deliciously decadent, creamy and rich dessert with a wonderful nutty flavour with a caramelized hard candied top! A unique way to switch up the usual creme brulee and give it a little twist!

Before we start, I must warn you now - This is a very decadent and rich dessert. This is definitely not something I would normally make for myself because I would probably eat all of it on my own and regret it within the hour.

That being said, this is still a delicious dessert and definitely a treat to entertain. The creme brulee creaminess complements the nutty flavor of black sesame and I even added a touch of peanut butter to enhance that nutty flavor and my favorite part is, it's not overly sweet even though it has that classic signature candy brittle on top!

INGREDIENTS

All ingredients should be available at your local grocery store, with the exception of black sesame seeds which might be a bit more trickier to find. I usually find these at an Asian grocery store. I used the raw unsweetened peanut butter for this (the kind where the oil separates from the nutty stuff) If you prefer to use normal peanut butter, I don't see how that would be a bad thing - just make sure it is unsweetened so you don't over do it with the sugar. Neat tidbit about the natural raw peanut butters I like to do to prevent it from separating: Stir it up real good when it is in room temperature so it is fully mixed, then put it in the fridge upside down for a day. After a day you can put your peanut butter right side up again and it will stay mixed up as long as you keep it in the fridge! 🙂 No more separation! I used a kitchen torch to make the sugar coating on top of the creme brulee because I did not have any oven safe containers to make these in. However, if you have oven safe ramekins the easier route might be to stick them in your oven, with the rack set high near the broiler and broil the sugar topping for 2-5 minutes. Watch it like a hawk because brown sugar loves to burn.

PUTTING IT TOGETHER

Eggy Flavoured Creme Brulee? No Thanks.

There have been many many times in the past where I have created eggy flavoured creme brulee and as much as I love eggy flavoured things, creme brulee is not one of them. To prevent that from happening you have to make sure to not over cook the eggs while you are making the custard. Make sure the stove is set to low. It is important to keep stirring as well - if your custard sits too long against the bottom of the pot, the eggs will start to scramble and we don't want that. You will know the custard is done when it is thick enough coats the back of your spoon and when you run your finger through it the line stays put. (It will thicken more when it cools) You can use a double broiler method to cook the custard as well but I'm not a fan of creating extra dishes unless it is absolutely necessary.

Sugary Goodness for the Hard Candy Topping

For this recipe I used both white sugar and brown sugar to create the hard candy topping. I found that when I used just white sugar, it wasn't giving me enough flavour - besides sweet and when I used just brown sugar it didn't give me that nice hard candy topping but it gave me flavour so I combined it! I added a few teaspoons of white sugar into the dish and swirled it around to lightly coat the tops of the custard with sugar. Any excess white sugar I would pour into the next dish and repeat the step. Then I would lightly sprinkle some brown sugar on top of that and then torched it! One thing I noticed is, torching it once wasn't good enough to get that crispy hard topping. I torched it once to melt everything as best I could and then let it rest for 5-10 minutes to cool. Once it cooled a bit you will see little un-melted sugar bits on top that the torch didn't fully melt so I would torch it again the second time focusing on the bits that weren't fully melted yet. This produced a solid hard candy coating! 🙂

Looking for More Dessert Recipes? Try These!

Black Sesame Chocolate Ruffled Milk Pie
Roasted Banana Banana Bread
Mini Butter Mochi Muffins
Chewy Five Spice Ginger Molasses Cookies
Black Sesame Cheese Cake
Candy Cane Chocolate Crepe Cake

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Recipe Card

Black Sesame Creme Brulee Recipe

This black sesame creme brulee is a deliciously decadent, creamy and rich dessert with a wonderful nutty flavour with a caramelized hard candied top!

Joyce's Recipe Notes

An alternative option to cooking the black sesame custard directly over the stove, is to use a double broiler to cook it over a gentler heat. It's not necessary but a more fool proof method to not overcook the custard.
I used the raw unsweetened peanut butter for this (the kind where the oil separates from the nutty stuff) If you prefer to use normal peanut butter, I don't see how that would be a bad thing - just make sure it is unsweetened so you don't over do it with the sugar.
Neat tidbit about the natural raw peanut butters I like to do. Stir it up real good when it is in room temperature so it is fully mixed, then put it in the fridge upside down for a day. After a day you can put your peanut butter right side up again and it will stay mixed up as long as you keep it in the fridge! 🙂 No more separation!

Ingredients

▢ 4 egg yolks
▢ 1 cup heavy cream (whipping cream)
▢ brown sugar (for candy top at the end)
▢ white sugar (for candy top at the end)

Black Sesame Paste

▢ ½ cup black sesame
▢ 4 tablespoons heavy cream (whipping cream)
▢ ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened natural peanut butter
▢ 3 ½ tablespoons honey
▢ 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Instructions

In food processor, add in all the ingredients under the 'Black Sesame Paste' ingredient list and blitz it until you get a dark black smooth paste. Set this aside
In a mixing bowl, whisk the yolks until they are creamy with a fork or a whisk. (Approximately 1-2 minutes)
Stir in the sesame paste into the egg yolks and mix well
In a small pot, heat up the cream on medium low heat until it is hot. Watch this carefully and keep stirring the cream so it doesn't burn on the bottom of the pot.
Once the cream is hot, slowly add it into the black sesame egg mixture (approximately ½ - 1 cup at a time) Keep stirring the egg mixture while you are doing this to prevent the eggs from cooking.
Once all the cream has been well mixed into the sesame egg mixture, add it all back into the pot and cook it over the stove on low heat. At this point, it is very important to keep stirring it. We don't want to make scrambled eggs, so keep the custard mix moving and off the bottom of the pot.
Keep stirring until the mixture thickens. You will know the custard is done when the custard is thick enough to coat the back of your spoon and when you run your finger through it, it keeps its shape around the line. (See blog post for picture)
Once it is at the right consistency, turn off the heat and remove it from stove immediately. Over cooking the mixture will cause an eggy flavoured creme brulee.
Pour the mixture into little dessert bowls (preferably oven safe ones) and refrigerate it for a minimum of 1 hour.
When you are ready to serve it, add 1-2 teaspoon of white sugar to the top of the of the creamy mixture and swirl it around to give it a light coating of sugar, pour any excess sugar to the next bowl and repeat.
Sprinkle some brown sugar on top and use a kitchen torch to melt the sugar (alternatively if you have oven safe bowls, you can put them under the broiler for 2-4 minutes but you must watch this to make sure they don't burn too much - remember to put the rack slightly higher than usual as well)
When I'm using a kitchen torch to melt the sugar, I find I get a more consistent sugar candied top if I let it rest for 5 minutes after the first melt and then melt it again at the spots that I missed (the non smooth bumpy leftover sugar bits) but this is completely optional 🙂
Enjoy immediately! 🙂

Nutrition

*Nutritional information is calculated using online tools and is an estimate*

Did you try this recipe?I'd love to hear from you! Let me know how it was and consider giving it a rating! Tag me on Instagram with @pupswithchopsticks to show me!

Disclaimer: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites, however I provide these links to make items easier to find if you cannot purchase this locally and I would never recommend anything I don’t own myself or highly recommend. I would prefer you buy your items locally if possible to support your local shops (and chances are they are cheaper locally as well!) 🙂

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Comments

heather (delicious not gorgeous) says
October 18, 2017 at 2:28 am

ahhh this sounds awesome!! i love creme brulee, i love black sesame, so i'm sure i'd love this too (: the pb is unexpected but also makes total sense (if that makes any sense at all).
Reply
- Joyce says
  October 19, 2017 at 1:07 pm
  
  It's already nutty, why not go full hog crazy nutty right? (and no, no sense at all 😉 ) hee!
  Reply
Lokness says
October 10, 2017 at 11:03 am

I would never think of turning black sesame into creme brûlée. What a brilliant idea! This sounds like a dream for black sesame lovers. A truly rich and decadent dessert! And thank you for the peanut butter tip. Learning something new every day. 🙂
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