 Homemade oven steamed Crème Caramel |
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| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Alternate name(s) | Flan Caramel custard |
| Place of origin | Spain |
| Dish details | |
| Course served | Dessert |
| Serving temperature | Cold |
| Main ingredient(s) | Eggs |
| Variations | Crème brûlée crema catalana |
| Approximate calories per serving | Varies |
| Other information | Popular throughout: Western Europe The Philippines Latin America North America Goa |
Crème caramel, flan, or caramel custard is a rich custard dessert with a layer of soft caramel on top, as opposed to crème brûlée, which is custard with a hard caramel top.
The dish has spread across Europe and the world. Both 'crème caramel' and 'flan' (from Old German flado 'cake') are French names, but have come to have different meanings in different regions. In Spanish-speaking countries and in North America, flan refers to cream; this was originally a Spanish usage, but the dish is now best-known in the United States in a Latin American context and also in the Philippines, where it is known more as leche flan. Elsewhere, including in France, 'flan' usually means a custard tart, often with a fruit topping. In Europe and many Commonwealth countries, the dish is generally known as cream caramel.
Food historian Alan Davidson remarks,
In the later part of the 20th century crème caramel occupied an excessively large amount of territory in European restaurant dessert menus. This was probably due to the convenience, for restaurateurs, of being able to prepare a lot in advance and keep them until needed.[1]
Contents |
Preparation and cooking
Preperation
Crème caramel is a variant of plain custard (crème) where some sugar syrup, cooked to caramel stage, is poured into the mold before adding the custard base.
Cooking
Historical: Open-air Steamed on open fire or on top wood burning oven.
Traditional: Open-air Steamed on Stove top range.
Modern Steamed: Specialty Closed-air food steamer or postmodern electric Countertop steamer.
Modern Baked: Flan mold put in secondary pan filled with water then baked.
Final Preperation
It is turned out like crème renversée and served with the caramel sauce on top.
Imitations
An imitation of crème caramel may be prepared from "instant flan powder", which is thickened with agar or carrageenan rather than eggs. In some Latin American countries, the true custard version is known as "milk flan" (flan de leche) or even "milk cheese", and the substitute version is known as just "flan".
Regional varieties
South America
Most notably in Argentina and Uruguay, but also in some neighbouring countries, crème caramel is usually eaten with dulce de leche.
In Chile it is often eaten with dulce de membrillo, a quince gelatin spread or leche condensada.
Cuba
Cuban flan known in the Spanish speaking world as "Flan de Cuba" is made with the additional flavoring of one cinnamon stick.
Philippines
In the Philippines, flan is known as Leche Flan—literally milk flan—a heavier version of the Spanish flan made with 12-18 egg yokes . Cooking of Leche Flan is in the traditionally open air steamed (not enclosed) way on an open fire or stove top, although rarely it can also be seen baked. Leche Flan is a staple in all celebratory feasts to the point where it is almost mandatory.
Vietnam
Crème caramel is also common in Vietnam brought over by the French, where it is known as kem flan.
Japan
Packaged crème caramel is ubiquitous in Japanese convenience stores under the name purin (プリン), or "custard pudding". Often, an entire shelf in a Lawson or 7-Eleven is dedicated to over a dozen brands and varieties.
Etymology
The Modern English word "flan" and the earlier "flawn" come from French flan, from Old French flaon, in turn from Medieval Latin fladonem, derived from the Old High German flado, a sort of flat cake, probably from an Indo-European root for 'flat' or 'broad'. [2]
See also
- Crème brûlée, a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a layer of hard caramel.
- In Spain, the Catalonian version of the crème brûlée is called crema catalana. It is also called Crema de Sant Josep, or St. Joseph’s cream, traditionally prepared on March 19, St. Joseph’s Day, the Spanish equivalent of Father’s Day in the USA.
Notes
- ^ Davidson, s.v. crème caramel
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Edition (1989); Petit Robert 1973.
References
- Alan Davidson, The Oxford Companion to Food, 1999. ISBN 0-19-211579-0.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Flan |
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