This Easy Eggless Flan is creamy, rich, and smooth! It’s beyond easy to make and a delightful way to finish any special meal or holiday celebration. The recipe includes step-by-step photos and lots of tips.
Easy Eggless Flan Recipe Highlights
Flan is one of my childhood favorites! So, I am super happy about this egg-free version of this popular Latin dessert.
This Easy Eggless Flan recipe is creamy, indulgent, and delicious. It’s the perfect dessert to whip up in advance since it requires time to set properly.
This homemade eggless flan is a breeze to make! You don’t even need an oven, just a handful of ingredients and a sauce pan. And who doesn’t love a recipe that only requires a few simple ingredients?
What Is Flan?
Flan, or crème caramel or caramel custard, is a custard dessert that is topped with caramel sauce. Flan has been a staple of Latin American cuisine. It’s known for its smooth and creamy consistency/texture. And like all the custard desserts, the traditional version has lots of eggs in it.
In The Post: Everything You Need for This Egg-Free Flan
Ingredients You’ll Need
Amounts are included in the printable recipe below (scroll down). You’ll need:
Ingredients Notes & Substitutions
- Gelatin: You can use granulated gelatin or leaf gelatin sheets. 1 (0.25 oz.) envelope granulated gelatin = 1 tablespoon granulated gelatin = 3 leaf gelatin sheets. For this recipe, you will need 2 envelopes, 15 g, or 1 1/2 tablespoons.
- Water: To bloom the gelatine.
- Sweetened condensed milk: I recommend using the full-fat version for the best results.
- Heavy cream: Make sure it has at least 35% of fat content.
- Evaporated milk: You don’t have evaporated milk? No problem!! Check out my post about How to Make Evaporated Milk at home.
- Salt: When making custards, I like to use black salt, which tastes and smells like hard-boiled egg yolks. This salt is used in many vegan/eggless recipes to mimic the flavor of the eggs. It can be found in gourmet grocery stores or online on Amazon. You don’t have black salt? No problem! Just use regular salt. The pastry cream won’t have an eggy flavor but will still be delicious regardless. When using regular salt, I prefer kosher or sea salt. If you only have table salt handy, I recommend reducing the amount to half.
- Vanilla extract: For optimal flavor, reach for pure vanilla instead of imitation. Even better, try homemade vanilla extract!
Step By Step Recipe Photo Tutorial
Step 1 – Make the Flan
Mix gelatin and water in a small bowl.
Mix sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, evaporated milk, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, while constantly whisking. Add the set gelatin and continue mixing until the gelatin is melted and there are no lumps, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low and let it simmer for 1 more minute, still whisking.
Remove pot from heat, then add the vanilla and mix until incorporated.
Step 2 – Chill
Pour the flan mixture into your mold of choice. I used a silicone mold to make the unmolding process easier. Let the mixture cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Then place it in the refrigerator, loosely covered, and chill for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, and up to 3 days.
Sign up with your email address to receive egg-free recipes.
Step 3 – Make the Caramel Sauce
In a sturdy small saucepan, combine one cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of water, and the corn syrup. Stir over low heat until dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved completely, turn the heat up to medium, and let it boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir vigorously as the caramel continues to cook, and the mixture is a light amber-golden brown color.
Remove the pot from heat. Carefully pour in the remaining 1/2 cup of water. Be super careful when stirring the water into the caramel, as it can splatter. Next, stir in the vanilla and salt; mix to incorporate.
Pour the caramel sauce into a glass jar and set aside to cool completely before use.
Step 4 – Add the Caramel Sauce to The Eggless Flan
Once the flan has set, and the caramel sauce is cooled, pour the caramel sauce over the flan.
Step 5 – Unmold
To unmold, carefully run a knife around the edges and invert onto a large, rimmed serving platter.
Recipe Tips
Make Ahead. I recommend preparing the flan in advance, so it has plenty of time to set in the fridge.
Mold. I like to use a silicone mold for easy unmolding. You can use a flan mold, large wide ceramic, glass dish, or individual ramekins dishes. In this case, I recommend lightly spraying the mold with non-stick spray before adding the mixture.
Extra Caramel Sauce. I usually double the caramel sauce ingredients, so I have extra sauce to serve along with the flan.
Storing & Freezing Instructions
STORE eggless flan by tightly covering and refrigerating it for up to 4 days. I don’t recommend freezing flan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can! In that case, use just 3 g and sprinkle it directly over the milk (step 2).
For best results, I recommend following the recipe exactly and not making any substitutions. If evaporated milk is not available in your area, you can make your own at home. Learn how to make evaporated milk.
I like to use a silicone mold for easy unmolding. You can use a flan mold, large wide ceramic, glass dish, or individual ramekins dishes. In this case, I recommend lightly spraying the mold with non-stick spray before adding the mixture.
More Eggless Custard Dessert Recipes You’ll Love!
Recipe Card 📖
Easy Eggless Flan
Ingredients
For the Eggless Flan:
- 1 1/2 tablespoon (15 g) powdered gelatin
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) water
- 1 can – 397 g sweetened condensed milk
- 2 cups (480 ml) heavy cream
- 1 cup (240 ml) evaporated milk
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt (see notes)
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
For the Caramel Sauce:
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (240 ml) water
- 1 teaspoon corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
Make the Eggless Flan:
- Mix gelatin and water in a small bowl. Let the mixture rest for 5 – 7 minutes. The gelatine and water mixture will set hard.
- Mix sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, evaporated milk, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat while constantly whisking.
- Add the set gelatin and continue mixing until the gelatin is completely dissolved and no lumps, about 3 minutes. Then, reduce heat to low and let it simmer 1 more minute, still whisking.
- Remove pot from heat, then add the vanilla and mix until incorporated.
- Pour the flan mixture into your mold of choice. I used a silicone mold (2.4 l | 10 cups capacity) to make the unmolding process easier. Let the mixture cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Then place it in the refrigerator, loosely covered, and chill for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, and up to 3 days.
Make the Caramel Sauce
- In a small, sturdy pot, combine the sugar, 1/4 cup of water, and the corn syrup. Stir over low heat until dissolved.
- Once the sugar has dissolved completely, turn the heat up to medium, and let boil for 2 to 3 minutes; stir vigorously as the caramel continues to cook and the mixture is a light amber color.
- Remove the pot from heat. Carefully pour in the remaining 1/2 cup of water. Be super careful when stirring the water into the caramel, as it can splatter. Next, stir in the vanilla and salt; mix to incorporate.
- Pour the caramel sauce into a glass jar let it cool completely before use.
- Once the flan has set in the refrigerator and the caramel sauce is cooled, pour the caramel sauce over the flan.
- To unmold, carefully run a knife around the edges and invert onto a large, rimmed serving platter.
- Slice the flan and serve with the caramel sauce.
- Make Ahead. I recommend preparing the flan in advance, so it has plenty of time to set in the fridge.
- Mold. I like to use a silicone mold for easy unmolding. You can use a flan mold, large wide ceramic, glass dish, or individual ramekins dishes. In this case, I recommend lightly spraying the mold with non-stick spray before adding the mixture.
- Extra Caramel Sauce. I usually double the caramel sauce ingredients, so I have extra sauce to serve along with the flan.
Nutrition
Eggless Baking Frequently Asked Questions
You’ve asked, and I’ve answered! Read on for a handful of answers to the most frequently asked questions about eggless baking.
Originally posted in June 2021, the post content was edited to add more helpful information, with no change to the recipe in August 2022.
