Today we’re making my mom’s Puerto Rican flan recipe. This classic dessert consists of a lusciously creamy custard filling topped with homemade caramel.

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A Puerto Rican Classic
Flan is a classic Puerto Rican dessert (also known as an egg custard to many) and is made with a milk and egg base.
Traditionally, this custard is poured over a caramelized sugar base, baked and flipped upside down to reveal a beautiful caramel topping.
It’s the perfect combination of light creamy custard and rich sweet caramel.
Ingredients
Here at Salima's Kitchen, we love an easy recipe and my mom’s Puerto Rican flan recipe is about as simple as it gets.
Heading to the store and need a list? I’ve got you covered!
To make this dish you will need:
For the caramel layer :
- White granulated sugar
For the filling:
- 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
- milk
- vanilla extract
- A pinch of salt
- 5 eggs
- More white granulated sugar
Making the caramel (you’ve got this!)
Dedicate 15-20 minutes to watching your sugar melt over medium low heat, shaking the pan occasionally to help things melt evenly.
Keep shaking the pan occasionally to help distribute the sugar crystals and melt evenly.
Eventually your sugar will start to turn golden brown and liquify. Kill the heat at this point to prevent burning.
Be very careful when making and pouring the caramel as it gets extremely hurt and can cause serious burns.
Once the sugar is 100% melted, pour it into your baking vessel. It's important to carefully swirl the baking dish around to make sure the caramel is coating the bottom and all sides of the dish.
Be extremely careful not to burn yourself.
My mom and I usually grab a round glass pyrex dish or smaller ramekins (pictured above) for this recipe but you can use whatever you have on hand that's oven safe.
Making the Flan Filling & Baking
Once the caramel is in the baking dish/es, add all of the remaining ingredients to a blender.
I like cracking the eggs in a separate container. This makes removing any shells easy before combining everything.
Blend the filling until it's velvety smooth. Pour this mixture into your baking dish/es (over the caramel and salt.)
At this point you can preheat your oven to 350 degrees F / 177 degrees C and prep your water bath.
Create a water bath by placing your baking dish or dishes inside another, larger oven safe dish. Pour in warm water until it is nearly as tall as the flan, but not tall enough to overflow into it.
From there, you will bake the flan/flans in a water bath at 350 degrees for 60-80 minutes, or until the center looks jiggly (think jello) but not liquid.
The water bath technique helps the custard to cook evenly.
Remove the flan from the oven and from the water bath (the water will continue to cook the custard otherwise) and allow time for things to cool completely.
Using a knife, carefully loosen the edges around your flan and baking dish. Grab a platter or small plates to serve the flan/flans on and place over the baking dish.
Carefully flip the flan onto your platter, allowing the caramel to drizzle over the top.
Your flan may take a require a bit of encouragement to leave the baking dish.
Some helpful tips to try: shake the flan dish gently, tap on the bottom, patience is key!
Slice, serve and enjoy.
Creme Brulee vs. Flan
For many Americans, flan is just the Spanish version of Creme Brulee.
While the two dishes have many similarities, flan does not have the hard brulee crust or require any special tools (like a torch) to make.
Additionally, flan involves the process of baking the custard on top of the caramel, then flipping it after it's cooked and cooled. Creme brulee involves baking the custard alone, then sprinkling with sugar and using a torch to caramelize as mentioned above.
Baking Vessels
As you may have noticed, you can make this flan in a large baking dish or in smaller ramekins and bake in a larger dish to create a water bath.
The result is essentially the same, with the only difference being single servings of flan or one larger flan that can be cut into slices.
Just make sure whatever baking dish/es you use are oven safe up to 350 degrees Fareinheit.
Different variations to try
This version of flan is the most traditional in Puerto Rico and can be found at most panaderias (Puerto Rican or Spanish bakeries).
Many Latin cultures have their own versions of the traditional flan that will vary between countries. That said, there are also variations between flavors of flan.
That said, you can experiment with any of your favorite sweet flavors in this dessert.
In the end, you can't go wrong with flan.
And if you're interested in trying more Puerto Rican food & desserts, check out this collection of my favorite Puerto Rican recipes.
Buen provecho,
Salima
Puerto Rican Flan Recipe
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings
- Category: Puerto Rican, Dessert, Custard, Flan
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Puerto Rican, Latin
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
For the Caramel:
-
1 cup white granulated sugar
For the Custard Filling:
-
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
-
1 cup milk
-
½ tbsp vanilla extract
-
A pinch of salt
-
5 eggs
-
½ cup white granulated sugar
Instructions
-
Make the caramel. Pour sugar into a heavy bottomed pot and melt over medium low heat. Watch closely and shake the pan occasionally to ensure the sugar melts evenly (can take up to 20 minutes).
-
Pour caramel into the baking dish/es. Once the sugar has melted, carefully pour the caramel in an oven resistant dish or dishes. Tilt the dish/es around to evenly distribute the caramel before setting aside.
-
Make the custard filling. Add all filling ingredients (evaporated milk, milk, vanilla, salt, eggs, and sugar) to a blender and blend until velvety smooth. Pour this mixture into your baking dish over the caramel.
-
Bake in a water bath. Place your baking dish inside another, larger oven safe dish with a layer of water to create a water bath. Bake at 350 degrees F for 60-80 minutes, or until the center looks jiggly (think jello) but no longer liquid. Remove the flan from the oven and allow time to cool completely.
-
Loosen and flip the flan. Using a knife, loosen the edges around your flan and the baking dish. Grab a platter to serve the flan on and place it over the baking dish. Carefully flip the flan onto your platter, allowing the caramel to drizzle over the top. Slice, serve and enjoy!
Keywords: Puerto Rican Flan Recipe, Flan Recipe, Puerto Rican Flan
Comments
Celia
I like how this recipe is easier than making creme brûlée. Definitely a new favorite for me to make!
★★★★★
Steve
ANy dessert I can make in a blender is an automatic favorite. Feels like I'm in PR again with this one.
★★★★★
Charlotte
Where is the coconut flan recipe? Do you have a cream cheese flan, or coconut cream cheese flan recipe?
★★★★★
Salima Benkhalti
Hi Charlotte! You can find the coconut flan recipe here: https://salimaskitchen.com/puerto-rican-salted-coconut-flan/
Unfortunately, we don't have any cream cheese flan recipes. Thanks for stopping by the blog!
Vanessa Agosto
Cream cheese flan it's made adding to this same recipe a block of cream cheese and that's it; (known as Philadelphia cheese) At least, that's how we've always make it. Delicious every time as well.
Salima Benkhalti
I love that version! Thanks Vanessa.
Jen
Outstanding! Super easy! I boiled the water for the bath prior to putting it in the oven. The whole thing was just perfect. I also used a cast iron skillet to melt the sugar it took a.long time to melt, at least a 1/2 hr. Will make this again and again thank you for a fantastic recipe! I can’t wait to try out the coconut flan.
★★★★★
Salima Benkhalti
I'm so happy to hear you had success making flan Jen! Thank you for leaving a comment and I can't wait to hear how it goes with the coconut flan 🙂
Vanessa Agosto
Flancocho instead of flancho 😉
it's a delicious recipe, thanks for sharing.
★★★★★
Wayne Williams
Awesome recipe and super easy to make! Best of all, IT TASTES AMAZING!! 😋 I love flan, and your recipe is the first one I’ve tried! No need to find another because this is fantastic! I’m even sharing your recipe with a great friend of mine who is from Puerto Rico and loves making flan! Thanks so much! Now all I have to do is watch my waist line! 😂
★★★★★
Salima Benkhalti
Thank you for your comment Wayne! I am so glad to hear it was both easy to make, and (most importantly) tasted great ☺️
Jennifer kaplan
I made this the first time for a friend who is from Puerto Rico. It turned out beautiful. So proud and thankful..
★★★★★
Salima Benkhalti
Thank you so much for your comment and review Jennifer. I know how much pride comes from cooking and sharing a meal with loved ones and I'm honored you chose my recipe. Thank you and I am so happy you enjoyed it!
Tony
My wife made this for me and it is the best flan I've ever had
★★★★★
Salima Benkhalti
So happy to hear that Tony!
Mary Ann
In the recipe you wrote 1/2 cup of sugar but in the video you said 1 cup of sugar. Can you clarify? I want to make this for father's day 🙂
Salima Benkhalti
Hi Mary Ann and thanks for your comment. You will need 1 cup of sugar for the caramel base and ½ cup of sugar for the custard filling mix. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Gail
How many does this serve? What size pan if not using individual ramekins?
Salima Benkhalti
This serves 8 and I recommend using a 12 inch circular baking dish.