Fresh egg custard

Name: Fresh egg custard
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: for 6 people
Cuisine: British recipes
Ingredients: 1 fresh vanilla pod; 500ml full-fat milk; 5 organic free-range egg yolks; 80g golden caster sugar

Portion size: for 6 people
Takes 15 minutes
Difficulty: easy

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You only need four ingredients and four steps to make your own fresh egg custard. Otherwise known as crème anglaise or ‘posh custard’, this creamy vanilla filling is perfect poured over desserts. Find out how to make homemade fresh egg custard with our step-by-step guide, plus discover how to turn it into pastry cream for filling tarts (see Tips).

This is a treat that can elevate a simple pudding to something very special. It’s the luxurious combination of full-fat milk, sugar, fresh eggs and fresh vanilla that makes this silky-smooth sauce so good. Don’t be tempted to use semi-skimmed milk, as the result won’t be as delicious.

Browse our guide to everything custard, including custard-based dessert ideas.

Before you start

A tip for non-purists – you can whisk a pinch of cornflour into the eggs and sugar before you start, which helps the custard stabilise as it cooks.

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Ingredients

1 fresh vanilla pod
500ml full-fat milk
5 organic free-range egg yolks
80g golden caster sugar

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Method

Pour full-fat milk into a heavy-based saucepan. Split a vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and add the seeds and pod to the pan. Bring just to the boil, then remove from the heat. Set aside until required.
Put egg yolks into a large bowl with golden caster sugar. Using a hand whisk, whisk until thick and pale.
Pour the vanilla-infused milk through a sieve onto the whisked egg yolk and sugar mixture, stirring well. Discard the pod (the seeds will fall through into the custard). Quickly wash out the pan and return the mixture to the clean, dry pan.
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Return the pan to a low heat and cook slowly, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. This will take about 8 minutes. Test it by running a finger through the custard on the spoon: if it leaves a straight, clear line, it’s ready.

Quick wins & tips

Making fresh custard requires one other essential ingredient from the cook: patience. Custard must be cooked slowly over a very low heat and stirred constantly, until it gradually thickens to the point where it coats the back of a wooden spoon.

Boiling point is the enemy once you have added the eggs, so always keep the temperature of the custard just below the boil. If it boils, the eggs will begin to separate, much as they would if you were making scrambled eggs. If this happens, you may be able to save the custard by quickly straining the egg mixture through a sieve into a blender and whizzing it until smooth. You may then reheat it with a little blended cornflour and milk to help it stabilise, but all this will depend on how far it has curdled.

The golden rule is that you shouldn’t be tempted to increase the heat. It will only take about 8 minutes to cook, and remember: a fresh egg custard thickens only to something akin to fresh pouring double cream.

To make chocolate custard, grate plain chocolate to taste into the warm custard and stir until smooth.

Watch how to make fresh egg custard in this video:

How to make pastry cream
Pastry cream is essentially fresh egg custard thickened with flour, and this amount will fill 6 individual pastry cases for fruit tarts.

Whisk 6 egg yolks in a bowl with 100g golden caster sugar, then whisk in 25g plain flour and 25g cornflour. Bring 600ml full-fat milk to the boil and stir into the egg. Wash and dry the pan quickly, then pour the mixture back into the pan and bring to the boil, stirring until thickened. Don’t worry about boiling it, the flour will stabilise it. Cool and cover with a wetted disc of baking paper to stop a skin forming.