Spanish Flan

Best recipe. Simple and the traditional way of making flan. Tips: Keep your baking dish warm/hot in the oven while you make the flan, so that when you do pour your caramel (melted sugar) into it, the caramel doesn't harden as quickly. When melting sugar, be patient and keep the heat LOW because the sugar may brown too dark. Don't fret if you still have small lumps of sugar in the end.. they will desolve when you bake the flan. As for the flan mixture, blend everything in a blender (adding the condensed milk last because its thicker) for the most effective and fastest way of mixing. Also, personally 3 eggs is not enough for me.. I add 5 (known people that add a lot more)... but the egg amount depends on YOUR density peference. Good Luck!

This is the one. I've made several flan recipes from this site and others and this recipe is the best. Have made this one several times now, and it is by far the best. Some hints: Melt the sugar with a drop or two of lemon juice. Do not stir the sugar while it's melting, just swirl in the pan occasionally. If you are worried about the sugar hardening too fast, heat the pan under hot water until ready to pour in sugar and dry with a towel. A warm pan will give you a little more time to tilt and coat the bottom before the sugar hardens. When you pour the custard into the sugared pan, pour it through a sieve to strain the mixture (I would recommend this tactic with all custard type dishes). Bake the flan in a water bath...it's not hard to do, and yields much better results. Last, bake this dish a day ahead of time. Let it sit overnight in the fridge (cover with wrap) before warming the pan's bottom in a warm water bath, then invert to release on a plate. Much of the carmel will have liquified and will run over the flan. Yum! If there's some hard surgar left in the pan, who cares?

This was an awesome recipe! Easy to make and more wonderful to eat! If you are worrying about the carmelized sugar hardening too fast, mix all the ingredients first, and then melt the sugar and swirl in the baking dish. This way, there is no gaps between swirling and pouring your flan mixture into the dish. Also, as a slight variatioin, I added 4oz. (half bar) of cream cheese to the recipe - to give it a firmer texture, since you're only using three eggs. After the flan had cooled completely (about an hour), we could eat it right away instead of torturing ourselves and waiting overnight. You'll be glad you added the cream cheese! Serving suggestion - serve with a scoop of dulce de leche ice cream - you can't go wrong!

WOW! Great, restaurant-quality flan that's creamy, rich, and the perfect sweetness. I blended the ingredients in a blender, which eliminated the need to strain the egg mixture, and I used a water-bath to make sure it had a delicate texture. Also, I kept the baking dish I was using over the oven vent to keep it warm, so the caramel didn't harden right away and was easy to spread. I've made this a few times, and it's perfect every time! For an adult variation, replace 2oz. of the evaporated milk with 2oz. of caramel cream liqueur. Yummo!

I liked this flan. It is a bit different than most I've had because of the reduced amounts of eggs. However, it works very well and it was tasty. One thing I wanted to mention.... the caramel/syrup thing seems to give some people problems but it can be done very easily with this short cut I use ALL THE TIME! I took a pyrex measuring glass (the 2 cup capacity one) and added 1/2 c water , then I added the cup of sugar to that water and stirred. Then, I placed it in the microwave and VOILA!!! Depending on the power of your microwave, the time will vary. It will take about 7-10 minutes at high power for the water/sugar mix to turn to caramel. Take a peek to make sure it doesn't get too dark though or it will taste bitter! You want it a medium amber color. DO NOT touch the syrup at any time!! I have a friend that did and the skin on her finger practically came right off and she didn't stop screaming for a while. OK?? BE CAREFUL! If you notice that the syrup hardens when it gets on the pan, don't worry. It will do so!! The important thing is to get it distributed in the pan as good as you can. It will melt again when baking. I always use a water bath and do not cover with foil (or anything else).

I loved this recipe. I decided to use this recipe since it seemed easier than the rest. I followed other suggested suggestions and used 1 extra egg and added cinammon. I also put some vanilla in my sugar after it melted down. I used a water bath by placing it onto a cookie sheet filled with water. I ran out of foil so I placed another cookie sheet upside down on top of the flan. Its's a trick I use whenever I run out of foil and it works great every time. This was my first time making flan and I expected it to be complicated but it was so much easier than it seems. I plan to keep using this recipe.

I like that it has less eggs and it takes little ingredients for the flan but it is missing a key ingredient for caramel. 1. Add some WATER! I learned this from foodnetwork, add til it looks like "wet sand." With plain sugar you're more opt to burn it. 2. Keep stirring, constantly 3. Take it off the heat the moment it reaches the color you want and have your dish(es) ready because it will harden almost immediately. I use individual glass custard cups. 4. Sugar likes to recrystallize, as one reviewer noticed, so add a few drops of something acidic. I always have lemon juice on hand so I use that. 5. Try medium heat, med low is too low. You can go higher but be careful. Then for the flan, it is custom to give it a "baño de maria" or "water bath" by inserting your flan dish into a larger dish, and filling the larger dish with hot water that reaches about halfway of your flan dish. It prevents it from cooking too much. And last but not least, I learned from experience that you NEED to give flan many hours of refrigeration, preferably overnight. You need to give the caramel time to re-liquefy, otherwise you'll be like my first flan ever and have hard candy discs! I hope this helps, its truly not difficult with a little advice and a bit of practice. Happy baking!

I joined this site bcuz of this recipe!! I just chose it bcuz I had 2 cups of reg. milk that were about to expire. Changes I made: substituted the evaporated milk for 16oz of reg. milk and added an extra egg and baked for only 30min. FLAN TURNED OUT TO BE MY MOM'S FAVORITED DISH and she loooved this! She ate 3 pieces and the only reason she stopped was bcuz she wanted to leave some for breakfast :)Thank u so much for this recipe! NOTE: the flan was bubbling and making holes in the oven which is why I took it out early...Does anyone know why?

OK..let me start by telling you how difficult making the caramel on the stove was. I gave up after 45 minutes. I tried this last night and it failed. I tried it again this morning but changed a few things. 1) Use 2/3 cup of sugar with small amount of water, and a little lemon juice. Place in a pyrex measuring cup. Microwave for 2 minutes, check color...mine was perfect after 4 minutes. 2) While caramel is cooking, place 4 eggs in a blender, use "beat" button, until well blended. Add remaining ingredients. 3) Pour caramel in a DEEP 9" pie plate, which has been sitting in a larger pan with boiled water, keeping pie plate warm. Move caramel around plate until evenly coated. Place back in "bath" water. Pour blended ingredients, slowly, on top of caramel. Pour boil water until it reaches half way up the plate. Cover, loosely, with foil and place in center of oven, at 350. Bake for 55 minutes. It will come out perfect. Cool and invert onto a dish, after running a knife around edges. No problem with sticking. Cover and refrigerate several hours. Total prep time was around 10 minutes...very easy with microwave and blender! It turned out to be one of the best flans I've had. YUMMY!!

The best Flan !! All my Latino friends say it's just like Abuela used to make ! I've made it many times and gotten rave reviews. Angel even ate a whole one by himself!

decided to try this method instead of my usual and i was very disenchanted. texture is an important factor with flan, & this one just doesn't cut it. it was spongy with a swiss cheese texture that I didn't care for. Looked soggy, saggy on the plate. Mixed up another batch of the same ingredients, but baked it in a water bath and it came out like absolute VELVET. I promise you that you will never bake flan according to this recipe's instructions again once you taste it. Keep the ingredients the same, but DO NOT skip the water bath, and I guarantee you all a slice of heaven!

EXCELLENT recipe. I've tried so many other flan recipes and this one tops them all. I have already made it three times for potlucks and I keep getting asked for the recipe. I can't believe how easy and few ingredients it took to make. My boyfriend asked me to make one for a family dinner and another for himself!!!

This was the most down to earth, simple recipe for flan I have ever found. Not to mention, it made the perfect texture. Some suggest adding an extra egg or two (or even more) and that is a good suggestion if you like your flan egg-ey. Adding more and more eggs gets it close and closer to the texture of scrambled eggs, which is good but not always desired. Adding more eggs also helps to set it better and makes it easier to get out of the pan. Personally, I prefer to follow teh recipe exactly, as it gives the most traditional texture and flavor. Also, some advice on the sugar syrup: DO NOT BE AFRAID OF MAKING SUGAR SYRUP. The instructions here are perfect for making the sugar syrup - Just get over the fear, as it is easy (especially once you get used to it). There will always be a few tiny chunks in your sugar syrup. Recommendation here, as others have put it down. Have your pan pre-heated as it will keep the sugar syrup liquid longer while you allow it to spread on teh bottom of the pan. If you do it this way, you shouldn't need a spatula to spread it around. And when you get read to pour your milk and egg mixture, ladle a bit in first, and then pour the rest in, to equalize temperature. After it comes out of the oven, you might have a few "volcanoes," meaning places where the sugar syrup has boiled through. Don't worry about it! Just cool it until it is cold in the fridge, take a knife and scraped the sides and turn it upside down and voila. Perfect flan!

Excellent recipe. My husband loves flan, so I make it frequently. I added the extra egg per many reviewers. I feel this was a mistake and won't be adding it the next time. The easiest way to caramelize your sugar is in the microwave. I'm surprised more people don't use this method. I use 1-cup sugar & 1/4-cup water. Pour into glass pie dish and stir. Microwave, at 2-minute increments. It will eventually caramelize -- just be patient. After the first 4 minutes or so, begin to watch it closely. You may have to stir, gently, with a wooden spoon once or twice to evenly distribute the sugar. My microwave did the job in 7 1/2 minutes. After cooling on the counter, I refrigerated overnight. Unmolded the next day. Beautiful results. Thanks for sharing!

I do not know what happened to this recipe but it was like eating scrambled eggs with caramel sauce. The first thing is there is not enough directions. To liquify sugar you DO NOT STIR as it clumps together and then carmelizes. When it hit my flan dish it turned totally hard. I read another recipe to only shake the sugar once in a while so I tried that and it turned out beautiful. Another thing is that the eggs should only be whisked and not beaten and the dish preheated in the oven to warm it so that the sugar does not turn hard before swirling it around. I was a caterer in another life, so am not just talking off the top of my head. Be sure to give full and exact directions with all recipes.

i really enjoyed this flan recipe. i've found most flans to be too eggy for my taste, but this one is just right. i also appreciated that you don't cook the custard stovetop and then bake it too. i followed a reviewer's suggestion to combine the ingredients in a blender. then i divided it into ramekins for individual servings. didn't cover with foil. for creamy custards i definitely advise a water bath. i hope you enjoy it as much as i did!

Great flan recipe! I have to admit, this is the 3rd time making it for me and I was able to get it into the oven after 10 minutes of preparation. I had the most difficult time with the sugar on my past two occasions...first time it had a burnt flavor which i did not like and the second time I couldnt get the sugar to melt into a light golden color, it would just end up too dark. However, I came across this other reviewer who had used the microwave for melting the sugar and it came out perfect! light golden yellow in 4 minutes! I just added a few tablespoons of water and a few drops of lemon juice and watched it in my microwave for about 3 or 4 minutes. As soon as it starts to turn golden color take it out of the microwave because it will continue to cook. I figured this isnt the traditional way of making caramel but it still tastes the same and soooo much easier!

Thank you so much for using my picture to represent such amazing recipe! My family, who prefers lighter, semi-sweet desserts, loves this altered recipe. :) Filling: I recommend using 4 eggs with and add 1/4-1/2 cup of milk to the mix. Add the whole can of evaporated milk. Add as much of the condensed milk you want depending on how sweet you want the custard to be, try to keep it light (remember there is going to be sweet caramel on top). I would add about 2/3rds of it. Caramel: The 1 cup of sugar for the caramel was a little too much (you'll get a lot of caramel leftovers if you do). I used about a little less than 1/2 cup of sugar. Once the sugar turns into a golden brown, turn off the heat and very quickly spread it over the bottom of the pan. Make sure it isn't to dark, it may taste a bit burnt that way. Cooking: I steamed the flan instead of baking it in the oven. Steaming the flan is actually much faster and quicker. Tastes just as good :) Fill a deep pan with 1 inch of water (make sure the casserole dish can fit in it) and be sure the pan can be covered. The total boiling time of the flan will take about 30-40 minutes. Every 5-10 minutes quickly wipe the lid of the pot to prevent too much water from dripping into the flan. Around 30 minutes, poke the mixture with a knife to see if it is firm enough. If there still any raw mixture, keep cooking it until the knife comes out clean. Have fun :)

Excellent! Truly authentic, traditional flan. Very light and smooth. Don't add more eggs, 3 is perfect. To prevent the caramel sauce from hardening, put the plate in the oven while it's preheating. Then afterwards, put the pie plate w/caramel sauce in the oven to keep warm while you're beating the egg mixture. I find 1 cup of sugar makes a little too much caramel, so I only use 3/4 cup - makes plenty. Definitely cook in a water bath and tastes better after a night in the fridge. Gives the custard time to set and firm up more. But taste great the same day too. Very elegant, easy, quick desert. Your guests will be impressed. (Much better and authentic than Creamy Caramel Flan -which tastes like cheesecake, and is too thick.)

Great recipe! Followed many other suggestions and made changes accordingly. Made in ramekins instead of a single pie pan. Used 1 1/2 cup sugar for caramel, needed more for the ramekins. To give myself more time to pour the caramel, I placed the ramekins into a towel lined roasting pan and added an inch or so of boiling water to warm the ramekin bottoms. I mixed the flan in the blender, adding the condensed milk last. Used a total of 5 eggs. Strained the mixture and poured into ramekins from a measuring cup (too clumsy to pour from the blender!). Baked in a water bath (added more boiling water till about halfway up ramekin sides), 350 degrees, about an hour. This mixture makes about 5 1/2 cups total liquid with extra eggs. I made 8 6oz ramekins, but could have easily made 10. This is a really great tasting easy recipe. Give it a try!

delicious! things to keep in mind - heat the pie plate because as soon as i poured in the melted sugar it hardened. also, no where it mentions making a water bath and that's your best bet with these types of dishes.

I'm Puerto Rican and creamy flan is a staple of my island. Flan should not jiggle and cause the person to chase after it on a plate...lol. This recipe is exactly how I make it. Delicious. THe more eggs you put the more holes and less creamy, thus 3 eggs is perfect. IF you want to make it a Flan de queso (CHeese flan) just add a 4 oz package of cream cheese to the mix, it will make a nice slight creamy cheese taste without compromising the soft creaminess of this flan.

ABSOLUTELY authentic amazing flan. I've read all the reviews and only made one change. Bake this flan in a water bath. (The submitter may have forgotten this small but important detail) This will eliminate the probles of sticking to the dish. Once it's out of the oven and cooled, it will come out very nicely. The taste can be sweet but you can always cut back on the sugar. I am a pastry chef by trade and I will most certainly use this again; a very authentic Spanish taste and wonderful texture. Excellent for the holidays and I'm making it for Thanksgiving potluck. THANKS!!

Very tasty. but I couldn't get it out of the pan. Did I do something wrong? I did refrigerate it first...? I will make this again!

OK, I'm guilty of going through reviews to find a common theme of changes others have made to come up with the best recipe the first time I make things. With this recipe, that was a MISTAKE. I added extra egg, and though still tasty, it had too much of an eggy consistency. Just not very smooth and creamy. The second time, I made it EXACTLY as written. Both kids said it was 10X better. TIPS: 1) don't freak about the sugar. I put my stovetop on 4, and just kept it moving as I was doing other stuff in the kitchen. Don't stir, just bring out your inner chef and move the pot around. It will get lumpy first, but that is normal. 2) I use a deep dish pie plate. 3) keep the dish in the oven so the caramel won't harden too quick when you pour it in. 4) Use a blender to mix egg, milks, and vanilla. 5) If the dish you use is close to full, be sure to put something under it. It does swell up, and will make a mess. I saw no need for the water bath. 6) don't change a thing. Make this as written!

Loved it. Reminded me of my childhood back in Madrid when abuela had us over for coffee every friday night and served this amazing dessert. Tip for first-time makers of this scrumptious dessert - Be patient when making the chocolate. If you do not wish to make the caramel using the dry method, in which you simply leave it on low heat until it starts to caramelize, do what I did: Put a cup of sugar in a thick-bottomed small pan, and add 3 tbsp. of water to it. Mix everything together until the sugar has completely merged with the water and turn the heat on low. Mix it occasionally until you see the mixture beginning to boil. Then leave it alone. Don't touch it, don't even look at it. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes and check to see if it has turned into a reddish-coppery mixture. If not, leave it alone until it does. Also, heat up the pan before putting the caramel in it, and for easier spreading, use a brush when spreading the caramel.

So good I almost passed out in the kitchen! I changed a few things to ensure perfection though. With the aluminum foil cover, I poked about 20 toothpick holes in it so that it will properly bake all the way through. Then after letting it cool on the counter for 20 mins., I shifted it to the freezer for 30 mins. Then I moved it to the refridgerator for an overnight sleep. All this was to guarantee its firmness. Next day, I inverted it and it was soo beautiful and I was so proud, I divided it up for 5 girlfriends and watched them jump up and down, screaming how good it was! Thank you!!

While the ingredients may be great, the recipe itself results in a curdled flan. This really needs to be baked in a water bath. I've made flan many times, but wanted a simple recipe using sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk. I was wary of the lack of a water bath in this recipe, but made it anyway. Once cooled, it came out curdled and chunky - not smooth and creamy as flan should be.

I have died and gone to flan heaven. OH MY GOODNESS! Esta flan esta' magnifica, y perfecta! I think a previous reviewer who claimed it was not sweet, must have omitted the sweetened condensed milk and used two cans of evaporated instead. I followed the recipe as is, but took the advice of some reviewers in that I added 1 more egg, and a dash of coffee extract along with the vanilla. I baked it in a water bath at 340 degrees (my compromise for the suggested times of 325 or 350) for one hour covered loosely with aluminum foil that had holes poked in it. I then turned off the oven and opened the door a crack, leaving it in there for an additional half hour. Then I let it sit at room temp for an hour and a half and then I put it in the fridge. The most labor intensive part was the sugar carmelization. WORD OF CAUTION: Be really careful stirring the sugar when it starts to liquify.... I splashed some on my hand and sugar burns are nasty. I also whipped all the flan ingredients together in my blender on low speed, and I strained it when I poured it into the dish, but I see no reason to do that, nothing remained in the strainer. Anyhow, this morning I awoke to the MOST magnificent spanish flan I have ever tasted and I brought some in for my coworkers who are mexican and they are now declaring me "La Reina de Flan" or the "Queen of Flan." I would give this 10 stars for taste if I could... and I would still give it 5 stars for preparation... even though it is a lot of work...

Very good, i am 11 years old and if i can do it anyone can! (: i added a splash of lemon juice to the sugar, it melted in less than 7 minutes, other than perfect :D my first flan ever is a success! Thank you so much for sharing, my family loved it too they were quite impresses ;)

It's a super easy recipe to follow. The only thing I would change about it is the amount of sugar that gets caramelized. I thought 1 cup of sugar was waaaay to much so I lessened it to 1/4 cup and it was perfect! Also, I've always had the worst luck with caramelizing the sugar on the stove. What I do instead is put the 1/4 cup of sugar, in my round pan, in the oven for about 30-40 min at 360 degrees. Just keep an eye out for it so it doesn't over caramelize and burn.. but it's a no fuss, no mess way for sugar to melt and caramelize. Once you see it all caramelize and become amber, take it out and pour your flan mixture in and follow the rest of the recipe as listed. Best of luck to all you flan-makers! -Joanne

Delicious and so easy! I used the microwave method to make caramelize the sugar that another reviewer suggested. It was easy, but you definately need to check it closesly toward the end... " pyrex measuring glass (the 2 cup capacity one) and added 1/2 c water , then I added the cup of sugar to that water and stirred. Then, I placed it in the microwave and VOILA!!! Depending on the power of your microwave, the time will vary. It will take about 7-10 minutes at high power for the water/sugar mix to turn to caramel. Take a peek to make sure it doesn't get too dark though or it will taste bitter! You want it a medium amber color."

This is just an option that I use sometimes when I prefer a less "eggy" tasting flan - instead of 3 whole eggs, I'll use 5 egg yolks. It makes the flan more smooth and creamy.

I absolutely love flan and have tried many different versions from various reputable restaurants all over the world, including my hometown NYC. This version is just as good if not better than the ones I've had! I would highly recommend it for its ease of cooking. The only thing I did differently is mix the egg and milk in a blender and cook the flan in a water bath just like others have recommended. In the future, I may also reduce the sugar because the caramel seems a bit sweet for my taste. Otherwise, the recipe is GREAT as is. Thanks for posting!

Yep, this is the original recipe my family has used forever. The only thing is that when making the caramel, I also add 1/4 cup of water to the sugar and make sure that I keep the sides of the pan moist by dipping a brush into a bit of water avoiding the crystalization of the sugar and the evaporization of it. You'll also get a lot of caramel this way. And the covering isn't really necessary. I've been making flan this way for 20 years. It is so creamy and EVERYONE loves it!!!

I've made flan several times and this was delicious and easy. My only complaint was for those who never made a flan before you must bake the flan in a water bath. This was left out of the recipe (very Important)!!! Also, I've made the caramel by melting the sugar in the microwave, 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon water. Mix water into the sugar mixture and microwave for approx. 5-6 min. It should be a copper color - don't let it burn. And, you must immediately pour the caramel mixture into the pan as is hardens very quickly. Otherwise, this was a delicious flan.

This is just the way my bride of thirteen years makes Flan, except she bakes it in a Flan Pan, (that you can get at most Florida markets,) and she bakes it in a pressure cooker for twenty minutes. Perfect every time! She says that using a whisk to mix the ingredients works better than using a blender because you are supposed to be "gentle" with this little bit of heaven.

I "tried" to make this flan recipe last night. What a disaster! The fluid keep boiling out of the baking dishe and went all over the oven, causing a temporary fire and a smokey kitchen! At least bake over a cookie sheet, but that was still not enough to help the overflow of oozing. My sister is married to a Brazilian and told me that any Brazilian she saw make it baked it in a "steam bath" You place the flan dish inside another large baking dish filled with water and then covered it with another pan. Obviously a standard 9in round glass baking dish was too small. When I poured in the batter, it filled it to the very, very top.

Served this at an authentic Mexican dinner, and all the guests (10) raved about it. The guests of honor (both Mexican) said it was fabulous, and they were transported back to their childhood! Worst part was melting the sugar for the caramel. Use a big, wide fryingpan instead of a saucepan - it is easier to melt and swirl the sugar-caramel. It took me 3 goes to get it right, but was worth the effort. Keep your flan dish warm in the oven and pour hot caramel into warm dish for best caramel coverge. Definitely cook in a warm water bath, but mine cooked quicker than I thought it would (about 45 minutes). The guests loved both the taste and the texture, and none was left over. Definitely a keeper!

So Good!! My son is in town for a couple of days and requested this (his favorite dessert.) I have learned over the years to cook the sugar over low/med-low heat and swirl the pan a little - not to stir and it works great every time. Once the color begins to turn light brown - watch it very closely, it can go too far quickly. The foil did stick a little but no problem because after flipping, you will never notice it. Followed the recipe and thought the texture and flavor was perfect. I know this will be requested again and again. Thanks for sharing!

This was my first time cooking flan ever. The ingredients in this recipe are perfect. I added 1/4 tsp of almond extract to infuse the flavor. The only MUST is to cook this in a warm water bath like others have said. Place your dish inside of a roasting pan, fill with HOT tap water to half way up the side of the dish. This made the flan velvety smooth with NO cracks. I'm not sure if this was the reason, but my cooking time was 2 hours, not 60 min. I also did as others recommend, to pre-heat the dish so that the caramel can smoothly cover the dish when you pour it in. This dish was a big hit and was completely gone at the end of the party. Will definitely make again!

This is a great recipe. The only thing I did differently is that I added a teaspoon of Instant Coffee to give this dish a bit more flavor and depth. I get rave reviews on that one addition every time. I also used a water bath because the flan turns out so much better. And you have to let this sit in the fridge overnight otherwise the carmelized sugar won't liquify well. Hope this helps.

For simplicity this recipe deserves five stars... however, the taste was average and hence my three star rating. I believe the best way to make flan is from scratch using egg yolks, heavy cream, and sugar. If you're looking for a simple and quick flan recipe - go for this one. But if you're a fan of a rich flavor, this one lacks it. TIP: It is better to cook the flan in a water bath than directly in a dish placed in the oven... place the baking dish inside a large roasting pan - line with a dish towel, fill with water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the baking dish - cook for same length of time. This helps prevent the flan from curdling and the caramel sauce from hardening.

I loved this recipe! My recipe is more complex than this one but this one is nice and simple and has a nice flavor. If you've never made flan or caramel before here are some tips: 1. The more eggs the more dense it will be, so for a creamier texture stick to the 3 the recipe suggests. Many Puerto Ricans never use less than 6 eggs! 2. Add a bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice to the sugar to keep it nice and smooth. 3. Caramel hardens FAST. Do not put it in an ice bath to cool! It will cool as soon as you start pouring it so work quickly, but if it hardens before you can swirl it around the baking dish, don't worry it will melt in the oven. 4. Water Bath isn't 100% needed, however, using one makes for better texture and even cooking! 5. If you never made caramel before, it's ok to stir but don't overdo it, otherwise it will get grainy. Just stir it lightly as it melts to ensure even cooking, and ALWAYS use a wooden spoon or risk melting your rubber spatula! Sugar reaches high temps and becomes extremely HOT and you can easily burn yourself! My first caramel war wound came from trying to "taste test" the sugar with a dip of my fingertip! lol :) Thanks for this recipe! This is my new at home recipe now!

This was my first attempt to make flan, and it could not have been easier or turned out more perfect. I followed the instructions almost exactly but did take advice from other reviews. Here are the tips that worked for me: 1) I prepared my caramel in the microwave using the "wet" method by adding a 1/2 cup of water to the sugar in a pyrex measuring cup. It was ready in about 8 minutes on high, but did need to watched carefully. I started with 5 minutes and went up by 1-minute increments from there. I noticed that the caramel continued to darken after being removed from the microwave, literally while I was pouring it into my pan. I think another few seconds would have ruined it. 2) I poured and swirled my caramel in the pan immediately after removing from the microwave. This is crucial as it did harden very quickly. If there's any real skill involved in preparing this recipe correctly, this is it. 3) I prepared my custard in a blender so it was super smooth, and baked in a water bath rising halfway up the sides of my pan. 1 hour was not long enough for me as the custard was still completely liquid in the center. I ended up baking 20 minutes longer until the center was set but very jiggly. The results were amazing. I brought the flan to a party and other guests raved. The custard was silken and the caramel was molten and luscious. I wouldn't bother to try any other recipes. This is it.

This came out great on the second try, but the caramel was a lot harder than it sounds. I finally got it right on my sixth try. Cooking slow over med-low heat the sugar was crystalizing on me bad every time no matter what I did. I googled and found a video from Alton Brown for caramel where he uses clear corn syrup and a Cream of Tartar to stop the crystalizing. Adjusted for this recipe it is 1C sugar, 1/2C water, 1/2 Tbs. corn syrup, and 1/8 tsp Cream of Tartar. Use a wooden spoon to blend everything at first but after it starts bubbling, NO STIRRING. Cook over medium heat and watch for the color you want. It came out perfect the first time I used that technique. On the flan, the one hour time came out good, maybe even a bit long for a really creamy flan.

Finally found a flan recipe that my husband loves. He said it's better than his mom's and better than most people's he had tasted. If I'm going to make regular flan, this is it. The firt time I made it, I used water bath and used 4 eggs. The second time, I used 4 eggs but baked it as recipe suggested and it did't come out as smooth and it was flat. Will never bake flan without water bath again.

The ingredients are fine, but following instructions as written resulted in a disastrous end product. If you have to use the comments to alter the recipe heavily just to make a workable, edible end result, then I consider that recipe a failure. DO NOT try this one without the water bath! Also recommend using a dish that's substantially deeper than you think you'll need, else you risk the foil sticking to the top.

This was my first time making Flan after having successfully made creme brulee. I'm giving this 1 star because the end result had absolutely no flavor. Then, I realized why: The custard has no sugar in it. If you want to make this, add more sugar because one can of sweetened condensed milk isn't enough.

I really wanted this recipe to work. All the great reviews and I can't figure out what i'm doing wrong. This recipe curdled on me not once, but twice. The first time I did as the author said, and did not do a water bath. The second time I did use a water bath, and it still curdled.

Delicious and easy! I used a bit of lemon juice in the sugar to help it melt faster, and an extra egg in the custard for firmer texture. Thanks so much!

This was really delicious and easy to make. It is not what I am used to from flan, what I usually get at the Spanish bakeries is more dense. But this is quite delicious. Smooth and creamy. I used 5 eggs, mixed it all in my blender. I heated my pan in the oven for a few minutes before pouring the melted sugar in. I didn't have any problems melting the sugar, just stood over it and stirred until it melted. Somehow my pie pan cracked when I poured in the sugar. Also I baked it for 60 minutes in a water bath but the middle was still quite jiggly and I wasn't sure if it was done--did some research and flan should be jiggly in the middle.

Really and easy and simple. Tastes very similiar to mom's flan.

You don't need three eggs - you only need two. Sometimes even one will do, if it's large enough. The eggs are there to hold it together, nothing else. Either in the oven or on the stove, you need to set up a steam bath (double boiler) for it, to keep it moist and from cracking. It will set better. 30-45 minutes cooking is all you need - definitely not 60 minutes. Too much egg and overcooking will make it taste exactly like that - overcooked eggs instead of creamy flan.

Really good and easy to prepare. It's a no brainer... I took the liberty to add some Khalua to it and it was fantastic.

I followed this recipe almost exactly. The only change I made was that I used a blender to mix the custard ingredients and I baked it in a water bath. Others I served it to thought it was great. I thought the sugar tasted a little burned. I will try this recipe again to see if it was my mistake.

This recipe is so delicious. Easy to prep and make. At every function I'm asked to bring the Flan. Flan is thicker and creamer, not eggy tasting and watery like some other recipes. A trick I do to flip flan over is to place the baking dish in warm water to loosen up the caramel and flip it over.

This is the best flan I've ever had and it's very easy to make. I did adjust how to make the caramel and my technique is fool proof. In a sauce pan, I add 1/2 cup of water to 1 1/4 cups of sugar, and stir to saturate the sugar completely. Put the spoon away because you won't use it again. Next I cover the pan with a lid and turn the heat on to medium low. The steam created inside the covered pan prevents the sugar from crystallizing. There is no need to stir. Just leave the pot covered, checking periodically. When it is completely liquified and at a rolling boil, uncover and continue to cook until it has reached your desired color. Remove from heat a pour into your baking dish. It is the easiest way to make caramel, and you can't screw it up. Also, I use a mesh strainer and cheese cloth when I pour the custard into the baking dish to make the flan smooth and creamy.

WAY TOO SWEET! 1 Cup sugar plus 14oz condensed milk and only 12oz of evaporated milk? Diabetes anyone?

Noticed in other reviews some are adding the 1 cup of sugar to the flan mixture, then saying it's too sweet. This is not what the recipe calls for, the sugar is to make the carmel, not go in the mixture.

oh man, this was tricky for me. Here are a few of my notes: Melting the sugar in a med sauce pan takes about 30 minutes. Do not use a small pan- use med/large pan. Keep it on med-low heat, do not stir, only swirl pan. I added one extra egg. I used a blender to mix eggs/milk/vanilla. I kept the pie plate warm as advised. But even with the dish warm-carmeled sugar would not spread easily in the dish. It set up quickly. When it came out of the oven I realized the carmel topping coats the top (bottom) as it bakes, so no biggie. I baked it in my 9.5" glass pie plate. I let it cool for over 2 hours, it didn't come out easily. I had to place a knife around the edges, it was very sticky. I did not use a water bath. It took 60 minutes to cook, the color looked beautiful. The texture was not smooth like it should be, but the flavor was awesome. I could eat most of it right now if my son wasnt eating it up! He loves it.

I made this for a going away party for a girl at work. She said it was her favorite dessert and it looked tasty and fun to make. Don't let the short list of ingredients fool you! The ingredients are very easy to put together, but there are several tricky spots that warrant special attention: 1) Have the pan with melting sugar set to medium low, not just low, otherwise it will take forever. 2) Do not overcook the caramel! Once it starts to brown, make sure you take it off the burner BEFORE it gets to be too dark, it should be a golden amber, NOT dark brown color. I overcooked it somewhat, and it tasted a little bitter in the end, but that could have been easily avoided. 3) Do not stir the sugar mixture, it will crystalize! Just swirl in pot every 3-4 mins. 4) I agree with many other posters - adding more than 3 eggs is a good idea. It will make the custard more jiggly, and not as hard. I added 4 rather than 3 as the recipe calls for, but could easily see myself adding 5 or 6, just didn't want to risk it since it was my first time making flan. 5) Tip from my friend - if you don't like the taste of eggs, squirt some lime juice into the mixture, this will neutralize the egg flavor. 6) Preheat the baking pan in the oven before pouring the caramel mixture. I preheated mine in a larger pan filled with water. 7) Don't confuse dry milk and evaporated milk when shopping! All in all, this turned out pretty well and I got plenty of compliments, just wish I didn't overcook the caramel!

Perfect flan!! I also made the Creamy Caramel Flan but that was way too thick for me. It was more like cheese cake then flan. This was more light and fluffy and exactly what I was looking for. Next time I will try to use low fat evaporated milk or low fat sweetened condensed milk and see if that takes anything away from it. It was great...very highly recommended if you want something similar to true mexican flan.

This flan was great, but a lot of work. I would do it again, but only if I had the time and energy, and maybe if I had company over. When my mom's mexican friends ate the flan though, they said that it tasted authentic-- so my work paid off? The reason I gave the recipe four stars though, was because it was only after I looked through a lot of reviews that I came up with the perfect [or near perfect] recipe. You can find one I typed up that's a variation of this, but just uses all the advice at http://engineeringllama.blogspot.com/2008/04/full-revised-spanish-flan-recipe.html

Nope...this is not the flan I'm used to.

Love this recipe. It is actually better than my mom's recipe. I followed the directions exactly. I think next time I'll use an 8" pan, instead of a 9" pan, to make it thicker. It is creamy, not too sweet, and luscious. Our family's new favorite dessert.

Great and easy recipe! I used 4 large eggs instead of 3, after reading a few reviews. The sugar took a while to melt and will turn clumpy before turning liquid. I baked my flan in 6 warm ramekins (7 Oz ramekins) and put them in a water bath. I did not use all the caramel, and saved some to make simple sugar art to decorate this delicious flan!

The texture wasnt silky, more like scrambled eggs.

Very easy recipe and tastes great to boot.

The texture is a little too dense for my family, but the taste is great. I think the recipe is good, I probably overcooked it. I definitely suggest using a water bath for this dessert since I baked two, one with waterbath, one without, and the one baked in water came out silky smooth. When using a water bath, be sure to cover ramekins loosely so the steam can go in. Never cover the cup too tight. Trust me, I learnt it the hard way.

I've never made a flan before and know how finicky it can be. We were having a church social with a Mexican theme dinner and decided to give it a try. I looked at all the flan recipes on this website and decided to try this one out. It was SUPER easy and worked like a charm!! I had read several of the reviews and made the following changes: 1) I used 5 eggs. 2) I used only 2/3 - 3/4 of the can of condensed milk. 3) I added a sprinkling of cinnamon and nutmeg. I didn't measure it out, just shook a bit in. 4) I just used a hand mixer to mix it up real good. 5) I put my glass pie pan in the oven @ 350 for 5-7 or so minutes to warm it up for easier spreading of the melted sugar. I rolled the pie pan around and coated the sides good, let it sit for about 1 minute and then rolled it again for a second layer. I let it sit for a few minutes (3-5 maybe ???) so the caramel was starting to set and then poured the egg-milk mixture in. I covered the pie pan with slightly vented foil. I did use a water bath - I used my turkey roaster and put a kitchen towel in the bottom and poured very hot water on top just enough to soak the towel. I then set the roaster on the oven rack (used middle rack), set the flan inside the roaster, and poured in more of the very hot water until about halfway up the sides of the pie pan and then I baked it at 350. I found mine didn't seem set until 70-75 minutes of baking. I pulled it out and set the pie pan in the fridge for about an hour, in

Made this today for the 4th of July -- Delicious!!!! Rather than adding vanilla extract I used Orange Liqueur also added a bit of Orange Liqueur with the sugar when I made it into a caramel. This recipe was so easy to make that your kids could do it (with the exception of the carmeled sugar an adult would need to do that part.) It taste like the Mexican restaurants Flan they serve with these little changes. :) DELICIOUS!!!

This recipe did not do well for me. Not only did the sugar stick in the pie pan, but it came out in clumps when I tried to flip it over onto the plate.

It came out perfect and easy. I used 3/4 can of condensed milk, still a bit too sweet, next time I will only use 1/2 a can. When you melt the sugar, just watch it closely.. medium heat, turn heat off when you see it medium brown, it will continue to brown a little more. You must bake in a water bath to get it smooth! I also think baking for 60 mins makes it too firm, I like it a little softer, best bake at 50 mins.

This is a great recipe for flan and it is very simple. I have never made flan before and my husband always raved about his mothers, so I decided to give this one a try. I looked at all the other recipes on this site and decided on this one because of the simple ingredients and I found out that traditional flan is a very simple dessert. I tried using an 4 eggs first, but I found it too thick for my taste. I made it again with just the 3 eggs and it is perfect. I did however use a blender to mix everything together and I used a water bath to bake it. This recipe is a keeper.

What did I do wrong?I poured the melted sugar into a pyrex pie dish,poured the batter in,and my dish exploded into a hundred pieces of glass shards!Apparently the sugar was too hot?!

Good flavor, but the texture wasn't as creamy as I remember from my childhood

Made my caramel in the microwave as suggested by another reviewer. 1/2 cup of water, 3/4 cup sugar in pyrex measuring cup and microwave 7-10 minutes. Watch closely after 5 minutes to make sure it reached golden brown color and not too dark. Flan was mixed in blender. It is much too sweet with the 1 cup of sugar. I will mke it make it next time with just a 1/4 cup or none at all. Put baking pan in another baking pan filled halfway with boiling water. Poured in caramel into warm pan without any trouble. Bake for an hour in hot water bath. Even though it's extra sweet, it hasn't prevented me from eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

This was a difficult recipe since I'd never made flan before. I think I cooked the sugar too long & it made an awful mess PLUS you MUST immediately clean that pan or the sugar will harden & be hard to get out of the pan. Also, it said to cook for 60 mins, which I did. When I went to remove the pan from the oven (in a water bath as suggeste by other reviewers), the flan was totally liquid still so I thought maybe I did something wrong & cooked it longer without the water bath. Then the melted sugar came up thru the center of the flan. Could someone tell me if it is supposed to be liquidy after 60 mins? Would love the input. Thx!

Flan has been my FAVORITE dessert since I was a little girl, so I have had many in my lifetime. This one did not disappoint. In fact, it was fabulous. Very traditional taste. I did add an extra egg to the recipe and baked in a water bath. I am definitely not a chef and this was my first time making a flan, but it turned out beautifully and tasted even better. Try this if you are a flan lover.

The best flan recipe I've tried from this site. Like other reviewers, I bake in a water bath. Also, I mix 1/4 cup water with the cup of sugar. This makes it easier and faster to melt it.

My husband and I thought this was a wonderful dessert and I liked the ease of preparation as well as the moderate fat content. I will be making this many more times.

The flavor of this recipe was good. I found the instructions to be lacking. In my attempt to make the caramel I found it impossible to get the sugar to change color at the medium-low heat... or medium... or even medium-high heat. My arm was tired after stirring for well over 20 minutes with no advancement of the color of the mixture. I tried adding a little water but this steamed off quickly. When I changed the heat to HIGH that's when, finally, it started changing to the classic caramel color and smell. I find it difficult to believe that medium-low heat can produce anything golden in color. Another problem I saw was the necessity to cool the resulting flan without solidifying the caramel that's now in the bottom of the dish(es). I have yet to solve this mystery but will continue to research for the proper method. If the caramel is too much like candy then it solidifies during the cooling step. It would be nice to have a target temperature for the caramel itself and to use a cooking thermometer at this step.--------- Update: Here is a better way to make the caramel. Combine: 2/3c. sugar; 2Tbl water; 1Tbl light corn syrup; 1/8tsp lemon juice... in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring only until sugar dissolves. When sugar has dissolved, increase the heat to medium-high and cook without stirring until syrup turns deep amber, brushing sides with wet pastry brush, swirling pan, approximately 8 to 10 minutes.

This recipe made me a happy man - Been sampling flans in American restaurant trying to find a match for those I consumed while living in Europe. Biggest complaint about Stateside flan is the cloyingly sweet caramel universally served. Granted, this is personal taste but, I find that taking the caramel to a very dark brown at just the point where you get just a touch of bitterness produces a much more complementary sauce. Here's some things I learned the hard way while making this recipe: 1. Use the "wet" method of caramelizing. 2. Pre-heat the mold that you are going to bake the flan in- about 5 minutes in a 300degree F oven - will increase the time the caramel is fluid enough to ensure coating the mold as desired. 3. The best way to remove hardened sugar caramel is to simply let it soak in water. 4. One reviewer mentioned all the caramel stayed in the mold - had the same experience but found that if you give the flan a couple of hours in the mold to soften up the caramel and wait 15 minutes after removing flan from fridge before removing from mold you will get the max pretty brown cap on the flan and a nice quantity of syrup in the serving dish. 5. I opted to use 6 (about 6 Oz size) ramekins with about 5 oz of batter in each. Wifw says it's the best flan she has ever had, I agree -

I used this recipe to make flan for the first time, and it turned out amazing. I used the addition of 4 oz cream cheese and an additional egg because I needed it for a dinner party the same evening. I heated the pan before pouring the melted sugar into it, and blended the remaining ingrediants in a blender. Turned out incredible. Everyone LOVED it.

Muchas gracias, Adriana. When my expert-flan-maker friend tried it and I told her it was just popped into the oven with no water bath, she was appalled! She called me a heretic and refused to believe me! Maybe it turns out well with a "baño maria" but if it turns out this well without one, why bother?? Before this, I had some disastrous attempts at caramelizing sugar, but what works for me now is to use a non-stick saucepan, cook over medium-low heat, and pay close attention. It's done when it's all foamy boiling but you can tell that the liquid is translucent, not cloudy. I've served this flan to my Mexican students many times and they love it. Thanks again!

Excellent and simple. I get this done in under 1/2 hour. 1)place everything in a blender and blend. 2) melt the sugar at the same time. 3) Find a bowl that would bit in a pressure cooker or a pan called flanela (that has sealed locks) 4) I dump the caramel (I like it burnt cuz it gives a bitterish taste) into the dish, then immediately add the content of the blender. Heat up the pressure cooker until it is at full regulated setting. Let it go for 15-20 minutes. Turn off and let it cool down by itself. Walk away to do laundry or get ready to go to that pot luck party. Come back, take out pan, run the knife along the edges, invert it. It is best if you can refrigerate a little to harden while consuming dinner. Made it 10 times in 2 months to all dinner parties and never failed; so far.

The flan also tastes less eggie if you use the egg yolks only.

I loved how simple this recipe was. I added two extra egg yolks leftover from another recipe, a sprinkle of cinnamon and a sprinkle of nutmeg. The results were wonderful! May try to use the microwave caramel next time, as sugar took forever to melt!

Wow - Great flan. we have always wondered how flan is made and assumed it was a difficult process. We were wrong and this is a great recipe. Add more eggs for a stiffer flan, less egg for a creamier flan. Either way, this was just plain excellent !

Oh my gosh! This is great! Mine did not come out looking quite as pretty as some of the other pictures but it tastes incredible. When they say that the sugar syrup dries fast it does! Literally in just a few seconds so follow the advice of others and put the pan in the oven for a few minutes so it is warm and the syrup will spread better.

We are twelve years old and did this flan recipe for our Spanish project. We got it right the FIRST TIME!!!!!!! I HEART FLAN!!!!!!!!!!

This recipe was very simple to make. The flavor was so delicious and the texture was just right. I took the advice of some of the other reviewers and added a tiny amount of water to the sugar, which made it easier to melt and carmelize. I also strained the custard before I put it in the oven. The caramel didn't disolve completely when the flan was finished baking, but that could have been because I didn't refridgerate it over night before serving. I was able to stretch the syrup, however, by adding a little water to the hardened caramel which remained in the pan; I let it sit 45 minutes until it all disolved, and I served it with the flan.

I tried this recipe three times in one night. The first flan blew up in my oven. After my husband cleaned the oven, I started over, but this time the flan caught fire. After my husband came again to my rescue by extinguishing the fire, I made one last flan. It's currently on life support and not expected to make it. My house now reeks of burned flan and my kids are packing their stuffed animals for a quick escape thinking that I'm going to burn the house down. I'm sure this is a great recipe but I failed miserably trying to make it. Good luck to the rest of you! I'm giving it four stars because my horrific cooking skills should not be a factor in rating it.

This was truly AWESOME and SO SO EASY. It's basically fail proof. I read the other reviews and didn't really need to change anything at all. Don't put it in the refrigerator, the directions didn't say to. It's great because I don't have to put it in water like other recipes suggest. It's the best flan I've ever had and I will only keep this recipe for flan. It's very rich in flavor but not too sweet. Perfect for the holidays!!

I love this recipe. It's the one I used to make as a child except that I used to make it in a water bath in a pressure cooker. The flavor is great but the texture was not as I remember it. This one came out very porous and not as thick and creamy as I remember it. I think next time I will try adding another egg. I like the fact that this recipe didn't call for the water bath. But I will only use half the amount of sugar. I did heat up the glass pie dish with water in the microwave to have it hot so the sugar didn't harden right away.

Simple and easy to make. Super yummy. I hate waiting for caramel whenever making flan, but it’s just part of the process.

This is a good recipe. My grandma used to do it with 4 eggs and added a whole package of cream cheese. The cheese flan version is the same recipe but you have to mix the cheese in. So the cheese wont clump mix it first (i melt it real good with 1 min in the microwave) and then add the rest of the ingredients. Cook time is the same. You can use a round or squared 9' glass pan. When baking I suggest doing "baño de maria" which is placing the glass dish in a another dish that has water in it. That makes the flan cook better and not burn in the bottom. Happy Cooking guys!

Very easy recipe! Looking for a recipe with more vanilla flavor. Did enjoy!