Pulut Hitam Creme Brûlée
Pulut Hitam Creme Brûlée! Coco-nutty black sticky rice with a hint of salt and creamy vanilla creme brûlée served up with a perfectly caramelized sugar top.
Servings: 5 4-inch ramekins
Ingredients
Pulut Hitam (Black Sticky Rice pudding)
- 1 cup black sticky rice
- 3 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 cup coconut cream
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 55 g coconut sugar
Creme Brûlée custard
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp instant coffee granules (dissolved in 2 tbsp hot cream)
- ~ 1 1/4 cup heavy cream (fill the heavy cream with the egg and coffee mixture up to the 2 CUP mark)
Instructions
Pulut Hitam (Black Sticky Rice Pudding)
- Add 3 1/2 cups of water to the black rice and bring to a boil. Let it slow cook on medium heat for 50 minutes or until the rice is visibly soft and chewy. Once it boils, remember to keep stirring as the rice is becoming starchy and may stick to the bottom and burn if it is not stirred consistently. Check doneness by tasting, it should still be chewy but not crunchy in the center.
- Once the black sticky rice is done, add the coconut sugar and stir till it’s melted. Switch down to low heat, add the salt to the coconut cream and combine. When the coconut cream is just combined, switch off the heat. Note: you don’t want the coconut cream to boil as that will cause the fat to separate and curdle the cream.
- Set aside to cool and start on the creme brûlée custard.
Creme Brûlée Custard
- Combine the yolks, sugar, vanilla extract and stir well to dissolve the sugar.
- Optional: dissolve 1/2 tsp instant coffee in 2 tbsp of cream and add to the custard mixture.
- Add the heavy cream to the 2 CUP mark, stir well and it’s ready for assembling.
Assembly and serving
- Generously spoon the black rice pudding into each ramekin until it’s half full.
- Swig the creme brûlée custard over the black rice pudding and fill generously until the ramekin is almost full.
- Place the ramekins onto a baking pan and bake at the lowest rack @125C for 45-50minutes. Note: check as it’s being baked so that the creme brûlée is not overdone. If the brûlée has just a slight wobble when shaken, it’s done.
- Cool completely and chill overnight or for at least 4 hours.
- When it’s time to serve, sprinkle 1/2 tsp of sugar on the pulut hitam creme brûlée. Gently turn and tap the ramekin to spread the sugar evenly. Using a mini torch, brûlée lavishly until the sugar is beautifully caramelized and forms a hard candy layer. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
If you like this recipe tutorial and like to see more, subscribe to my YouTube channel here! Thank you 😊
Cooking the Pulut Hitam (Black Sticky Rice)
- To soak or not to soak? Well, both ways work. When I remembered to soak the black rice overnight, it took ~25 - 30 minutes to cook. I didn’t soak the rice for the recipe tutorial and hence it took slightly longer ~50 minutes. If you have time and remember to wash & soak the rice overnight, you can reduce the cooking time when you make it. If one forgets to soak, no biggie - just cook it for a bit longer till it gets done. Check for doneness by tasting, it should soft and still slightly chewy but not crunchy in the center.
- Do not boil the coconut milk: When the coconut milk is added to the rice, it is important to just combine and switch off the heat quickly. If you have to cook it a bit more after adding the coconut milk, make sure to keep it on low heat and do not boil - or the coconut fat might separate and curdle.
- Salty much? For those of us who often cook with coconut milk, we know we do not skip the salt. It is Compulsory! Adding salt to coconut cream is like having a glass of milk with a 🍪 ! It enhances the taste! A simple dash of salt brings out the floral nutty sweetness of the coconut milk and highlights those subtle notes. The salty sweetness of the sticky black rice pairs beautifully with the creamy custard and IMHO really notches up this dessert.
- Type of sugar: My creme brûlée recipe does not use boiling cream. Therefore I like to use fine granulated sugar (rather than coarse) which dissolves more easily. Make sure to bring yolks to room temperature and thereafter a steady whisk will dissolve and nicely mix in the sugar.
- Why use coffee? Coffee helps to take away any eggi-ness and it’s only a 1/4 tsp per cup so you can probably hardly taste it. The coffee also adds complexity to the taste of the Creme Brûlée, giving an added dimension beyond the pure vanilla flavour. Therefore if you can take caffeine, don’t skip the coffee.
- Make it in a measuring cup: Love my Easy Creme Brûlée recipe. It makes a classic creme brûlée with no need for boiling cream or water bath. Everything comes together quickly and simply in a measuring cup. It’s that easy. Creamy, silky and delicious creme brûlée with that perfect crackle sugar top.
- Watch for the wobble! Always check the creme brûlée as it bakes so that it’s not overdone (I usually check around the 35-40 minute mark). There should still be a slight wobble when it’s done which will set nicely after the custard cools and is chilled. If the creme brûlée is totally firm when baked, it’s overdone. To know what this looks like, watch the video tutorial and compare the watery jiggle before baking (@5:00 min) vs the wobble (@5:15min) when it’s baked.