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Cooking Custard

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Appears in
The Secret Recipes
The Secret Recipes

By Dominique Ansel

Published 2014

  • About
Any cream base that contains eggs is considered a custard. You’ll find it in ice cream bases, pastry cream, crème anglaise, some ganaches and all sorts of baked flans. Curds are made in a similar fashion.
Eggs can be tricky to cook because they are so temperature sensitive. Any temperature higher than 185°F (85°C) and you’ll get scrambled eggs. When in doubt, always follow these two quick tips:

  1. Temper the eggs by slowly streaming in one-third of the hot liquid, whisking constantly. This will raise the temperature of the eggs just enough so that you can return them to the rest of the hot liquid without overheating and instantly cooking them. This way, you’ll get a silky texture.

  2. When the eggs return to the hot mixture, they are not quite cooked through yet. You will need to keep whisking until the custard reaches a state called nappé, which means ‘glazed’ in French and refers to when the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Draw a line with your finger through the coated portion of the spoon. You should get a clear line, as the liquid won’t flow through.

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