Vegan Chocolate Custard Pudding is an old-fashioned dessert that has been a family favourite for generations, and evolved from the Medieval Style Custards and the old favourite Chocolate Hasty Pudding.Chocolate Custard Pudding is easy to make and can be ready to eat warm in about 20 minutes or chilled for later. If you can't access custard powder then it can be easily replaced with cornstarch [see the tweaked ingredients below in the recipe notes for a cornstarch pudding]. Cornstarch is naturally gluten-free so this is ideal for gluten-free chocolate puddings.If you like chilled chocolate pudding or those Alpro dark chocolate soya dessert pots then you'll love this home-made version!
sieve (only really required if custard powder or cocoa powder has lumps that need sifted out]
non-stick saucepan
hand-held balloon whisk a cutlery fork will work in a pinch, or a mixing spoon, but to avoid the potential for lumps a hand-held whisk is best
4 individual pudding bowls or ramekins
Ingredients
6tablespooncustard powderI use the Birds brand which is commonly found in UK supermarkets. In the US Walmart stocks this brand.
3tablespooncocoa powder
5tablespoongranulated sugarOr less or more depending on how sweet you prefer the pudding, can replace the sugar with your preferred sweetener and adjust to taste]
570millilitressoya milkOr your usual milk
1teaspoonvanilla essenceOr extract
Instructions
Sift the custard powder and cocoa powder into the saucepan, and stir the sugar through.Although if your custard powder and cocoa powder are not lumpy then this step can be omitted and the ingredients just mixed well together.
Add 8 tablespoons of the milk and mix well to a smooth liquid.
570 millilitres soya milk
Over a low-medium heat begin adding the rest of the milk a little at a time and whisking to avoid lumps. Stir through the vanilla.
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Once the liquid looks like it getting hotter stop stirring for a moment and just look for any bubbles that indicate its starting to boil. Keep stirring and pausing to look out for the bubbles.
Once the liquid is bubbling reduce the heat to low and keep stirring for 2 minutes.The custard will get suddenly lumpier as it heats so the constant stirring is required.
Keep stirring as the custard will be thin one moment and suddenly thick the next!
Once the chocolate custard is nice and thick (it will become thicker as it cools) remove from the heat and pour or scoop into the serving dishes.
The pudding will continue to thicken off the heat and will set quickly so place into the serving dishes immediately. Enjoy warm or place into the refrigerator to chill and set, after the pudding has cooled off.
Chocolate custard sauce:
For a chocolate custard that is thin enough to pour, perhaps to accompany a cake or steamed pudding, simply add a little extra milk and whisk the milk into the pudding and this will thin the pudding into more of a pouring custard sauce.
Notes
Nutritional data is for guidance only and is not a strict calculation as ingredients vary.
Store chocolate pudding in the fridge for up to 3 days within covered containers.
Small reusable tubs are ideal for storing chocolate pudding in and enjoying with school, college, or work pack lunches or whenever you fancy a quick tasty dessert.
Bird's custard powder was used for this recipe but any brand of custard powder is fine, although check the ingredients to make sure it is vegan.
For a gluten-free pudding use a gluten-free custard powder or replace it with cornstarch.
Continuously stirring the mixture while cooking is important to prevent lumps from forming and to ensure a smooth consistency.
The pudding thickens as it cools, so keep that in mind while deciding when to remove it from the heat.
If you wish to make a pourable chocolate custard, simply stir in a little extra milk. This will thin the pudding into more of a pouring custard, which can be used as a sauce for cakes, crumbles, sweet pies, or other desserts.
Always sieve the dry ingredients to avoid any lumps but f your custard powder and cocoa powder are not lumpy, then this step can be omitted.
The vanilla essence can be replaced with almond essence for a chocolate almond custard pudding.
For a cornstarch chocolate custard pudding tweak the recipe ingredients above to the following ingredients:
* 6 tablespoons of cornstarch * 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder * 6 tablespoons of granulated sugar [or your preferred sugar, syrup or sweetener but you will have to adjust the quantities to taste] * large pinch of salt or about a 1/16th of a teaspoon * 570ml of plant-based milk * 1 tablespoon of vanilla essence or extract
Follow the same recipe method as above but use the tweaked ingredients.
Looking for a Vegan Chocolate Custard Sauce? Use our chocolate custard pudding recipe and once the pudding is ready simply whisk through a little extra plant-based milk to thin the pudding out to a pouring consistency or the consistency that you prefer.