Air Fryer Caramel Pudding

Easily recreate French caramel pudding recipes in your home air fryer! The pudding is smooth and creamy, with a glistening caramel center. Choose from three beautiful plating styles to create your perfect look. Simple ingredients and detailed steps make this easy to follow. It tastes even better chilled, a refreshing dessert suitable for all ages. This pudding recipe uses a Gaabor air fryer.

一、Ingredients Preparation

Basic Smooth and Sweet Pudding Liquid

• Whole milk: 180ml (full milk is best for a creamy flavor)
• Heavy cream: 80ml (milk can be substituted if heavy cream is unavailable, but the texture will be denser)
• Egg: 1 whole egg + 1 egg yolk (for added smoothness and color)
• Granulated sugar: 25–30g (25g for a slightly sweet taste, 30g for a sweeter taste)
• Vanilla extract: 1–2 drops (to remove the eggy smell and enhance the aroma; adjust to your taste)

Caramel Mirror Glaze Sauce

• White sugar: 30g
• Water: 10g (to prevent burning during sugar boiling)
• Hot water: 15g (to adjust the consistency after boiling the sugar)

二、Essential Kitchen Tools（Determines the Effect of Pudding）

• Medium-sized heat-resistant ceramic pudding cups
• Ultra-fine flour sifter
• Cling film
• Aluminum foil
• Manual whisk
• Mini saucepan
• Toothpicks

Key Point: To achieve a flawless, mirror-like surface on the pudding, it must be sieved and baked over water!

三、Step-By-Step Tutorial

Step 1：Make the Caramel Sauce (Prepare in advance and let it cool before use)

1. In mini saucepan pan, combine 30g of white sugar and 10g of water. Cook over low heat, without stirring, gently swirling the pan to melt the sugar.
2. Cook until it turns a light amber color and small bubbles appear, then immediately turn off the heat and slowly pour in 15g of hot water (the syrup may splatter, be careful of burns).
3. Stir well and let cool until thickened. Spread a thin layer on the bottom of pudding cups and refrigerate for 2 minutes to set.

Photography Skills：Spread a thin layer of caramel, and when inverted, it will create a translucent amber base, making you a social media sensation on Instagram.

Step 2：Preparing Bubble-free Pudding Liquid

1. In a large bowl, whisk together whole eggs and egg yolks, add granulated sugar, and whisk gently until combined. Do not whisk vigorously to avoid creating large air bubbles.
2. Mix milk and heavy cream together and heat over low heat to a warm temperature of 40°C (not hot to the touch). Do not boil.
3. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg mixture, stirring gently as you pour. Add 1-2 drops of vanilla extract and mix well.
4. Strain the pudding mixture through a very fine sieve twice to remove any egg strands and large air bubbles.
5. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Pop any remaining small air bubbles on the surface with a toothpick.

Step 3：Pour into Pudding Cups and Seal

1. Slowly pour the pudding mixture into the pudding cups, filling them only about 80% full. Filling them too full will cause them to overflow during baking.
2. First, cover the rim of the cup with plastic wrap, then wrap it again with aluminum foil to seal it double-sealed.

Double-layer sealing prevents direct hot air from blowing in, ensuring the pudding doesn't form a skin or holes, resulting in a smooth and even surface.

Step 4：Put it in the Air Fryer

1. Line the bottom of the fryer basket with aluminum foil, place the pudding cups inside, and pour in warm water to a water bath, filling the cups to 1/3 full.
   
2. Bake at 140℃ for 18–20 minutes.
3. Finally, increase the temperature to 160℃ and bake for 3 minutes to set and lock in the color.

Judging doneness: Gently shake the cup; the pudding is done when the edges are set and the center is slightly wobbly. Overbaking will result in a rough texture and honeycomb-like structure.

Step 5：Refrigerated Demolding

1. Remove the pudding from the refrigerator and let it cool to room temperature. Remove the foil and plastic wrap.
2. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight for best results, as the caramel will melt into a flowing sauce.
3. Run a toothpick around the inside of the cup, invert a plate, and gently press the bottom of the cup to release the pudding completely. The caramel will flow naturally, creating a gradient mirror finish.

四、Three Stylish Food Plating Designs

五、Key Details to Avoid Pitfalls

• ❌ High-temperature baking: Baking at temperatures above 150℃ can easily result in honeycomb texture and a dry, tough consistency.
• ❌ Baking without a seal: The surface dries, forms a crust, turns yellow, and becomes uneven.
• ❌ Boiling milk: High-temperature scalding will cause the egg mixture to curdle and become unusable.
• ✅ Double sieving + standing defoaming, resulting in a mirror-smooth core.
• ✅ Low-temperature water bath baking results in a tender and smooth texture without air pockets.
• ✅ Only after being thoroughly chilled and set can it be completely demolded.

六、Flavor Adjustment Plan

• Smoother: Increase heavy cream by 5g, decrease milk by 5g
  
• More substantial: Replace all with whole milk, omit heavy cream
• Richer caramel: Increase caramel sugar by 5g, keep pudding sugar amount the same