Creme Brulee

[Eeyore]

At what temp do you guys cook the custard?
Do you cover them?
Bain marie?

eeyore

[momoreg]

I bake them @ 300, covered, in a water bath.

[Pete]

Like momoreg I cook mine at 300 in a water bath but do it uncovered.

[momoreg]

Pete, maybe it's because I do mine in a convection, but if I so much as cover it with a warped sheetpan, the brulees that get too much direct heat will bubble. So I must cover them with a flat pan. But they come out incredibly smooth that way. Do you bake yours on a deck?

[m brown]

I bake my brulee in a hotel pan, 2 - 3 inches deep with water bath at 350 covered half way with a sheet pan. (usually the back half of the hotel pan). If there are bubbles on to of brulee before baking, I will take the tourch and "burn" them off for a smooth surface.
I find that if not covered, they boil. (350 deck and 325 convection)
I have great results by following this system.
My formula is based on this basic recipe:

1 qt cream (40%)
10 yolks (extra large)
2 whole eggs (extra large)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
1/2 lemon zest
2 cinnamon stix
pinch o' kosher salt

boil cream, sugar and flavor agents (to infuse the flavors).Cool slightly and pour over eggs while whisking briskly then strain. if the mix sits in the cooler for more than a few days, I will whisk in an additional egg.

For the top, I bake to dry 1# dark brown sugar, let cool and process in cusinart with equal amount of granulated until fine, sift and store.
Or you can use bar sugar. (super fine.)

[Eeyore]

Pinch of salt? Wow. I've never done that. I will try it on the next batch. I've made a little over half of the ones I will need for Saturday night. Fresh coconut, vanilla, cinnamon sticks, lemon zest.

I did them covered with foil -- not too tight --- in bain marie...but they are taking FOREVER to set up and they are getting too brown. Oh well they are good and the "brulee" will cover it.

thanx!
eeyore

[momoreg]

They should take about 45 min. to an hour to set up. If the foil is not working to keep them from getting brown, try an inverted pan of the same size. That works for me. Also, the water does not have to come all the way up the sides. 1/2 inch is plenty. How deep are your brulees?

[angrychef]

I make mini 2 oz. brulees for our sampler plates, so it doesn't really take too long, about 20-25 min. Bake them the same way as momoreg, 200 hotel pan with water, covered in foil in a 300 convection oven.

[Pete]

I bake mine in a regular oven and have had no problems with them browning or getting a crust on top. I put mine in a 2 inch hotel pan and fill with water a 1/3rd of the way up the ramikens.

[Eeyore]

Maybe that is my prob. I don't have any shallow dishes. So they are taking a long time to set up...thus the browning...I guess. I cover them maybe an inch with water. This leaves 2/3 out of the water. I did the first ones almost half way up and I thought they would never set up.

anyway thanx for the replies.

eeyore

[Eeyore]

FYI, they were wonderful! thanx for all the advice.

Interesting thing happened though: I made large batches (maybe that explains why they took so long)---about 50 or 60 to a batch. In a water bath covered with foil in hotel pans. One pan (they held 12 each) curdled. Only one pan. The only thing I could figure is that I covered this one too tight and the steam built up and .....

hmmmm.
eeyore

[fontzmark]

Just wondering........has anyone ever tried to make creme brulee without baking the custard? Heating it on the stovetop and stirring like mad?, then just pouring it in to cups? I'd like to know what the difference in texture is, if any.

[momoreg]

Eeyore,

the number of brulees in the batch should not have affected the cooking time by much. Generally, the ones that are exposed to direct heat from the oven are the ones that overcook.. It could be that your oven does not bake evenly? Or did you not put enough water into one of the pans?

[Eeyore]

Well, hmmm Definately my ovens dont cook evenly. But the whole pan curdled..and NONE of the others did. There was still plenty of water in the pan. I did it the same as all the others.

Is that what happens when you overcook them...they curdle? I thought they would just get too brown (which these weren't).

It is very odd.

I would think that most creme brulee recipes wouldn't do well stove top. I dunno, but it would definately be difficult to get the right texture and still have a flat top to brulee the sugar.

eeyore

[Nick.Shu]

apparently, oven cooked "brulees" are technically (or actually) called "petit pots de creme".

Been hauled over the coals for this one before,,.. - trust me.