This Coconut Crème Brûlée is smooth and silky with a crunchy caramelized bite. A coconut custard base made with just 4 ingredients, this dairy-free crème brûlée is easy to make but highly impressive with only 10 minutes of prep. Trust us, you won't even believe this is a dairy-free crème brûlée.
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According to Ina Garten, crème brûlée is the ultimate "guy" dessert. While we hate to go against Ina, we think crème brûlée is the ultimate "everyone" dessert. What's not to love about a rich, delicate, and creamy custard that’s torched resulting in a caramelized sugar topping?
Traditionally made with cream, like in our Pumpkin Crème Brûlée or Lemon Crème Brûlée, for this version we opted for a dairy-free recipe, swapping out dairy for coconut milk – and no, it doesn't taste overly coconutty, it's just a hint!
Why You’ll Love This Coconut Crème Brûlée Recipe
- It’s dairy-free: Silky and smooth with the crunchiest caramelized top, you won't believe this crème brûlée is dairy-free. This version is just as good as the traditional minus the heavy cream. For those with dietary restrictions or preferences, this dairy-free alternative is a must-try!
- It can be made in advance: Crème brûlée is one of those desserts that are super impressive but can be prepped way in advance and left in the fridge just until it's time to serve. Simply bake it, chill it (for as long as 3 days) then before serving, top them with sugar and torch them – tableside for extra points!
- It's cost-effective: Speaking of impressive, this dairy-free crème brûlée uses minimal ingredients that you most likely already have in your pantry – coconut milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. And if you don't have these ingredients, it'll probably cost you less than $5 to grab them and make enough to feed four.
If you love our Coconut Crème Brûlée, you'll also love these dairy-free dessert recipes: Dairy-Free Ice Cream Sandwiches, Gluten-Free Banana Bread with Chocolate, or our Flourless Lemon and Blueberry Almond Cake.
Ingredient List
- Coconut milk: Use premium or full-fat coconut milk.
- Vanilla: Use real vanilla bean if available. Vanilla paste or vanilla extract can also be used but the flavor will be less refined.
- Sugar: White sugar or raw granulated sugar is best.
- Egg Yolks: Use fresh eggs, large or extra-large. Save the egg whites to make our popular Crispy and Chewy Amaretti Cookies.
- Optional Garnish: We used fresh mint and raspberries for garnish, but strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries are also great.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Recipe Modifications
- Adding flavor: Adding citrus zest such as orange or lemon along with the vanilla in the coconut milk will brighten the dish and is perfect for summer.
- Chocolate crème brûlée: melt 4 oz of dark chocolate (dairy-free) into the coconut milk for a decadent and dairy-free chocolate crème brûlée.
Recipe Steps: How to Make Coconut Crème Brûlée
1. Flavor the coconut milk.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Heat coconut milk and the vanilla seeds and pod in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to simmer. Lower the heat and keep it at a low simmer for about 5 minutes, then remove from the heat, cover, and set aside to steep for another 5-10 minutes.
2. Prepare the custard.
Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl until smooth.
3. Temper the eggs.
Pour the flavored coconut milk through a sieve and into a large measuring cup or bowl with a spout. While continuously whisking the sweetened egg yolks, slowly pour in the coconut milk. Ensure to scrape out all the vanilla seeds from the bowl. Continue whisking until combined.
4. Bake the crème brûlée.
Arrange 4 ramekins in a baking dish and fill each with crème, leaving a ¼ inch at the top. Add hot water to the baking dish, halfway up the ramekins. Carefully transfer the dish to the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the centers jiggle slightly. Remove from the water bath and refrigerate for 2 hours until set.
5. Brûlèe the tops.
Once cooled, sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of sugar onto each crème brulée. Using a kitchen torch, glaze the sugar until the sugar is melted, caramelized, and a glassy top forms. Then garnish with berries.
Chef's Tips
Vanilla Bean: Slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, then scrape the seeds out with the back of a pairing knife. Add both the seeds and vanilla bean pod to the coconut milk.
Prevent clumps: If you get clumps of yolk after whisking the hot coconut milk into the eggs, pour the mixture through a sieve to remove any bits of egg so you maintain a smooth texture for the dessert.
Water bath: We recommend placing the baking dish into the oven before pouring the hot water for the water bath. This makes the dish lighter and easier to maneuver so you don't get burned.
Brûlèe tips: Hold the torch about 3 to 4 inches from the sugar, and maintain a constant, slow, side-to-side or circular motion. If you don't have a torch, you can brûlée the sugar by placing the ramekins on the top rack of a cold oven, turning on to broil for 6-10 minutes, and turning occasionally with tongs, until the sugar is melted and brûléed.
Storage and Freezing
Make ahead: crème brûlée can be made days in advance, which makes it a wonderful dish to serve for dinner parties. Simply cover the ramekins until ready to serve, then top with the sugar and brûlée when ready to serve.
Leftovers: leftover crème brûlée can be stored in the fridge, however, the sugar coating will turn to liquid. The result is still delicious and enjoyable but you will not be able to re-brûlée the tops.
Freezing: crème brûlée that has not been brûléed can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge for 6 or more hours than dust with sugar and torch as in the recipe.
Recipe FAQs
We prefer wide 5oz ramekins as they provide lots of surface area for that glassy sugar topping, though you can use any size ramekin you have on hand.
A water bath provides moisture in the oven resulting in an even cook, and prevents curdling or cracking of the surface of the crème brûlée.
Yes, if you remove the crème brûlée from the oven and they are firm and don’t jiggle when tapped, then they are overbaked. They are still edible, but the texture will be off. If the centers rise then the eggs have cooked and are likely beyond saving.
Crème brûlée that hasn’t been covered with sugar or torched can last up to 3 days in the fridge. If you have already brûléed the top you can still save it, however, its crisp sugar topping will become soft and cannot be re-torched.
Craving More Dairy-Free Dessert Recipes?
Did you make this Coconut Crème Brûlée? Please leave a ⭐️ star rating and let us know what you loved about it in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for cooking with us!
Recipe Card
Coconut Crème Brûlée (Dairy-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 can coconut milk 13.5oz/400ml
- 5 large egg yolks
- ½ cup sugar + 4-6 teaspoon for topping
- 1 whole vanilla bean seeds and pod
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325° F
- Heat coconut milk and the vanilla seeds and pod in a small saucepan over medium heat until it just begins to simmer. Lower the heat and keep it at a low simmer for about 5 minutes, then remove from the heat, cover, and set aside to steep for another 5-10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl until smooth.
- Pour the flavored coconut milk through a sieve and into a large measuring cup or bowl with a spout.
- While continuously whisking the sweetened egg yolks, slowly pour in the coconut milk. Ensure to scrape out all the vanilla seeds from the bowl. Continue whisking until combined.
- Arrange 4 ramekins in a baking dish and fill each with crème, leaving a ¼ inch at the top. Add hot water to the baking dish, halfway up the ramekins. Carefully transfer the dish to the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the centers jiggle slightly. Remove from the water bath and refrigerate for 2 hours until set.
- Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of sugar onto each crème brulée. Using a kitchen torch, glaze the sugar until the sugar is melted, caramelized, and a glassy top forms.
- Arrange garnish such as raspberries and mint on top and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- Vanilla Bean: Slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, then scrape the seeds out with the back of a pairing knife. Add both the seeds and vanilla bean pod to the coconut milk.
- Prevent clumps: If you get clumps of yolk after whisking the hot coconut milk into the eggs, pour the mixture through a sieve to remove any bits of egg so you maintain a smooth texture for the dessert.
- Water bath: We recommend placing the baking dish into the oven before pouring the hot water for the water bath. This makes the dish lighter and easier to maneuver so you don't get burned.
- Brûlèe tips: Hold the torch about 3 to 4 inches from the sugar, and maintain a constant, slow, side-to-side or circular motion. If you don't have a torch, you can brûlée the sugar by placing the ramekins on the top rack of a cold oven, turning on to broil for 6-10 minutes, and turning occasionally with tongs, until the sugar is melted and brûléed.
- Make ahead: crème brûlée can be made days in advance, which makes it a wonderful dish to serve for dinner parties. Simply cover the ramekins until ready to serve, then top with the sugar and brûlée when ready to serve.
- Leftovers: leftover crème brûlée can be stored in the fridge, however, the sugar coating will turn to liquid. The result is still delicious and enjoyable but you will not be able to re-brûlée the tops.
- Freezing: crème brûlée that has not been brûléed can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge for 6 or more hours than dust with sugar and torch as in the recipe.
Lesley Bailey says
Hi there can these be frozen after cooking ?
Philip + Mystique says
Hi Lesley, They can be frozen for 1-2 weeks after cooking, but before caramelizing. Happy baking!
Russ says
Terrific dairy free recipe. You can slightly tweak it very easily with rum extract, bourbon, lime, etc.
Philip + Mystique says
Thanks Russ! It's a special recipe. Tweaks are always welcome.
Kristy says
This was outstanding! Only change I made was to swap 1/2t vanilla bean paste for the whole vanilla bean. Absolutely delicious, thank you for the recipe.
Matt says
Ow come in the picture above looks thicker?
Delena says
How much fat should there be in the coconut milk??
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Delena,
Thanks for stopping by and for the question. I am not sure of the percentage of fat, however, the can will say premium and/or full-fat coconut milk. Our cans we have in our pantry show between 9 to 11g of fat per 1/4 cup or 60ml. Good luck with the recipe!
Jamie says
I made this last night for my wife and it was absolutely divine. Creamy, smooth and could barely tell that it is dairy-free. Thank you for the recipe, love it!
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Jamie,
So glad your wife enjoyed the recipe. We make it for special occasions and it's definitely one of our favourites.
Laura says
Followed the recipe exactly, although the recipe separated when it cooked and I was left with a coconut water liquid at the bottom of the ramekin.
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Laura,
Thanks for stopping by and trying out the recipe. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. Keep in mind, that this is a dairy-free recipe and coconut milk does not have the same properties as heavy cream. Different brands of coconut milk will yield different results based on their ingredients, such as emulsifiers. Coconut milk naturally separates when heating up so there is likely to be a little bit of liquid at the bottom. This can be remedied somewhat by dabbing the top of the Brulee with a paper towel before dusting with sugar.
Kim says
I made this recipe twice. The first time I used light coconut milk so it took almost two hours in the oven. The next time I bought the full fat version but it’s been over an hour in the oven and is still liquid.
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Kim,
The creme brulee may still seem liquidy when in the oven, or even when you pull it out but firm up in the fridge once cold. Hopefully, they were okay after chilling. Feel free to reach out further for any troubleshooting. All the best!
Chris Gorman says
I absolutely loved this recipe for its simplicity and the results are restaurant-quality to boot. I have a go to Creme' Brulee' recipe that is almost exact except sub heavy cream for the coconut milk. On a side note, I used a brand of milk called Polar (full cream). It was definatley thicker than standard coconut milk. Thanks for sharing this!
Ann Wright says
How long will these last in the refrigerator? I am trying to figure out how much in advance I could make these.
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Ann, I have made them up to 12 hours before serving. You should be able to make them the day before serving I imagine.
Josephine’ says
Are the +3 tablespoons of sugar for mixing with the egg yolks or for the brûlée?
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Josephine. The 3 tbsp of sugar is to sprinkle on top of the set custards for the brûlée. Thanks for stopping by, please come back and let us know how the recipe turned out for you!
Robert Dufort says
I am replacing vanilla bean with 3 tsp of matcha (green tea powder) I will let you know if it was good. Thank you for this simple recipe.
Chef Sous Chef says
That sounds delicious! I'm curious how the colour will turn out. Please let us know the results! Good luck Robert.
Jahnavi says
I don't have vanilla beans. How many teaspoons of vanilla extract is 1 vanilla bean equivalent to? I'd appreciate your feedback.
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Jahnavi
Thanks for the question. You can use 1 tsp of vanilla extract for one vanilla bean.
Kelly says
Can this be made with sous vide
Chef Sous Chef says
Hi Kelly,
We’ve never thought of cooking the brûlée sous vide and couldn’t tell you whether it would work with this recipe. Here is an article with instructions which may be helpful https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/creme-brulee
Stephanie says
I was surprised by how good the texture was. The coconut milk was so delicious!
Chef Sous Chef says
Thanks Stephanie!