Instant Pot Creme Brulee
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Last Updated on February 9, 2021 by Lisa Johnson
Enjoy your favorite restaurant dessert at home with this rich and creamy Instant Pot Creme Brulee recipe that is simple to make and delicious to eat! All you need is 5 simple ingredients to create this silky smooth dessert.
For even more delicious pressure cooker recipes, check out the Instant Pot Recipes page.
I bet you are dying to crack that caramelized top with a spoon, aren’t you?
This is the perfect dessert to serve for special occasions or when trying to impress your guests!
What is Crème Brûlée?
It is a thick custard dessert that is lightly sweetened with a caramelized sugar topping. It is traditionally cooked in a water bath in the oven, but pressure cooking creates the same moist environment.
What is Crème Brûlée made of?
Cream, sugar, egg yolks and vanilla.
I have always made my Creme Brulee with a combination of granulated and brown sugar to create the crackly topping. Feel free to use all granulated sugar if you prefer.
This version is made with vanilla bean, but you can substitute 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract if you prefer.
How do you make Creme Brulee in an Instant Pot?
Fill a large pot with 1-inch of water and bring to a boil.
In the meantime, beat together the egg yolks, 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar and the paste from the vanilla bean in a large, stainless steel bowl until thick and creamy.
In a small saucepan over LOW heat, stir and heat the heavy cream until is almost comes to a boil. Remove from heat.
Use a ladle to pour a small amount of the heated cream into the egg mixture. Whisk to combine.
This is called tempering the eggs. We want to raise the temperature of the egg mixture without creating scrambled eggs.
Slowly pour in the remaining cream while whisking to combine.
Place the mixture on top of the pot of boiling water.
Reduce heat to simmer. Stir mixture over simmering water until it thickens and lightly coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Remove mixture from heat and pour into four 8-ounce ramekins.
Wrap each ramekin with a piece of aluminum foil.
Place a trivet in the bottom of the pressure cooker liner, and add 1.5 cups of water. Carefully stack the ramekins in the pressure cooker.
Secure the lid and check to make sure the knob is in the “Sealing” position.
Turn on the Instant Pot and press the “Pressure Cook or Manual” button. Set the time to 15 minutes on High Pressure.
When the pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. (do not do anything, just let it do it’s thing for 10 minutes.)
Release any remaining pressure and remove the lid. Carefully remove the ramekins from the pressure cooker, place on a cooling rack, and remove the foil.
Allow to cool completely then cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
When ready to serve, mix the remaining granulated sugar with the brown sugar in a small bowl.
Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the chilled custard.
Melt the sugar with a kitchen torch using a circular motion around the entire top. It will smell like you are roasting marshmallows.
Serve as is or top with fresh berries.
How do you caramelize the top of the Creme Brulee without a torch?
Turn on your oven set to BROIL. When hot, place your Creme Brulee on a baking sheet just below the broiler for a few minutes to melt the sugar. You may need to place your custard back in the refrigerator to set again if it gets too warm. Remove from refrigerator and serve.
Can Creme Brulee be made without dairy?
Yes it can! Simply replace the cream with canned coconut milk (make sure to shake the can before opening). All other ingredients remain the same.
I also have a dairy-free Creme Brulee made in the oven if you do not have an Instant Pot.
Additional Instant Pot dessert recipes:
Tools used to create this recipe:
- 6 quart Instant Pot – the Plus model is sold out
- wire whisk
- ramekins
- stainless steel bowl
- large pot – as you can see, I do not own a double-boiler.
- kitchen torch
Enjoy!!
Instant Pot Creme Brulee
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 6 large egg yolks lightly beaten
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar divided
- 1 whole vanilla bean split open and scraped
- 2.5 cups heavy cream substitute canned coconut milk for dairy-free
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- fresh berries to garnish optional
Instructions
- Fill a large pot with 1-inch of water and bring to a boil.
- In the meantime, beat together the egg yolks, 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar and the paste from the vanilla bean in a large, stainless steel bowl until thick and creamy.
- In a small saucepan over LOW heat, stir and heat the heavy cream until is almost comes to a boil. Remove from heat.
- Use a ladle to pour a small amount of the heated cream into the egg mixture. Whisk to combine. This is called tempering the eggs. We want to raise the temperature of the egg mixture without creating scrambled eggs.
- Slowly pour in the remaining cream while whisking to combine.
- Place the mixture on top of the pot of boiling water. Reduce heat to simmer. Stir mixture over simmering water until it thickens and lightly coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Remove mixture from heat and pour into four 8-ounce ramekins. Wrap each ramekin with a piece of aluminum foil.
- Place a trivet in the bottom of the pressure cooker liner, and add 1.5 cups of water. Carefully stack the ramekins in the pressure cooker.
- Secure the lid and check to make sure the knob is in the “Sealing” position. Turn on the Instant Pot and press the “Pressure Cook or Manual” button. Set the time to 15 minutes on High Pressure.
- When the pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. (do not do anything, just let it do it’s thing for 10 minutes.)
- Release any remaining pressure and remove the lid. Carefully remove the ramekins from the pressure cooker, place on a cooling rack, and remove the foil. Allow to cool completely then cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
- When ready to serve, mix the remaining granulated sugar with the brown sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the chilled custard.
- Melt the sugar with a kitchen torch using a circular motion around the entire top. It will smell like you are roasting marshmallows.
- Serve as is or top with fresh berries.
