The Canned Ingredient That'll Take Your Rice Pudding Up A Notch

You can fit rice into almost anything, from hearty, filling main courses to light, fresh side dishes. Venturing into the wonderland of desserts, you'll find rice as the star ingredient in the beloved rice pudding. Together with milk, sugar, and a few other fundamentals, it makes a simple yet utterly toothsome treat. Add a splash of canned evaporated milk, and it will get even better. Although it may not seem like much, once you taste the renewed flavor and texture, you'll appreciate what it has added to the pudding.

Evaporated milk is fresh milk that's been simmered to lose about 60% of its water content. As you can imagine, this thickens it to a creamy, velvety goodness. When added to rice pudding, it brings a richness that makes the dessert so much more enticing. Even so, you won't feel like you're eating a different dish. It's a seamless switch that takes things to the next level while still holding on to the rice pudding's familiar essence.

The element of indulgence is further highlighted by the delightful sweetness the evaporated milk brings. It's accompanied by a subtle caramelized, nutty undertone that brings nuance to the rice pudding's soft, creamy taste. From here on, do as you wish with the dish, by keeping the flavors as they are, or experimenting with different ingredients.

Even with the canned evaporated milk added, rice pudding is still one of those dishes that comes together without a hassle. It requires only the barest essentials, both in ingredients and skill. For a four-person serving, you'll need around 12 – 14 fl oz of evaporated milk, which equals about one can. With baked rice pudding, for example, you'll only need to mix everything and let the oven do the rest. If you're making rice pudding on the stovetop consider simmering the evaporated milk with sugar, spices, and other ingredients before stirring in the rice pudding mixture.

Evaporated milk is the perfect gateway for experimenting with other flavors for your rice pudding. More often than not, it's sprinkled with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom for a sweet, warm kick to cut through all that creaminess. But why stop there? Seep a few chai tea bags for a chai rice pudding that fully embraces the magic of fall. Chocolate lovers will enjoy the bittersweet taste a few tablespoons of cocoa powder brings to the party. If it's a textural versatility you want, focus on the topping. Get creative to your heart's content. Anything from raisins, beans, chocolate chips, cereals, oatmeals, candied fruit peels, and apple sauce to whipped cream and caramel sauce will work splendidly.