Tembleque (Puerto Rican Coconut Pudding)
Tembleque is Puerto Rican coconut pudding or custard. Tembleque literally means shaky in Spanish, which refers to the jiggly texture of this pudding. This Puerto Rican dessert is popular during Christmas time but is enjoyed all year-round.
Equipment
- Non-stick silicone molds linked in recipe notes below
Ingredients
- 2 cans coconut milk (full-fat) 13.5 oz each
- 5 oz water enough to complete 4 cups of liquid in total
- 1/2 taza sugar adjust to your liking
- 1 tsp vainilla
- 1 tsp coconut extract opcional
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1/8 tsp sal
- 1/2 taza cornstarch
- lime peel (3 inches)
- canela for dusting
- coconut flakes for garnish, optional
- Cooking spray for mold
Instructions
Combine dry ingredients
- Place a large pot on the stove but keep the heat off.
- Add all of the dry ingredients and whisk together. (Sugar, salt, cornstarch).
Add wet ingredients
- Gradually add the coconut milk, water, vanilla extract, (and coconut extract, if using) while whisking. Keep stirring until the mixture is smooth and lump-free.
- Add cinnamon sticks and lime peel.
Cook the tembleque
- Place the pot over medium heat. Whisk the mixture frequently until it begins to simmer. Once small bubbles form, whisk constantly, but not too vigorously or you will create bubbles in the tembleque.
- Cook the tembleque for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it thickens.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Remove the cinnamon sticks and lime peel and allow the tembleque to cool slightly while you rinse the molds.
Prepare the molds
- Spray the mold with a little cooking spray. The oil will help the tembleque release more easily later, especially if you are using a silicone mold. Alternatively, you could just add a bit of water to the mold, which can also help the tembleque release.
Fill the molds
- For individual molds, fill each mold using a ladle. If you’re making dessert for a crowd, pour all of the tembleque mixture into an 8x8, 9x9, or 10-inch mold.
- Gently tap the bottom of the mold against the countertop to release any bubbles that may be trapped in the tembleque.
Chill the tembleque
- Press a layer of plastic wrap onto the surface of the tembleque and refrigerate until completely chilled. Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours depending on the size of your molds. You can also refrigerate overnight, if you want to make this dessert in advance.
- Once the tembleque has set, gently pull the custard from the silicone mold or run a thin, sharp knife between the tembleque and the mold. Invert the mold over a plate and allow gravity to release the custard from the mold. It should release easily.
- Sprinkle the tembleque with ground cinnamon and toasted coconut flakes. Serve and enjoy. ¡Buen provecho!
Notes
I get about 8 servings using 3-inch (3-oz capacity) molds. You could also use 3-oz sized ramekins. If you use 4-oz ramekins, you would get about 6 slightly larger servings.
You can shop the silicone molds I use aquí.