Custard- Versatile, great to eat with dessert

In custard, egg acts as thickening agent. A true custard consists only of eggs, milk, sugar and flavouring compounds. Custards are of two types, the stirred or soft custard which is given a creamy consistency by being stirred while it is cooking and the baked custard which is allowed to coagulate without stirring, thereby producing a gel. Recipe for custard is as follows.

Baked Custard This is made at 350oF. It is done when the tip of a knife inserted halfway between the centre and outside, comes out clean. When custard is overcooked, some clear liquid separates from the gel structure that is syneresis occur. 

In an overcooked custard, the egg proteins that form the mesh-like gel structure apparently shrink and squeeze out some of the liquid that was held in the mesh. Fruits, dry fruits and caramelized sugar can be added to give variety.

Soft Custard Same ingredients are used as in baked custard. The vanilla, because of its volatility is added after the other ingredients are cooked. Custards that are cooked more slowly coagulate more completely at a lower temperature than custards that are cooked rapidly. There is less danger of curdling and both consistency and flavour are better in stirred custards cooked relatively slowly. 

The total cooking time, in a double boiler should be 12 to 15 minutes, heating more rapidly at first and then more slowly (70oC-75oC water temperature) while stirring thoroughly and rapidly should be done during the entire process. Stirring separates the coagulated particles, resulting in a creamy consistency. The custard will be thicker when it is cold. When the knife comes out coated, the end point has come.

Do you want to start a custard powder company from scratch? Or you need a sample custard production business plan template? If YES, then i advice you read on. Custard is a type of food that is consumed as a dessert all around the globe and it is easy to produce and prepare. The main ingredient for producing custard is corn; hence it is highly rich in carbohydrate.

The fact that corn is consumed all over the world makes it easier for people to consume custard. Research has shown that custard production is one of the best forms of businesses to do that could stand the test of time under the food industry.

In the hierarchy of human needs, food has always been the number one need. Humans would first seek to solve the problem of hunger before they think of solving other needs. Custard is a stable food that you are likely going to find in the kitchen of an average family in your neighborhood. It is affordable and it is consumed by both the rich and the poor. So therefore the market for custard is not limited to a section of the community.

If you want to venture into the production of stable food, that would cost you less to establish, then starting with Custard powder might just be your best bet. The fact that you can readily get the required raw materials and ingredients (Corn, flavors, preservatives, milk, eggs et al) needed to produce custard powder, makes is easier for young entrepreneurs to venture into it.

The good thing about starting a custard powder production company is that you can start it from the comfort of your home with minimum startup capital if you intend to start on a small scale. Here are tips to get you started in the custard production line.

Cuajada recipe, the typical shepherd’s dessert of Basque-Navarrese cuisine

Cuajada is a traditional Basque-Navarrese dairy dessert. In the Basque Country it is also known as mamia. The real cuajada is made with fresh sheep’s milk, as it contains more fat than other milks, a higher dry extract and a consistent result that makes it ideal for this dessert. In addition, there are two other key elements for a quality cuajada: the rennet and the temperature. It is very important to heat the milk to the temperature required by the rennet to obtain the desired result.

In general, the recipe is very simple and is based on the formula that shepherds used to follow. They milked the sheep and heated the milk in the kaiku (birch wood vessel) by pouring in hot stones that gave the cuajada a toasted flavour. When the milk boiled, the stones were removed and let the milk cool, at which point the animal rennet was added and then let it rest until it reached the right consistency. Over the years, the recipe was a success and it began to be prepared in towns and cities, using the typical clay jars that are still used today.

Ingredients for the cuajada:

• 1 L of fresh sheep’s milk
• Rennet: 3-4 drops for each small jar or 10-20 drops for large jars
• Sugar, honey, jam or nuts to accompany (optional)
• Cuajada without sheep’s milk:
• 1 L of fresh whole milk
• 70 g of skimmed milk powder
• 1 teaspoon of rennet

How to make the cuajada:

Heat the milk in a saucepan over low heat and stir constantly. In this case, a lukewarm temperature should be reached; about 45ºC. Each rennet has an optimum temperature that must be reached, so pay close attention to its indications.

Put 3 to 4 drops of rennet in each clay jar that you are going to use for your cuajada; add more if the containers are larger. Then, when the milk in the pot has reached the above-mentioned temperature, pour it into each jar. It is important to add it continuously and not to refill. It is also essential that the rennet is always poured in before the milk.

When you have filled all the jars, do not move them and let the milk set for at least 10 minutes. When they are cold, cover them with cling film and store them in the fridge for a couple of hours.

You can eat your cuajada by itself or add honey, nuts, sugar, jam, etc. The recommendation is to add them on top and never stir them, in order to appreciate each texture separately.

Cuajada without sheep’s milk:

Pour the fresh whole milk into a saucepan. Add the milk powder little by little and stir until it is completely dissolved. Then heat the milk over medium-low heat until it reaches 40ºC.

When the milk is at 40ºC, turn off the heat and, in the same saucepan, add the teaspoon of rennet. Stir very well and pour the mixture into each of the containers in which you are going to serve your cuajada. When they are all ready, cover them with cling film and let them set; do not move them until the milk curdles well. Then, put them in the fridge and, when serving, accompany your cuajada with whatever you like best: honey, nuts, jam…