Leche Asada

S Sunflower Updated May 06, 2021

Leche Asada, Peru's "roasted milk", is a very old Peruvian dessert and might already have been prepared during Colonial times. Being probably the poor people's version of the famous Crème Brûlée, this creamy, sweet and delicious dessert is surely simple, but leaves a lasting impression on everyone who tried it. Peruvian comfort food at its best!

Even though today often canned sweetened condense milk and evaporated milk is found on the ingredient list of lots of recipes, the only few ingredients a good Leche Asada needs is fresh whole milk, eggs, sugar and probably some vanilla or cinnamon. The Peruvian Leche Asada has no caramel and is characterized by its browned top. It's served lukewarm or cold in glasses or small ramekins.

The specified quantities in the ingredients list are sufficient for 4 middle sized glasses or 6 ramekins.

LimaEasy's Recipe for Peruvian Leche Asada

Ingredients:

500 ml (a good 2 cups) fresh whole milk - don't use skimmed or UHT milk
4 eggs
125 g (0.6 cup) sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F).
In a large bowl whisk the eggs until well combined and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue whisking until it's completely dissolved. Then pour in the milk and keep whisking. Stir in the vanilla essence.
Fill the mixture in oven-proof glasses or ramekins and place them into a big enough oven-proof dish.
Place the dish into the oven and pour boiling water in it until the glasses or ramekins are covered half of their height.
Depending on the size of your glasses or ramekins bake the Leche Asada for 30 to 60 minutes. To check if your Leche Asada is baked properly, pierce one carefully with a wooden skewer. If the skewer stays clean and no "custard" is sticking to it, the Leche Asada is ready.
Remove the dish from the oven and the glasses from the dish. Let cool.
Serve lukewarm or cold.
Enjoy!