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Sous Vide Chocolate Pots De Crème

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on March 21, 2019

Time

Sous vide: 60 to 75 minutes; active cooking time: 25 minutes, plus resting and chilling time

Yield

Serves 6

Sous Vide Temperature

167°F/75°C

Sous Vide Chocolate Pots De Crème

Ingredients

6 ounces (170 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped1 ¼ cups heavy cream 3 tablespoons sugar ¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder ⅛ teaspoon salt 3 large egg yolks 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Before You Begin

You will need six 4-ounce widemouthed Mason jars for this recipe. Be careful not to overtighten the jars before placing them in the water bath; it can cause the glass to crack. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream, chocolate shavings, and/or flake sea salt. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

  1. Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 167°F/75°C in 7-quart container.
  2. Microwave chocolate, cream, sugar, espresso powder, and salt in bowl at 50 percent power, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is thoroughly combined, 2 to 4 minutes. Whisk in egg yolks and vanilla until combined.
  3. Strain chocolate mixture through fine-mesh strainer into 4-cup liquid measuring cup, then divide evenly among six 4-ounce wide-mouthed Mason jars. Gently tap jars on counter to remove any air bubbles, then seal; do not overtighten lids.
  4. Gently lower jars into water bath until fully submerged. Cover and cook for at least 60 minutes or up to 75 minutes.
  5. Transfer jars to wire rack and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours. Let pots de crème sit at room temperature for 20 minutes and serve.
  6. to make ahead

  7. Pots de crème can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Sous Vide Chocolate Pots De Crème
Photography by Steve Klise. Styling by Kendra McKnight.

Sous Vide Chocolate Pots De Crème

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

Sous vide: 60 to 75 minutes; active cooking time: 25 minutes, plus resting and chilling time

Yield

Serves 6

Sous Vide Temperature

167°F/75°C

Ingredients

6 ounces (170 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Ingredients

6 ounces (170 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Ingredients

6 ounces (170 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Why This Recipe Works

We like to think of pots de crème as chocolate pudding that has studied abroad in France. Traditional cooking methods call for managing ramekins in a water bath in the oven or carefully monitoring the temperature of a pot on the stovetop. With sous vide, all we needed to do was whip up our chocolate custard base (a small amount of instant espresso powder ensured deep chocolate flavor), divide it among Mason jars, and leave the jars in the water bath for one hour. Once they finished cooking, we chilled the pots de crème in the refrigerator, and then they were ready to go. We prefer pots de crème made with 60 percent cacao bittersweet chocolate (our favorite brands are Ghirardelli and Callebaut). 

Before You Begin

You will need six 4-ounce widemouthed Mason jars for this recipe. Be careful not to overtighten the jars before placing them in the water bath; it can cause the glass to crack. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream, chocolate shavings, and/or flake sea salt. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

  1. Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 167°F/75°C in 7-quart container.
  2. Microwave chocolate, cream, sugar, espresso powder, and salt in bowl at 50 percent power, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is thoroughly combined, 2 to 4 minutes. Whisk in egg yolks and vanilla until combined.
  3. Strain chocolate mixture through fine-mesh strainer into 4-cup liquid measuring cup, then divide evenly among six 4-ounce wide-mouthed Mason jars. Gently tap jars on counter to remove any air bubbles, then seal; do not overtighten lids.
  4. Gently lower jars into water bath until fully submerged. Cover and cook for at least 60 minutes or up to 75 minutes.
  5. Transfer jars to wire rack and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours. Let pots de crème sit at room temperature for 20 minutes and serve.
  6. to make ahead

  7. Pots de crème can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

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