Vanilla and Chocolate Maicena Pudding is based on a Dominican Children's favorite breakfast dish, it is perfect for when you need a comforting dessert.
| Lee en Español |
Few Dominican children have escaped Maicena Pudding, and although it’s not as popular these days, nearly all of us have eaten a version of this dish at some time or another. It was usually served as breakfast or dinner, and sometimes as a mild, comfort food when we were sick.
A couple of readers recently mentioned that they would like a recipe for it, so I set out to do that. And while I was at it, I decided to answer some of the questions I got from you over the years.
What is maicena?
Maicena, or cornstarch, is the starch that is extracted from corn and used in the kitchen most commonly as a thickener.
What is the difference between cornmeal and cornstarch?
While cornstarch, (or cornflour in the UK) is simply the starch extracted from the corn, cornmeal (harina de maÃz) is obtained by grinding the whole grain and contains more fiber and less starch. Cornstarch is a very fine white powder, cornmeal is yellow and coarse. Their use is not interchangeable.
How do you call it, maicena or maizena?
It is called maicena (in Spanish), or cornstarch. Maizena® is a popular commercial brand of cornstarch.
Our recipe to make maicena
This maicena pudding dessert is very easy to make, and the most important trick is to keep stirring during cooking or it will become lumpy. The touch of the coconut is a fantastic contrast with the softness of the custard, although it is not part of the traditional presentation.
Serving it as a dessert convinces the kids to try it. Because anything served as a dessert is better.
Buen provecho!
Vanilla and Chocolate Maicena Pudding Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 cups of whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 1/2 cup of sugar
- seeds of 2 vanilla pods , or 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch
- 1/2 cup of toasted coconut flakes
Instructions
- Mix milk salt and sugar. Mix in cornstarch. Add vanilla seeds or cocoa powder, depending on which you’re making. Sieve to eliminate undissolved solids.
- Pour into a pot and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly to prevent it from sticking. Once it breaks a boil, lower heat and continue stirring until it has thickened to the same consistency as condensed milk. Remove from heat.
- Pour into another bowl and stir until it has cooled to room temperature. Pour into small serving cups. Sprinkle with toasted coconut and chill.
Hi Aunt Clara,
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I’m sorry to hear you weren’t feeling well! Lots of travel can really knock you out especially with the time differences too…Hopefully you’re doing better now!
-Kelsey
If these are vegan recipes why did you say whole milk? Vegans drinf nut based milks like almond, coconut, or cashew etc. I think you need to change that.
Please do read the whole recipe. I think you may have missed the end. 🙂
Will I be able to leave the cups in the refrigerator overnight?
They’ll get a thick crust on top. If you don’t mind, then yes.
Hello! I am making this recipe for my class tomorrow, my professor is vegan. I followed the recipe to a T (cocoa one) and got the condensed milk consistency. I have placed the pudding in the fridge and was just wondering how long this will take to turn into pudding consistency? 5 hours? 8 hours? 12 hours?
About an hour.