Is Flan Always Gluten-Free?

In terms of jiggly, custardy desserts, flan is one of the gold standards. This egg-based pudding can go by a few other names like crème caramel or caramel custard (due to the layer of caramelized sugar on top), and it's prized for its silky meltaway texture. If you're actively avoiding gluten, you might be curious as to whether or not flan includes a wheat-based thickener. Luckily for you, most of the time, it doesn't. 

The only thickening agent flan needs is the protein in eggs, which coagulates when heated. This gives you that firm but spoonable texture. Most basic flan recipes simply call for eggs, cream or condensed milk, sugar, and vanilla extract, none of which naturally contain gluten. But, if you choose to buy a prepackaged flan at the store, which can be eaten straight from the container, you'll want to look very closely at the ingredients list. Food manufacturers sometimes use additional starch-based thickeners in their products or include barley malt extract, which is a source of gluten.

Other gluten-free flan-like desserts

Surprisingly, even though regular pudding is thickened with starch, it almost always uses cornstarch, meaning pudding is often naturally gluten-free. Rather than a canned condensed milk base, pudding relies on fresh milk as its bulk liquid component, so it's a lot less custardy than flan. And, if you're concerned about your favorite Jell-O products, almost all of them are manufactured without gluten, though the labels might not explicitly list them as gluten-free foods. 

Again, this all depends on your level of gluten intolerance, so you'll have to do some close scanning of the ingredients list just to be sure you're safe. But, for those dessert fans who can't eat gluten, flans or regular puddings are generally a good bet, and can be even safer if you make them from scratch. If you're going to purchase a premade version, just be mindful of added ingredients. You probably already are, anyway.

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