Fruit custard is an easy-to-make and refreshing popular Indian dessert recipe made of a creamy custard base and a variety of fresh fruits.
Whenever I crave a healthy dessert on a lazy day or need a quick treat for unexpected guests, fruit custard is my go-to recipe. It’s fresh, easy to make, and always a crowd-pleaser! Also, check out my easy fruit chaat recipe.
Fruit custard is an all-time favorite summer delight for both my husband and me. I could enjoy a bowl at any time of the day! The best part? It’s incredibly simple to make at home and is also a kid-friendly dessert.
If you like this recipe, then check more Fruit Dessert recipes
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What Is Fruit Custard?
Fruit custard is a creamy and rich chilled dessert made with custard powder, milk, mix of fruits. You can also add nuts for extra crunch. Feel free to use your favorite fruits to customize it to your taste!
Ingredients
- Custard Powder: Custard powder helps to thicken the milk and makes the custard creamy. I recommend Brown Polson Vanilla Custard Powder.
- Milk: Use full-fat whole milk for the best results. You can also use low-fat, depending on your preference, but it will not yield the same results. If you are looking for vegan fruit custard, use almond or coconut milk.
- Sugar: use white granulated sugar.
- Assorted Fruits: You can add any variety of fresh fruits to the custard. I used mango, apple, banana, red grapes, pomegranate. Avoid citrus fruits like oranges, pineapple, and kiwi and high water content fruits like watermelon, cantaloupe.
How To Make Creamy Fruit Custard
In a small bowl, add 2 tablespoons custard powder and ¼ cup warm milk. Use a hand whisk to stir it thoroughly, ensuring there are no lumps. Set it aside.
Pour 2 cups whole milk into a heavy-bottom saucepan. Bring it to a gentle boil on medium-high heat. Stir occasionally.
Once the milk has boiled and begun to foam, add ¼ cup sugar (adjust according to your taste) and stir well for 1-2 minutes until it dissolves.
Then, reduce the heat to low and pour the custard powder mixture while stirring continuously. Make sure there are no lumps.
Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the custard thickens. Then, remove the custard sauce from the heat and cool to room temperature. The custard thickens as it cools down.
Note: If you want a thicker custard, cook for a few more minutes.
Then cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to chill.
While the custard is cooling, wash and chop the preferred fruits (I used apple, banana, mango, grapes, pomegranate) into bite-sized pieces. Set them aside. You should get about 2 cups of fruits.
Once chilled, add the chopped fruits to the custard and gently mix everything well.
Serving Suggestion
Take two serving bowls, fill them with prepared chilled fruit custard, and top it up with a few pomegranate kernels or chopped nuts.
Tips To Make Indian-Style Fruit Custard
- No Custard Powder? I used store-bought Vanilla Custard. If you do not have custard powder, then add yellow food color, vanilla essence to the corn starch (corn flour) and mix it with the milk.
- Seasonal Fruits: Always use fresh, ripe seasonal fruits to use in the custard.
- Avoid citrus fruits and melons: Try to avoid citrus fruits like orange, mandarin, grapefruit, pineapple, and melons like watermelon and muskmelon.
- Chill the custard before adding fruits: Chilling the custard allows it to set and thicken further. This will hold the shape when combined with fruits and helps to retain the fruit's freshness.
- Add fruits just before serving: To maintain the texture and freshness of the fruits, add them just before serving. Else juice in the fruits will mix and make the custard thin.
Variations
- Other Fruits: You can add other fruits like strawberries, blueberries, papaya, cherries, pears, and green grapes.
- Add Nuts & Dry Fruits: You can add some nuts like chopped cashews, pistachios, almonds, and dried fruits like raisins or chopped dates for added sweetness.
- Canned Fruits: If you don't have fresh fruits in hand, you may also use canned fruits as an alternative to fruit custard. Indian Restaurants in the USA generally use Canned fruit cocktail mixes in fruit custard. Make sure to drain the syrup or juice before adding it to the custard.
- Flavorings: You may also use a little rose water or ground cardamom for added flavor and aroma.
Fruit Custard
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoons custard powder
- ¼ cup warm milk (to dissolve custard powder)
- ¼ cup sugar (adjust according to your taste)
- 2 cups assorted fruits (I used apple, banana, mango, grapes, pomegranate)
Instructions
- Add custard powder, and warm milk in a small bowl. Use a hand whisk to thoroughly stir it, making sure there are no lumps. Set it aside.
- Pour the whole milk into a heavy-bottom saucepan. Bring it to a gentle boil on medium-high heat. Stir occasionally.
- Once the milk has boiled and begun to foam, add sugar and stir well for 1-2 minutes until it dissolves.
- Then reduce the heat to low and pour the custard powder mixture while stirring continuously. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the custard thickens. Then remove from the heat and let the custard sauce cool to room temperature. The custard thickens as it cools down.Note: If you are looking for a thicker custard, cook for a few more minutes.
- Then cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to chill.
- While the custard is cooling, wash and chop the preferred fruits into bite-sized pieces. Set them aside.
- Once chilled, add the chopped fruits to the custard and gently mix everything well.
Notes
Tips
- No Custard Powder? I used store-bought Vanilla Custard. If you do not have custard powder, then add yellow food color, vanilla essence to the corn starch (corn flour) and mix it with the milk.
- Seasonal Fruits: Always use fresh, ripe seasonal fruits to use in the custard.
- Avoid citrus fruits and melons: Try to avoid citrus fruits like orange, mandarin, grapefruit, pineapple, and melons like watermelon and muskmelon.
- Chill the custard before adding fruits: Chilling the custard allows it to set and thicken further. This will hold the shape when combined with fruits and helps to retain the fruit's freshness.
- Add fruits just before serving: To maintain the texture and freshness of the fruits, add them just before serving. Else juice in the fruits will mix and make the custard thin.
Variations
- Other Fruits: You can add other fruits like strawberries, blueberries, papaya, cherries, pears, and green grapes.
- Add Nuts & Dry Fruits: You can add some nuts like chopped cashews, pistachios, almonds, and dried fruits like raisins or chopped dates for added sweetness.
- Canned Fruits: If you don't have fresh fruits in hand, you may also use canned fruits as an alternative to fruit custard. Indian Restaurants in the USA generally use Canned fruit cocktail mixes in fruit custard. Make sure to drain the syrup or juice before adding it to the custard.
- Flavorings: You may also use a little rose water or ground cardamom for added flavor and aroma.
Nutrition
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