Flan is one of those timeless desserts that instantly transports me back to my childhood. In South America, it’s a true classic — creamy, comforting, and always made with love. Every time I eat dulce de leche flan, I’m reminded of Santiago and Buenos Aires and the many flans he cooked.
If you don’t have store-bought dulce de leche on hand, don’t worry — making your own is easier than you might think! My favourite shortcut is using a can of sweetened condensed milk. Simply place the unopened can in a pressure cooker, fully submerged in water, and cook it for about 1 hour. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can simmer it in a regular pot for 3 hours — just make sure the can stays covered with water the entire time. Once cooled and opened, you’ll have rich, velvety dulce de leche that’s even better than the store-bought kind.
As energy is very expensive and it’s not necessarily the most efficient way of making dulce de leche, you can also use ready-made dulce de leche (like the Carnation brand).