Creamy keto chocolate pudding made with coconut milk. This delicious sugar-free pudding takes only 20 minutes to make and is totally dairy-free. A wonderful low carb dessert the whole family loves. Updated recipe!
I’ve updated this delicious keto coconut milk pudding so now it’s easier to make and completely dairy-free.
I’ve never really been much of a pudding person; it’s simply a dessert that’s never really been on my radar. I love mousses and cheesecakes and other creamy, rich desserts, but pudding just has never been my thing. I suppose it’s because I tend to associate it with the instant variety, the mostly tasteless goo that comes out of box and is the ubiquitous dessert of summer camps and school cafeterias everywhere. So I generally consider pudding beneath my notice as a dessert, too plebian, too mass-market, to be any good. You’ll have to forgive my snobbery, I simply didn’t grow up around good, homemade pudding. My prejudice is thus rooted in plain, old ignorance, as such prejudices usually are.
But my eyes have now been opened to the goodness that is homemade chocolate pudding. A few years ago, my husband expressed a craving for for some. I made some for him and the kids and had a taste, and I had to admit it was far superior to the boxed variety, but I didn’t find myself itching to go out of my way to make it again. And then I wondered if I could make a low carb version with xanthan gum in place of the traditional cornstarch, and went about experimenting on that. But I still didn’t go out of my way to make it again. Finally, a few weeks ago as I was working away on other things, it popped into my head to make keto pudding with coconut milk, for a dairy-free treat.
Now, I am quite certain that I am not the first person to make pudding with coconut milk. In fact, I am quite certain that I’ve come across many other recipes in my travels over the internet. But I decided not to look at any of these and to see if I could adapt my own recipe to suit the consistency of coconut milk. I’ve made this recipe several times now and I’ve learned a few things along the way.
How To Make Coconut Milk Pudding
- Use full fat coconut milk. For one thing, this is a keto diet and that fat is healthy stuff! And for another, the thicker version will help the pudding set properly.
- Use coconut milk that contains a bit of guar gum, which will also help your keto pudding set properly. I love the Native Forest brand because it’s organic and comes in BPA-free cans. It’s also the creamiest and doesn’t seem to clump up like other brands. They have a “simple” coconut milk which contains no gums and that’s wonderful stuff but you want the thicker “classic” version for this recipe.
- Bring your coconut milk to a full simmer. You don’t necessarily want it to boil but you want it to simmer strongly before moving to the next step.
- Properly temper your egg yolks. What does this mean? It’s the process of slowly adding hot liquid to the yolks as you whisk, to bring them up to temperature. This helps ensure that they don’t curdle when you add them back into the pan with the rest of the liquid.
- Use good cocoa powder. I used to have some chopped chocolate in this recipe but I found that just cocoa powder works best. Choose a good quality brand like Rodelle or Ghirardelli. I have not tried raw cacao powder in this recipe but I sense it may not work as well.
- Yes, the additional xanthan gum is still necessary to make it thicken up properly. I haven’t tried gluccomannan in this yet but it may work as well.
I was absolutely delighted with the results. This dairy-free pudding turned out to be rich and creamy and the flavor was phenomenal. I loved the slight coconut-y taste, and I decided to enhance it a bit with some flaked coconut. But even if you’re not a fan of coconut, it’s not a strong presence and you would really taste mostly chocolate in the pudding itself. This is a recipe I will definitely make again. It was a hit with kids and adults alike.
Other Delicious Coconut Milk Recipes
Dairy Free Chocolate Mousse (use sugar free chocolate chips)
Coconut Milk Hot Chocolate (use your favorite low carb sweetener)
Coconut Milk Coffee Creamer (use your favorite low carb sweetener)
Chia Coconut Pudding Pops (use your favorite low carb sweetener)
Want more amazing keto desserts? Check out my new Keto Desserts page. All recipes under 7g TOTAL carbs!
Chocolate Coconut Milk Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 13.5- oz full fat coconut milk
- 1/3 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 3 tbsp coconut oil OR 3 tbsp butter
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the coconut milk and Swerve. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Slowly add 1/2 cup of the hot coconut milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking continuously.
- Slowly whisk the tempered egg yolks back into the saucepan of hot coconut milk. Reduce heat to medium low and sprinkle with xanthan gum, whisking continuously. Stir in cocoa powder and cook until mixture thickens, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in the coconut oil and vanilla extract until smooth. Divide between 6 dessert cups and refrigerate until set, 2 to 3 hours.
- Garnish with lightly sweetened coconut whipped cream, some berries, or some macadamia nuts.
Nutrition
