This keto chocolate pudding is unbelievably smooth and creamy. It takes only 20 minutes to make and is totally dairy-free. It’s a wonderful low carb dessert the whole family loves.
For more chocolatey goodness, be sure to check out my keto chocolate cake recipe.
I was never really been much of a pudding person until I started making my own keto chocolate pudding. But this delicious and easy recipe changed my mind completely.
I love keto chocolate mousse and cheesecake, and other creamy, rich desserts, but pudding was just never my thing. I tended to associate it with the instant variety, that tasteless goo that comes out of box and is the ubiquitous dessert of summer camps and school cafeterias everywhere.
So I used to consider pudding beneath my notice as a dessert, too plebian, too mass-market, to be any good. I just didn’t know any better. My prejudice is thus rooted in plain, old ignorance, as such prejudices usually are.
Homemade chocolate pudding is a game changer
But making my own homemade keto chocolate pudding has changed my mind completely. Done right, it’s an incredibly delicious treat that’s worthy of a spot at my dessert table.
What make your own sugar free pudding at home?
- Smooth and creamy
- Deeper chocolate flavor
- Dairy free option
- No questionable ingredients
- Just as easy as making it from a box (seriously!)
Really, making your own keto chocolate pudding at home is worth it. It beats out boxed mixes every time for flavor and consistency, and you have the advantage of knowing exactly what’s going into your dessert.
And did I mention that it’s ridiculously easy too?
How to make keto chocolate pudding
- Use full fat coconut milk or cream. Conventional pudding calls for milk but full fat dairy or coconut milk helps thicken sugar free pudding.
- Bring to a simmer. You don’t want it to boil but you should see a strong simmer before moving to the next step.
- Temper the egg yolks. Tempering is 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 hot liquid.
- Use cocoa powder. Choose a good quality cocoa powder like Rodelle or Ghirardelli. Do not use natural cacao as it won’t mix in well and the pudding will have lumps.
- Whisk almost constantly. This is not a dessert you can walk away from, as it can thicken up without warning. Keep your eye on it!
- Thicken the mixture. You do need a thickening agent to help the pudding set properly. I have used both xanthan gum and glucomannan and they are equally good.
Frequently Asked Questions
You bet. I recommend using 1 ¼ cups of heavy cream and ½ cup almond milk or hemp milk to thin it out and lighten it.
There is a hint of coconut flavor in this keto chocolate pudding, but mostly it tastes like chocolate. The cocoa powder masks the flavor.
Don’t panic, it’s an easy fix. Simply dump all of it into a blender and blend until smooth.
You can try but I can’t guarantee the results. When I use allulose in pudding, I find that they take a long time to set (up to 36 hours!). So just be mindful that if you replace the sweeteners, it may not set as well.
You can make this pudding up to two days in advance. Place plastic wrap over the top of each individual serving so that it doesn’t dry out too much.
Praise for keto chocolate pudding
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“This recipe is awesome! I tried it yesterday and it’s the first time I’ve had chocolate pudding come out well (I’ve tried so many recipes). It had a mousse-like texture that I really loved.” – Carol
More delicious dairy free desserts
- Keto Oreos
- No Bake Peanut Butter Pie
- Coconut Milk Fudge
- Keto Angel Food Cake
- Strawberry Lemonade Popsicles
- Edible Cookie Dough
Want more amazing keto desserts? Check out my new Keto Desserts page. All recipes under 7g TOTAL carbs!
Keto Chocolate Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 13.5 oz full fat coconut milk (or 1 ¼ cups cream and ½ cup almond milk)
- ⅓ cup Swerve Sweetener
- 3 large egg yolks
- ¼ teaspoon glucomannan (or xanthan gum)
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoon coconut oil (or butter)
- ½ teaspoon 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 ½ 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 the cocoa powder and cook until mixture thickens, 3 to 4 minutes, whisking continuously.
- 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.
Sue Hammock says
Tastes ok but when I took it out of the refrigerator, the coconut oil had separated and hardened on the top! Help! What happened?
Carolyn says
I am honestly not sure since that’s never happened to me in the countless times I’ve made this. Did you overheat the mixture when making the pudding?
Mary S says
Sadly, this I the only recipe of yours, Carolyn, I haven’t liked over all the years I have been making your delicious creations. It was like Jell-o consistency. (I’d use less xanthan gum next time.) I don’t like sweet, but it wasn’t sweet enough. And I could barely stretch it to 6 very small servings.
Tanya Brown says
The best chocolate pudding keto style! So rich and creamy. You won’t miss sugar with this one.
Carolyn says
Thank you!
Vicky says
Best dessert recipe I have tried so far. Thanks!
Mary says
This was sooo delicious! Creamy, pudding goodness. Do you, by chance, have suggestions to make a Vanilla version of this??
Arelis says
Can I omit the cocoa powder in this recipe? Im allergic to chocolate.
Carolyn says
Cocoa powder is part of what makes this set properly. Look at my banana pudding recipe instead as it’s formulated without any cocoa. You can make it vanilla rather than banana.
Carolyn Shriver says
Hi Carolyn
I love all of your baking recipes…especially the easier ones.
However, would you believe I am afraid to try them. Most of the ingredients I have purchased, but my baking skills have never been the best. Right now I feel motivated and I’m going to start
baking your great recipes!!!!
Carolyn says
Take it one step at a time. Start with easy ones and get comfortable with your ingredients!
Tina says
Hi Carolyn , I have been following you for years and love your recipes . I am having an issue with this pudding I used xanthan gum in this recipe and it comes out slimey don’t know what I am doing wrong . Thank you Tina
Carolyn says
You didn’t do anything wrong. That’s the nature of xanthan gum sometimes, which is why I recommend glucomannan first for this.
Mary says
Thank you for the wonderful recipes…this is one of our favorites! I’m wondering if I can use this as a pie filling? (with your keto pie crust of course!) It seems like it would be thick enough…thoughts?
Carolyn says
Sure! You’d probably need a bit more of it. Maybe 25%.
Shelby says
I have cacao powder…is that what you mean when you state to not use natural cacao???
Carolyn says
Yup! Because it doesn’t blend in well, gets clumpy.
Jaymey says
Fantastic, easy and delish! I can’t wait for it to chill and devour!
Joanie says
This pudding is delicious and easy to make. You are the best and so are your recipes!
Carolyn says
Thank you!!!
Jana says
I cannot think of a single recipe of yours that I’ve tried that I have not LOVED.
Until this one.
It’s fine (hubby even says he liked it), and it’s definitely not too hard to make.
I used the butter instead of the oil, and am glad I tried it, but you have SO many good recipes, that I’d probably repeat those before this one.
Holli says
I am thinking about this recipe and think I should use butter instead of the coconut oil for my picky eaters, my family. I always use Hershey’s dark cocoa. Would that work? Is it raw? I have no idea. Not sure when I will try this recipe but I printed it to look at for later. I want to try your oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe first (coconut and almonds.) That looks and sounds so good. I have been using Pyure sweetener, it seems to work fine for me. I use Truvia for the family. Thank you Carolyn for your skills and your recipes. Your always a go to for me.
Cloris Punt says
Hi Carolyn, I have just found out I am profoundly allergic to the keto accepted thickeners, xanthium gum and many that class….Do you have any experience with Agar Agar? r any other suggestions. I had to throw out everything with
the more common used in syrups, drinks etc… I will try some of your recommended salad dressings..I have made Blue cheese so far and loved it.
Thanks, Jean
Carolyn says
Have you tried glucomannan? It’s not made like any of the gums…
Ruth says
I just made this for myself and my flatmate. I served it with one of your (supposed to be maple but I can’t get that so used vanilla) biscotti. It was such a fantastic dessert, and my flatmate, who isn’t low-carb, loved it too! Thanks so much!
Carolyn says
Glad to hear it!
Suzan K says
Loved it especially since I am lowering my dairy intake. This was so good and it reminded me of an Almond Joy candy bar. Well done, Carolyn.
Mary says
Carolyne, you never disappoint. Just made this pudding. DELICIOUS ! I like my treats a little more on the sweet side so added a little more swerve. Because Trader Joe’s brand has no guar I added a bit more xanthan gum. Perfect. So perfect it never made it to the fridge. 🤭. We like warm Pudding. Thank you so much for your dedication to this WOE.
Shelby says
Love your recipes!!!!! Do you happen to have a chocolate pudding recipe that uses almond milk?
Carolyn says
You could try this same method but I fear that almond milk is too thin, without enough fat, to thicken properly. I might add another egg yolk, just in case.
Rachel says
Loved the flavor but the consistency was more like chocolate jello than pudding; I’m a keto newbie and this was my first use of xanthan gum so next time I’ll cut it back to 1/8 tsp. Delish!!
Carolyn says
Jello, really? That is a bit odd. Jello has bounce and when I’ve made this, it has no bounciness. Not sure what caused that but try reducing the xanthan gum as you mentioned.