Learn how to make custard powder at home with just 3 ingredients: milk powder, cornflour and vanilla sugar. It takes 2 minutes, and it makes the creamiest custard for pouring over my Sticky Date Pudding or Apple Crumble.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
✅ Recipe Name: Homemade Custard Powder
🕒 Ready In: 2 minutes
👪 Makes: about 1½ cups (enough for 3 batches of custard)
🥣 Main Ingredients: milk powder, cornflour, vanilla sugar
📖 Dietary Info: Vegetarian, egg-free, Thermomix method included
⭐ Why You'll Love It: Cheaper than store-bought, lasts for months in the pantry and turns into creamy custard in minutes!
SUMMARIZE & SAVE THIS CONTENT ON
What Is Custard Powder Made Of?
Store-bought custard powder is mostly cornflour, with added vanilla flavouring and yellow colouring. Despite the name, it doesn't contain any eggs! When you heat it with milk and sugar, the cornflour thickens the milk into a smooth, creamy custard.
My homemade custard powder uses milk powder, cornflour and vanilla sugar. The milk powder makes the custard extra creamy, and you can add a pinch of yellow food colour if you'd like that classic custard look.
Why You're Going To Love This Recipe
- Budget friendly: it's so much cheaper than buying custard powder.
- Ready in 2 minutes: just blitz or sift, then store.
- Lasts for months: it keeps in the pantry for as long as your milk powder does.
- So versatile: use it for pouring custard, trifles, custard slice, tarts and biscuits.
Jump to:
- A Quick Look At The Recipe
- What Is Custard Powder Made Of?
- Why You're Going To Love This Recipe
- Custard Powder Ingredients
- Variations
- How To Make Custard Powder
- How To Make Custard With Custard Powder
- Top Tip
- What To Use Custard Powder For
- Expert Tips
- Custard Powder FAQs
- Desserts To Serve With Custard
- How To Make Custard Powder
Custard Powder Ingredients
It couldn't be easier (or cheaper) to make custard powder from scratch. Here's what you need:
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredients quantities and full detailed method.
- Milk powder: also called powdered milk. Full cream milk powder gives the creamiest custard.
- Cornflour: also called cornstarch. This is what thickens the custard.
- Vanilla sugar: you'll find it in the spice aisle (Hoyts and MasterFoods both make it), or you can make your own with sugar and vanilla beans.
- Yellow food colour powder (optional): only changes the colour, not the flavour, so it's fine to leave it out.
Variations
- Lighter custard powder: skim milk powder works too, but the custard won't be quite as creamy.
- Gluten free: in Australia, cornflour is often made from wheat. Choose one labelled 100% maize (corn) if you need it to be gluten free.
- Homemade vanilla sugar: make your own with sugar and a split vanilla bean for a stronger vanilla flavour.
- Classic yellow custard: add a pinch of yellow food colour powder for that traditional custard colour.
How To Make Custard Powder
It takes just 2 minutes to make your own custard powder at home! The full recipe card is below.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredients quantities and full detailed method.
- Step 1: Combine. Place the milk powder, cornflour, vanilla sugar and food colour (if using) into a food processor or Thermomix.
- Step 2: Mix. Mix for 10 seconds on high speed (Speed 8 in the Thermomix). No food processor? Simply sift everything together 3 to 4 times.
- Step 3: Store. Transfer the custard powder to an airtight container and store it in the pantry.
How To Make Custard With Custard Powder
Once you've made your custard powder, turning it into creamy vanilla custard is easy:
- Whisk: place ½ cup of custard powder in a saucepan with 2½ cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of caster sugar, and whisk to combine.
- Stir over low heat: keep stirring until the custard thickens.
- Serve: pour it over your favourite dessert and serve straight away.
Prefer a traditional egg custard? Try my Homemade Custard instead.
Top Tip
Write the expiry date from your milk powder packet on your custard powder container. Your homemade custard powder will keep for as long as the milk powder does.
What To Use Custard Powder For
Homemade custard powder is so handy to have in the pantry. Here are some of my favourite ways to use it:
- Pouring custard: serve it warm with chocolate self saucing pudding, butterscotch pudding, apple sponge pudding or apple pie.
- Trifles: use it for the custard layer in a strawberry trifle or an adults-only Baileys chocolate trifle.
- Baking: it's the secret ingredient in my Vanilla Custard Slice and Yo Yo Biscuits, and you can swap some of the flour for it in my Jam Drops.
- Tarts: use it for the filling in vanilla custard tarts.
Expert Tips
- Use full cream milk powder for the creamiest custard.
- Sift well if you don't have a food processor. Sift 3 to 4 times so everything is evenly mixed.
- Store it airtight in a cool, dry place like the pantry.
- Stir constantly when you cook your custard so it doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan.
Custard Powder FAQs
Store-bought custard powder is mostly cornflour, with vanilla flavouring and yellow colouring. My homemade version uses milk powder, cornflour and vanilla sugar.
No! Custard powder is thickened with cornflour, not eggs, so it's egg free.
Whisk ½ cup of homemade custard powder with 2½ cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of caster sugar in a saucepan, then stir constantly over low heat until it thickens.
Stored in an airtight container in the pantry, it will last as long as the expiry date on your milk powder.
Yes! You can make a traditional custard with eggs instead. You can find my homemade custard recipe here.
Yes. Milk powder, also called powdered milk or dried milk, is made from dehydrated, pasteurised milk. It has a much longer shelf life than liquid milk and doesn't need to be refrigerated.
In Australia, yes, and you can use them interchangeably. Australian cornflour is often made from wheat (labelled wheaten cornflour). In the US, corn flour is finely ground cornmeal, which is a different product.
Any of your favourite desserts! Sweet pies, fruit crumbles, sponge puddings, trifles, or simply with fresh or tinned fruit and jelly.
Desserts To Serve With Custard
Now that you've got a jar of custard powder ready to go, here are some of our favourite desserts to pour it over!
WANT EVEN MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES? Subscribe to my newsletter or follow along on Facebook or Instagram. And if you love baking, then please come and join my Facebook cooking club group or subscribe to my YouTube channel.
How To Make Custard Powder
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk powder
- ½ cup cornflour cornstarch
- 6 teaspoon vanilla sugar see notes
- pinch of yellow food colour powder optional - see notes
Instructions
To Make Custard Powder
- Place the milk powder, cornflour (corn starch), vanilla sugar and yellow food colour powder (optional) into a food processor or Thermomix. Mix for 10 seconds on high speed to combine (Speed 8 if using a Thermomix). If you don't have a food processor or Thermomix, simply sift the ingredients 3-4 times together into a bowl.
- Transfer the custard powder to an airtight container and store at room temperature.
To Make Custard Using Custard Powder
- Place ½ cup of homemade custard powder into a saucepan, along with 2 ½ cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of caster sugar. Whisk to combine and then stir constantly over low heat until the custard has thickened.
- Pour over your favourite desserts and serve immediately.
Notes
- I recommend using full cream milk powder for the creamiest custard (not skim or light milk powder).
- Vanilla sugar - you can use store-bought vanilla sugar (such as Hoyts or MasterFoods brand). This can be found in the spices section of the supermarket. Alternatively, you can make your own homemade vanilla sugar using sugar and vanilla beans.
- Food colour powder can be difficult to source - so it's completely fine to omit it as it is only used to alter the colour of the custard powder, not the flavour.
- If you don't have a food processor or a Thermomix, you can sift the ingredients together 3-4 times using a sieve.
- Store the homemade custard powder in an airtight container in a cool, dry place (such as the pantry) at room temperature.
- Homemade custard powder can be stored for as long as the expiry date on the milk powder packet. I recommend writing the expiry date onto your container of homemade custard.
Christine Judd says
Love this site, well done.