Sutlac

Ingredients

Pudding

• 150 gshort-grain rice, baldo or pudding rice
• 400 mlwater
• 1.5 litreswhole milk
• 200 gsugar
• 40 grice flour
• a pinch of salt
• 1 tspvanilla or a piece of mastic

To finish

• ground cinnamon
• chopped pistachios, optional

Equipment

• individual earthenware dishes, güveç
• a roasting tray for a bain-marie

To serve

• cold, from the fridge

Directions

1. Cook the rice in water first, not in milk. Rice cooked from the start in milk takes far longer and never softens properly, because the fat and protein coat the grains. Rinse the rice, then simmer it in the water until it has absorbed everything and is completely soft.
2. Cook it until the grains are collapsing, about 20 minutes, adding a little more water if needed. Take it well past al dente. Firm grains of rice in the finished pudding are a fault.
3. Use whole milk and a heavy-based pan, and stir often, because milk scorches on a thin base. Simmer, stirring, for about 25 minutes until it has thickened noticeably. Add the sugar now rather than at the start. Slake the rice flour in a little cold milk until completely smooth.
4. Whisk it into the simmering pudding and cook a further 5 to 10 minutes, stirring constantly. It should thicken to a loose custard, and it will set considerably more as it cools.
5. Leave it looser in the pan than you want it in the dish, since it thickens twice: once as it cools and again in the fridge. Add the vanilla or dissolved mastic at the end. Fill the dishes nearly to the rim.
6. Set the dishes in a roasting tray and pour hot water around them to come halfway up. The bain-marie stops the pudding boiling and curdling while the top is blasted, and without it the sides overcook.
7. Take the dishes out and cool them completely. Now refrigerate them for at least 4 hours, and overnight is better. Dust with cinnamon and scatter pistachios over before serving. It keeps three or four days refrigerated.

Technique

• Fırın sütlaç is the baked version and the plain stovetop one is also common.
• Mastic, damla sakızı, is the traditional flavouring and should be used sparingly.
• Earthenware dishes are sold cheaply in Turkish shops.

Substitutions

• Cornflour in place of rice flour, which sets slightly firmer.
• Ramekins in place of earthenware, though they conduct heat differently.

Variations

• Made on the stove without baking.
• With mastic, which is the older flavouring.
• Kazandibi, the related pudding deliberately caramelised on the base.

History

Rice pudding baked until the top scorches, an Ottoman palace sweet that became every lokanta’s dessert.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sutlac?

Sutlac is a dessert from Turkey: baked rice pudding with caramelized top. Rice pudding baked until the top scorches, an Ottoman palace sweet that became every lokanta’s dessert.

How long does Sutlac take to make?

Sutlac takes 15 min of preparation and 1 hr 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Sutlac?

Yes, within limits. Cornflour in place of rice flour, which sets slightly firmer. Ramekins in place of earthenware, though they conduct heat differently.

What is the most important thing to get right in Sutlac?

Cook the rice in water first, not in milk. Rice cooked from the start in milk takes far longer and never softens properly, because the fat and protein coat the grains. Rinse the rice, then simmer it in the water until it has absorbed everything and is completely soft.