Bread Pudding | Caramel Bread Pudding

This no bake recipe makes a delicious steamed Bread Pudding every time. It is a nice way to use nearly any day-old bread, and can be made with a simple homemade caramel sauce for an extra sweet dessert. Here you’ll find step-by-step instructions and photos for how to make the best Caramel Bread Pudding, no oven needed!

About Caramel Bread Pudding

Rich and creamy caramel bread pudding is a classic dessert that’s made with leftover or 2-3 day old bread, milk, and sugar. No eggs needed!

The ingredients are combined to create a sweet and thick “pudding” which is poured over caramel sauce and then steamed. It comes out in a cake-like form, but is silky smooth when sliced and served.

I have made the caramel from scratch, but feel free to use brought caramel or caramel sauce. While the homemade one has a distinct classic caramel flavor and taste, the packaged caramel sauce may have a different flavor, so add accordingly and as needed.

Although both methods of steaming and baking are simple enough, we prefer steamed bread pudding. It has a smoother and more tender consistency, more closely resembling a traditional English pudding.

You also have more options when you steam, as this recipe can be prepared in a pan, pressure cooker, or even an electric rice cooker.

I show both steaming in an electric cooker and in a pan on the stovetop in the step-by-step guide below. I also share the details of steaming in a stovetop pressure cooker in the recipe card below.

There are a number of ways to customize and enjoy this rustic bread pudding recipe. Feel free to add other goodies like raisins, almonds or cashews.

Like I have mentioned above, here we share our favorite version, which includes a homemade caramel sauce layered on top of the finishing dessert. However, you can skip this step or swap with whatever topping you like.

How to make Bread Pudding

Make Bread Pudding Mixture

1. First, chop 4 slices of bread or sandwich bread into cubes. The smaller the better as then they can be easily mashed.

You can use nearly any type of bread you like: whole wheat, brown, or white bread, or even a leftover baguette or buns. Here I used a mix of both white and whole wheat bread.

2. In a pan, add 1.5 cups milk.

3. Add 4 tablespoons of sugar.

4. Then add 1 teaspoon cornstarch.

5. Keep the pan on a low heat and stir so that the sugar dissolves. Heat the milk on a low flame. No need to boil.

6. Once the milk becomes just hot, remove the pan from stove and place it on the kitchen countertop. Add the bread cubes to the milk.

7. Mash very well with a masher or spatula. The bread crumbs need to be mashed finely. If not, then small pieces of bread will be felt in the pudding.

8. Add ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and stir. Keep this mashed bread and milk mixture aside.

Make Caramel Sauce

Next, I make a caramel sauce for topping the bread pudding. But you can skip these steps and go right to steaming the bread pudding, if you prefer.

Make a note that if you skip on the caramel sauce, you will have to add some more sugar in the bread pudding mix.

9. In another pan add 2 to 2.5 tablespoons sugar and 1 tablespoon water. Here I used my rectangular cake pan.

You can use any pan as long as the pudding mixture fits into it and still leaves about 1 inch space from the top.

10.  Now place this pan on stove top and begin to melt the sugar on a low heat.

11. Use a spoon to stir this mixture while the sugar is melting. Stirring ensures uniform browning.

12. You will start to see lots of big bubbles in the sugar solution. Continue to stir to break down the bubbles and keep the solution from burning.

13. As the solution turns pale, keep stirring well to get an even color and caramelization.

14. When the pale golden color turns to golden with small bubbles, the caramel is ready.

15. Switch off the heat first. Then with the help of tongs or gloves, lift the pan and quickly start tilting so that the caramel gets coated evenly on all sides.

Be careful as the caramel and the pan are very hot. You have to be quick as once the caramel starts cooling, it sets.

16. Here is a photo of the caramel coated on all sides. Let the caramel cool down and set in the pan.

17. And another photo with a round pan, should you be using this instead.

18. Next, spoon the mashed bread and milk mixture into the pan evenly.

19. Again, here’s a pic of the pudding mixture poured in a round cake pan.

20. Cover and seal the pan with an aluminum foil, and poke holes with a tooth pick in the foil. This will let the moisture escape just a bit so that the bread pudding is properly steamed.

Steam in an Electric Rice Cooker

You could steam the bread pudding using any preferred equipment – Instant Pot, stovetop pressure cooker or a electric rice cooker. You can also steam in a pan on the stovetop.

Here I show you steaming using an electric rice cooker and a pan on the stovetop.

21. Simmer about 3 cups water in the cooker. Start heating the water when you are making the caramel.

By the time you are done adding the pudding in the pan, the hot water is ready and the pudding can be steamed.

22. When the water becomes hot, place the steamer pan on the rice cooker. Now add the pudding pan onto the steamer pan.

23. Cover with a lid and steam for 30 minutes, until the caramel bread pudding is set.

Steam Bread Pudding in a pan on stovetop

24. Boil 3 cups water in a broad pan in which the pudding pan can easily fit. The pan I used was a large pan, so I added 3 cups of water.

Please note that the amount of water to be added depends on the size of the pan. The water should touch about 1 to 1.5 inch above from the bottom of the pudding pan.

25. Place the pudding pan carefully in the broad pan.

26. Cover with a lid.

28. Steam on a medium heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the caramel bread pudding is set.

If you remove the pudding when it becomes warm, you won’t be able to get a neat slice with an even caramel coating on top, but the pudding with its soft gooey texture taste yum.

To get neat slices, you will have to refrigerate the pudding for a couple of hours and then un-mold. You can even serve this pudding once it cools down at room temperature.

29. Below a photo of the pudding once it cooled down at room temperature.

30. Here is a photo of the bread pudding with caramel prepared in a round pan. It was made with doubling the ingredients for a larger dessert.

Once the bread pudding is set, slice and serve at room temperature or chill in the fridge before enjoying.

You can also warm a slice at a time in the microwave for just a few seconds to have a warmed pudding.

It’s delicious to eat as-is, or add (more!) caramel sauce or chocolate sauce on top.

This Caramel Bread Pudding from the archives first published on December 2014 has been republished and updated in January 2023.