Chocolate Pudding Dessert

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Calling all chocoholics! This Chocolate Pudding Recipe is destined to be your new go-to when you are craving a rich, creamy, and chocolatey dessert. Sweetened whipped cream and chocolate shavings make it a little cooler, and a little extra creamy and decadent, but it is delicious even on its own.

Chocolate pudding in a glass cup topped with whipped cream.

Homemade chocolate pudding is easier to make from scratch than you might think it is. This pudding is essentially a classic custard with added cocoa powder for flavor and richness. You may want this as a mid-afternoon snack, but it is fancy enough to serve it for Valentine’s Day dinner.

This is the perfect chocolate pudding. It’s dark and rich with an incredibly silky texture. Cocoa powder and instant coffee granules make this homemade pudding recipe extra special. I love the depth of flavor that instant coffee adds to almost any chocolate recipe.

If you can never have enough chocolate, and let’s face it, who can… then try my chocolate pie, my chocolate chai cream pie, or my chocolate lava cake recipes.

Chocolate Pudding Recipe Details

Taste – Rich chocolate decadence is the best way to describe the flavor here. A touch of coffee enhances the chocolate making it tastes like an elegant treat.
Texture – The pudding is smooth with a silky mouthfeel.
Ease – While the recipe seems simple and straight forward, it can be tricky to temper the eggs.
Time – It takes about 15 minutes to prep the recipe, 20 minutes to cook, and 2 hours for the pudding to chill.

What You’ll Need

Ingredients

• Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder: For smooth, chocolate flavor. It’s a little less bitter than regular cocoa powder.
• Cornstarch: This thickens the custard.
• Heavy Cream: Creamy richness. You can use half and half or whole milk, but it won’t be quite as luxurious.
• Egg Yolks: Eggs should be at room temperature. They will combine better with other ingredients. (Save the egg whites for another purpose)
• Milk: Whole milk is preferable but other milk will do.
• Granulated Sugar: To sweeten the pudding.
• Instant Coffee Granules: These add depth to the chocolate flavor. But note, instant coffee granules are NOT the same as ground coffee. Regular ground coffee won’t dissolve, so make sure you use instant coffee.
• Vanilla extract: I use homemade but feel free to use store-bought or even vanilla paste if you have it.

Recommended tools

This chocolate pudding recipe comes together easily with a mixing bowl, a sauce pan and a whisk. Ramekins are great for serving, but you can use water glasses or even wine glasses if you don’t have ramekins.

How to Make Chocolate Pudding

It’s easy to make chocolate pudding from scratch. It does require a little extra attention to make sure you don’t scorch the milk. However, I guarantee the hardest part of this recipe will be waiting for it to set in the refrigerator before you can enjoy it!

Whisk together dry ingredients (cocoa powder, cornstarch and salt) and then slowly whisk in the cream, trying to dissolve any clumps.
Whisk in the egg yolks.

Gooey chocolate mixture in a glass bowl.

In a sauce pan, heat milk, coffee and sugar over medium heat. Then slowly add the hot milk mixture into the cocoa mixture while stirring constantly.
Pour the pudding back into the sauce pan, and bring to a boil over medium high heat. This is where you want to carefully whisk slowly to make sure it doesn’t scorch. It will start to thicken as it reaches a full boil. Turn heat to medium, whisk constantly for 2 minutes, and then remove from heat and add the vanilla.
Pour into ramekins, cover with plastic wrap (you want this right on the surface of the pudding so a skin doesn’t form). Refrigerate for a minimum of two hours.

Chocolate pudding topped with whipped cream.

Tips For Success

• Make sure you use instant coffee granules and not ground coffee. Ground coffee won’t dissolve.
• Whisk slowly while bringing the pudding to a boil. This will keep the pudding from scorching in the saucepan.
• Make sure the plastic wrap touches the top of the pudding so it doesn’t get a skin when refrigerated.
• Serve with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream and chocolate shavings or cocoa nibs.
• The egg yolks should be at room temperature when using.
• Add the milk mixture slowly to the cocoa mixture so you temper the eggs – bring them to warm temperature slowly so they don’t scramble.

Recipe FAQs

Do I have to use coffee?

I like the depth of flavor the coffee adds. You can use decaf if you want to avoid caffeine, or you can omit it altogether.

What can I use instead of heavy cream?

You can use any combination of cream, half and half, or whole milk for the heavy cream, but know that cream will produce the thickest, most luxurious consistency. This is a pudding, after all.

Can I use chocolate chips instead of cocoa powder?

I don’t recommend using chocolate chips when making this pudding since the recipe was designed around cocoa powder.

Chocolate pudding spooned out of a ramekin.

Storage & Freezing

The pudding will keep in the fridge for three days, covered in plastic wrap. Do not freeze.