Creme anglaise substitutes

A premium vanilla ice cream, warmed gently or simply left to melt, and used as a pouring custard.

Best for

warm chocolate cake, fruit crumble, apple tart, bread pudding, poached pears, brownies

The best and least obvious shortcut, because a proper vanilla ice cream is made from a frozen creme anglaise, so it is the same sauce with air whipped in. Melted, it is slightly sweeter and a little thinner than a fresh anglaise, and if the brand uses gums or stabilisers it can feel faintly slippery on the tongue. Choose one whose ingredient list is short. Warm it gently over low heat or in short microwave bursts, whisking, and never let it simmer or it will separate.

Custard powder or a cooked pudding mix made deliberately loose so it pours rather than sets.

Best for

crumbles, sponge puddings, trifle, fruit pies, steamed puddings

The most convenient option and in British desserts it is arguably traditional in its own right. It is thickened with starch rather than egg yolk, which gives a slightly heavier, more coating mouthfeel and a fainter chalky note, and its yellow is brighter and more uniform than the pale ivory of a real anglaise. Flavour-wise it is simpler and more straightforwardly vanilla. Whisking one egg yolk and a spoon of butter in at the end warms it up considerably. It also holds and reheats far better than real anglaise, which is a genuine advantage.

Four egg yolks, a third of a cup of sugar and two cups of hot milk or half milk half cream, stirred over low heat until it thinly coats a spoon.

Best for

plated desserts, fruit tarts, chocolate cake, ice cream base, floating islands, souffle

Worth attempting because it takes about ten minutes and the only difficulty is not letting it boil. Whisk the yolks with sugar, pour in the hot milk while whisking, return it to low heat and stir constantly with a spatula until it thickens just enough to coat the back of a spoon, around 175 to 180F. Take it off immediately and strain it. It is silkier, less sweet and far more fragrant than anything from a packet, and it is the only version that works properly as an ice cream base.

Condensed milk whisked with milk or cream and a good splash of vanilla extract until pourable.

Best for

fruit crumbles, warm cake, poached fruit, steamed puddings, waffles

A pantry rescue that requires no cooking and no eggs at all, and looks convincingly like custard on a plate. It is noticeably sweeter than anglaise, so cut back the sugar in whatever you are serving it with, and it has a distinct cooked-milk, slightly caramel flavour from the way condensed milk is made, which is pleasant but recognisably not fresh custard. It is also thinner and shinier and lacks the eggy body that makes anglaise feel luxurious. Add a pinch of salt to keep the sweetness in check.

An eggless Philadelphia-style ice cream base, used where the anglaise was destined for the churn.

Best for

ice cream, frozen desserts, gelato-style bases, no-cook ice cream

The right answer specifically for ice cream, and much better than trying to churn a starch-thickened custard, which freezes into something stretchy and gummy. Without egg yolks the ice cream is whiter, cleaner and more purely dairy-tasting, letting fruit or coffee flavours come through more sharply, but it is also less rich and it freezes harder, so it needs about ten minutes on the counter before scooping. Adding a tablespoon of light corn syrup or vodka keeps it softer.

Creme fraiche or thick yoghurt whisked with milk, powdered sugar and vanilla to a pouring consistency.

Best for

fruit desserts, berry crumbles, poached fruit, gingerbread, spiced cakes

Not an imitation of anglaise, but frequently a better sauce for the dessert in front of you. It is tangy, cool and lightly acidic where anglaise is sweet, mellow and eggy, and that sourness cuts through rich or very sweet puddings in a way custard does not. It is also thicker and more opaque, so it sits in a dollop rather than flooding the plate. Do not warm it, because both creme fraiche and yoghurt will curdle and split over heat.