Chocolate Pudding
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Why settle for store-bought or instant chocolate pudding when homemade is so easy to make? This chocolate pudding recipe is the answer to your chocolate cravings—rich, creamy, and oh-so-chocolatey!
If you’ve never had homemade chocolate pudding, you’re in for a treat. It’s silky-smooth, full of rich chocolate flavor, and so much better than the instant kind. Making it from scratch is surprisingly simple—the hardest part is waiting for it to chill. Unlike most recipes that rely on just cocoa powder, this one uses both cocoa powder and real chocolate, so it’s extra luscious and chocolatey. Kids always love it, but there’s plenty of nostalgic appeal for grown-ups, too. Bonus: it’s naturally gluten-free.
Love chocolate pudding? Take it up a notch with my chocolate cream pie—or try my chocolate mousse or homemade chocolate ice cream for more chocolatey goodness.
“Chocolate desserts are our thing, and this easy chocolate pudding recipe has wonderful texture and depth. Sometimes we top with strawberries—chef’s kiss!”
What You’ll Need To Make Homemade Chocolate Pudding
- Sugar: Sweetens the pudding and balances the cocoa’s natural bitterness.
- Cornstarch: Gently thickens the pudding so it turns out smooth and spoonable.
- Whole Milk: The creamy backbone of the pudding—whole milk keeps it velvety and rich.
- Natural Unsweetened Cocoa Powder & Semi-Sweet Chocolate: Team up to deliver deep, layered chocolate flavor—use good-quality chocolate, such as Ghirardelli, for the best results.
- Vanilla Extract: Rounds out the chocolate with warm, aromatic notes for a well-balanced flavor.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Combine the dry ingredients. In a heavy medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt.
Step 2: Gradually add the milk. Add half the milk and whisk until smooth, then add the rest of the milk and stir to incorporate.
Step 3: Cook the Pudding. Set the pot over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the pudding thickens and starts to bubble—about 8 minutes. Let it boil for 1 more minute, whisking the whole time.
Step 4: Finish. Off the heat, whisk in the chopped chocolate and vanilla until the pudding mixture is completely smooth.
Step 5: Chill. Pour the contents of the pot into a medium bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin. Refrigerate until the pudding is set—it will take 5 to 6 hours.
Step 5: Serve. Give the chilled pudding a good stir, then spoon into dessert bowls and top with a dollop of whipped cream or chocolate shavings if you’d like. For a fun twist, line the bottom of the bowls with crushed cookies like biscotti, Oreos, or graham crackers, or sprinkle some on top. Chocolate pudding keeps well in the fridge for up to 3 days. I don’t recommend freezing it, but leftover pudding is perfect for pudding pops if you have molds!
More Chocolate Recipes You May Like
Chocolate Pudding
What fun is life without chocolate pudding? This from-scratch version is the ultimate chocolate comfort food.
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ¼ cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder, such as Hershey's
- 2½ tablespoons cornstarch
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2½ cups whole milk
- 1½ ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (best quality, such as Ghirardelli)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Homemade whipped cream, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Whisk the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt in a heavy medium saucepan. Add half of the milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the remaining milk. Continue whisking over medium heat until the pudding thickens and comes to boil, about 8 minutes. Continue to boil 1 minute longer, whisking constantly.
- Remove the pudding from the heat. Add the chopped chocolate and vanilla; whisk until the chocolate melts and the pudding is smooth. Pour the pudding into a medium bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap directly over the pudding to prevent a film from forming at the top. Cool in the refrigerator until set, 5 to 6 hours. Whisk the chilled pudding until smooth, and then spoon it evenly into 4 dessert bowls. Top each pudding with a dollop of whipped cream, if desired, and serve.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 310
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 55 g
- Sugar: 47 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Sodium: 142 mg
- Cholesterol: 15 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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I made this for my kids, and they loved it! (As did their parents!) 😉 How far in advance can I make a pudding like this for company? Can I make it the day or night before, and refrigerate the individual puddings overnight? (To serve the following evening?)
Thank you for yet another delectable dish! ☺️
Glad it was a hit! I think you can get away with making this up to about 24 hours in advance. 🙂
I made this over the weekend with my chocoholic teenage son, who happens to be taking chemistry. It turned out delicious with the added bonus of a chemistry lab for him! Very fun and equally yummy
This pudding was fabulous! Thank you Jenn for your amazing recipes and constant help for the home cook.
Something this chocolatey and decadent shouldn’t be so easy to make. This recipe is so easy and so delicious! I always have the ingredients so I can whip this up for unexpected company. It is absurdly good. My husband’s favorite!!
Can you freeze them?
Hi Susan, with all the milk they contain, I don’t think they’d be a great candidate for freezing – sorry!
Could I do a white chocolate version of this by omitting the cocoa and stirring in white chocolate at the end?
I wouldn’t recommend it, Karen, as I think it would necessitate other adjustments to the recipe. I’d suggest just looking for a white chocolate pudding recipe to use here.
Easy and delicious! A HUGE hit with the kids.
So delicious and easy. Didn’t add any toppings, and stirred in a tablespoon of butter once taken off the heat. It was so creamy without being overly rich. Thank you Jenn for another amazing recipe !
Hi Jenn, I used your recipe to make chocolate pudding tonight. Loved the flavor, but the consistency was a bit grainy. How can I get a smoother consistency?
– Lori
Hmmmm…. if it was grainy, it could be that the sugar cocoa mixture wasn’t cooked long enough to get the sugar to fully dissolve. You used the word grainy, but if it was lumpy, that would be caused by not enough whisking of the mixture. Hope that helps at least a bit!
Hello Jenn,
Is there anyway I could use Dutch processed cocoa powder to make this?
Thank you !
Malak
That’s fine, Malak – won’t make a big difference here. Enjoy and please lmk how it turns out!