061 / 75 · Sweet finishes and small bakes

Dark Chocolate and Tahini Mug Pudding

1 generous fully set chocolate-tahini pudding in a 500 ml/17 US fl oz mug · Active 9 min · Cook 4 min · Total 15 min (warm service)

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Tahini brings a gentle sesame richness to a dark chocolate pudding. Melt the small chocolate portion into a little of the milk before mixing the batter, so there is no pocket of chocolate that could be mistaken for an uncooked center. The mug is deliberately large. The finished pudding is moist and fully set, with a tender crumb rather than a molten middle.

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Fully cooked dark chocolate and tahini mug pudding.

Choose the mug by capacity

A small coffee cup is not the vessel for this batter. Use a broad microwave-safe 500 ml mug without metallic decoration, and check its measured usable capacity. The batter should take no more than half of it before cooking. Headspace allows the cake to rise without making an overflowing ring around the turntable.

A moist crumb still needs a complete cook

Check the center with a thermometer and a thin knife after the starting interval. The whole egg-containing pudding must reach 165°F/74°C, then stand covered for 2 minutes. A fully set crumb has no wet floury seam when cut. Do not stop early to create a raw-batter sauce or taste a partly cooked spoonful to decide.

Ingredients

  • 35 g all-purpose flour (1¼ oz), to be fully cooked; follow any longer required cooking guidance on its label
  • 5 g unsweetened cocoa powder (about 2 tsp)
  • 15 g granulated sugar (about 1 tbsp plus ¾ tsp)
  • 60 ml pasteurized milk (¼ cup), divided into 15 ml and 45 ml
  • 1 large egg, 50 g/1¾ oz without shell, fully beaten
  • 15 g smooth tahini (about 1 tbsp), stirred before measuring
  • 10 g dark chocolate (⅓ oz), finely chopped
  • 1 g baking powder (about ¼ tsp)
  • 0.2 g fine salt, a small pinch

Set out

1000 W microwave with turntable, Kitchen scale and measuring jug, Fork or small whisk, Spoon, Oven mitts, Food thermometer used outside the microwave, Broad microwave-safe mug, at least 500 ml/about 17 US fl oz measured usable capacity, about 9 cm/3½ in inside diameter and 9 cm/3½ in deep, Small microwave-safe jug, at least 250 ml/about 1 US cup capacity, Small mixing bowl, Microwave-safe vented cover or a loose microwave-safe saucer, Thin knife

Allergens

Wheat, Egg, Milk, Sesame. Check labels and substitutions.

Make it

  1. Put the chopped chocolate and 15 ml/1 tbsp of the milk in the small microwave-safe jug. Heat at 30% power in 20-second bursts, stirring between them, for up to 1 minute until the chocolate melts smoothly. Leave for about 1 minute until merely warm, not hot enough to cook egg on contact.
  2. In the mixing bowl, whisk the beaten egg, remaining 45 ml milk, sugar and tahini until even. Whisk in the warm chocolate mixture. Add the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; stir until no dry pockets remain. Scrape all the batter into the 500 ml mug. It should fill less than half its usable volume; if it does not, use a larger microwave-safe vessel.
  3. Cover loosely with the vent open. Microwave at 1000 W baseline on 70% power for 2 minutes. Turn the mug half a turn on the turntable with mitts, then cook 30–60 seconds more. Check the deepest center and another point for at least 165°F/74°C, and cut a small slit to confirm a fully set crumb without a wet floury seam. If not ready, use further 15–20-second bursts and recheck. Do not taste raw batter. Follow a longer minimum cook on the flour label if supplied.
  4. Once fully cooked, stand covered with the vent open for 2 minutes. Recheck that it is set throughout; if a cooler wet pocket remains, heat again and repeat the stand. Eat warm from the mug or spoon the entire pudding into a serving bowl. No extra sauce or topping is included.

A pudding name, a fully cooked middle

The soft texture comes from milk, egg and tahini, not from leaving flour batter undercooked.

Microwave-safe means labeled

Use a mug and cover rated for microwave heating. A decorative metallic rim or a sealed storage lid is not suitable.

Ingredient labels

Chocolate may contain milk or soy. Check the actual flour, tahini and chocolate labels. The peanut or soy-drink variations change the allergen list.

A useful detail

The 15-minute warm-service plan allows 6 minutes of measuring and mixing, up to 1 minute to melt chocolate, up to 3 minutes of cake heating, the 2-minute covered stand and 3 minutes for checks and serving. The chocolate cooling minute fits within preparation. Baseline oven power is 1000 W; actual center checks and any longer flour instructions control, so extra bursts can extend the total.

Another way

  • Replace 15 g/about 1 tbsp tahini with 15 g/about 1 tbsp smooth peanut butter. Peanut becomes an allergen and sesame is omitted from the formula, subject to label and cross-contact checks.
  • Use 60 ml/¼ cup unsweetened soy drink instead of milk. Soy becomes an allergen; the egg and wheat remain unchanged.

Keep it well

Best eaten after its full cooked stand. If saving a cooked portion, refrigerate in a shallow container within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, at 40°F/4°C or below; use within 2 days. Add 5 ml/1 tsp water, cover with a vent and reheat only the portion needed in short low-power bursts; stand 2 minutes and check 165°F/74°C throughout. Never save partly cooked batter for later.