Baked Rice Pudding – Czech Rýžový nákyp

Rýžový nákyp is a Czech version of baked rice pudding with canned plums. It's served as a sweet main dish in the Czech Republic, and today, I want to share our family's old-fashioned recipe with you.

Rýžový nákyp is baked rice pudding made with cooked rice. Pour the custard over cooked rice, cover with sweet plums and bake in the oven. Finally, spread the whipped egg whites on the surface and leave it in the oven for a short time until golden brown.

MY TIP: If you are looking for an authentic Czech dessert, try Žemlovka bread pudding (it tastes fantastic!)

➜ Pronunciation

I recorded a short audio clip on how to pronounce the Czech word "rýžový nákyp" (rice pudding).

Ingredients

To make baked rice pudding, you will need:

• Rice – uncooked, the best type is short-grained white rice such as Italian Arborio rice. However, don't be stressed if you use any white rice you have in your pantry.
• Milk
• Sugar – I used white coarse sugar
• Butter – unsalted, and an important rule: the butter must be softened at room temperature before using!
• 5 eggs – yolks and whites separately; you will need 5 yolks and 3 whites. The remaining 2 whites will go into the top white layer spread on the surface of rice pudding (see further).
• Lemon zest
• Canned plums

Get on hand some butter and breadcrumbs to grease the baking dish, too.

✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

Ingredients for whipped whites

• 2 egg whites
• Water
• Sugar

➜ Instructions

The rice for this pudding is cooked first. Then cooled and mixed with egg custard and baked in the oven. In the end, you spread whisked egg whites on the surface and put the rice pudding back into the oven for a few minutes to get a golden crust.

Make ahead: 

1. Take the eggs and butter out of the fridge, they should be warmed at room temperature. Especially at butter, it is a must.
2. Drain the canned plums. 
3. Wash the uncooked rice in a colander under streaming warm water. 

LET’S COOK!

STEP 1: In a pot with a thick bottom, bring to a boil milk with half of the sugar and a pinch of salt, be aware of burning the milk. 

Reduce temperature to a minimum, add rice to milk, cover the pot with a lid and cook until soft. The cook time depends on the type of rice you used. Read the instructions of the manufacturer.

Let the cooked rice cool down. 

STEP 2: Meantime, pre-heat the oven to 340 °F (180 °C). Grease the baking pan with butter and dust it with breadcrumbs. 

STEP 3: Cream softened butter with the remaining sugar in a large bowl. Add and stir in 5 egg yolks and lemon zest. (photo 1)

Combine the egg custard with cooled rice. (photo 2)

Whip 3 egg whites and add them to the rice mixture. Stir in by hand carefully. (photo 3)

STEP 4: Transfer half of the rice mixture to the prepared baking pan. Cover with plums. 

Spread the rest of the rice mixture over plums, make the surface smooth—bake for 30 minutes.

STEP 5: While rice pudding is baking, whip the whites for the final layer. You’ll need to whip whites with a hot sugar solution to maintain a firm white layer on rýžový nákyp.

In a pot, add water with sugar (ratio 1:1), bring to a boil, reduce temperature over medium and cook for 5 minutes.

Start whipping the whites while you slowly stream the hot sugar solution in it. Whip for at least 5 minutes into a smooth, silky mass; the whole sugar solution must be used up.

Take the rice pudding out of the oven and spread the whipped mass as the top layer. (photo 1 + 2) Bake for a further 10 minutes until golden. (photo 3)

➜ Serving

This baked rice pudding is served warm as a main dish, less often as a dessert.

A warm pudding tends to fall apart while serving. When cooled, it holds the shape a bit better. No stress, in all cases, it tastes delicious!

➜ Cook's Tips

• Instead of plums, use canned apricots or peaches.
• You can drizzle some fruit juice over rýžový nákyp when served.
• For a quick version, omit the top layer with whipped egg whites. The rice pudding will look a bit poorer, but there will not be a big difference in taste.

More Czech desserts:

• Bábovka – white and cocoa coffee cake
• Moravské koláče – double filled kolache
• Krupicová kaše – Czech-style Cream of wheat