National Chocolate Pudding Day is on Saturday, June 26, 2027, and it falls on June 26 every year. It celebrates the smooth, creamy dessert that’s a lunchbox and diner favorite. Served warm or chilled, topped with whipped cream or eaten straight from the cup, it’s simple comfort food.
When Is National Chocolate Pudding Day?
It’s always June 26. It’s an unofficial food day, not a federal holiday.
How Pudding Became Dessert
No founder or start year has been documented for the food day. Pudding’s own history, though, is full of surprises.
Pudding started as a sausage
Food historians link the word “pudding” to the Latin botellus, meaning sausage, The Food Timeline explains. Early puddings were often made of meat or blood stuffed into animal casings.
Around the early 1600s, cooks began boiling puddings in cloth bags. That opened the door to sweet versions with fruit, spices and suet. By the late 1700s, most English puddings no longer contained meat.
The first chocolate puddings
The earliest printed chocolate pudding recipe cited by The Food Timeline dates to 1730. It appeared in Charles Carter’s The Complete Practical Cook. It combined cream, eggs, grated chocolate and spices, and it could be baked or boiled.
Cornstarch was widely available by the 1850s, The Nibble notes. Starch-thickened puddings were seen as easy to digest. In the late 1800s, they were promoted as good food for children and people who were ill.
By the 1930s, boxed pudding and custard mixes were common in American stores. Ready-made pudding cups followed later in the century.
Why Celebrate Chocolate Pudding?
Chocolate pudding is one of the easiest homemade desserts. It needs just a few pantry staples and a little stirring.
It also carries nostalgia for many people, from childhood snack cups to grandma’s stovetop version. The day is a good excuse to make it from scratch and taste the difference.
What’s the Difference Between Pudding and Custard?
- American pudding: thickened mainly with starch such as cornstarch. Eggs are optional.
- Custard: thickened mainly with eggs.
- Mousse: gets its airy texture from whipped cream or beaten egg whites, not starch.
- British pudding: often means dessert in general, or a steamed or baked cake-like dish.
How to Celebrate National Chocolate Pudding Day
- Make it from scratch: whisk sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt, then add milk and cook while stirring.
- Use good chocolate: stir in chopped dark chocolate at the end for richer flavor.
- Stir constantly: keep the whisk moving so the bottom doesn’t scorch or turn lumpy.
- Stop the skin: press plastic wrap right on the surface before chilling.
- Strain for silkiness: pour hot pudding through a fine sieve to catch any lumps.
- Build a parfait: layer pudding with whipped cream, berries and crushed cookies.
- Bake a pie: pour it into a baked crust for an easy chocolate cream pie.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is my pudding lumpy?
Cornstarch clumps when it hits hot liquid unevenly. Mix it with sugar and cold milk first, then heat slowly while whisking.
Why did my pudding turn runny?
It may not have boiled long enough to activate the starch. Over-stirring after it thickens can also thin it.
How long does homemade pudding keep?
Keep it covered in the fridge, since it’s made with milk, and eat it within a few days. Don’t leave it out at room temperature for long.