Kitchen

Baking

Should You Be Scalding Milk When Making Desserts? By Amrita Ray Sept. 7, 2025 7:39 am EST

Yumehana/Getty Images

The milk we reach for every day, whether to whip up a creamy omelet or to lend feathery softness to some local iconic state desserts , comes pasteurized. The sale of raw milk, as it is, is restricted in the U.S. and illegal in Canada. Pasteurization in packaged milk knocks out harmful bacteria. So why do certain dessert recipes still call for scalding milk? To answer that, it helps to know what scalding actually does.

Scalding milk means heating it to just below its boiling point, around 180 degrees Fahrenheit, enough for tiny bubbles to gather along the edges, but not so hot that it tips into a boil. Think of it as the Goldilocks zone. This step w

See Full Page