CUSTARD CAKE IN KATORI

If bakery-style tea cakes bring back childhood memories, you’re going to love these Air Fryer Tutti Frutti Custard Cakes. Soft, light and beautifully moist, every bite is filled with colourful tutti frutti and the nostalgic flavour of classic bakery cakes. The addition of vanilla custard powder not only gives these cakes a gorgeous golden colour but also adds a subtle creamy vanilla flavour that makes them extra delicious.

Made with simple pantry staples and baked in individual katoris, this recipe is perfect when you’re craving a homemade treat without turning on the oven. The air fryer bakes these little cakes beautifully, giving them a fluffy crumb and a tender texture every single time. They’re quick, fuss-free and ideal for beginners as well as seasoned bakers.

Whether you’re serving them with your evening chai, packing them into lunchboxes, or enjoying one as a sweet snack, these mini custard cakes are guaranteed to become a favourite. They’re soft, fragrant, incredibly comforting, and have that timeless bakery-style flavour that never goes out of style.

WHAT YOU’LL LOVE ABOUT THIS RECIPE

• Nostalgic
• No-oven
• Eggless
• Easy to make

INGREDIENTS USED IN  CUSTARD CAKE IN KATORI

• MILK

Milk provides just enough moisture to help bring the batter together. This allows the ingredients to bind smoothly, creating a cohesive batter. Milk provides the main liquid base for the batter, allowing all dry ingredients to combine smoothly into a pourable consistency. The proteins in milk help set the cake’s structure as it bakes, working alongside flour and leaveners. When combined with vinegar, it forms buttermilk and the mild acidity softens the texture, activates the baking soda, and makes the cake extra tender.

• VINEGAR

Vinegar is acidic and reacts with baking soda to produce carbon dioxide gas, which helps the cake rise and become fluffy. The acid also helps break down gluten slightly, resulting in a softer, finer crumb. When mixed with milk, vinegar curdles it slightly, making a quick version of buttermilk, which is ideal for tender cakes.

• OIL

Unlike butter, which hardens as it cools, liquid vegetable oil stays fluid at room temperature. Sunflower oil coats the flour proteins, preventing too much gluten from forming, which keeps the crumb incredibly tender. Because it’s a neutral oil, it provides fat and richness without interfering with the vanilla and fruity flavors of the cake.

Sunflower oil has a light, neutral taste, so it doesn’t overpower the custard or tutti frutti. It blends quickly with sugar and liquids, helping create a smooth batter with minimal effort.

• SUGAR

Caster sugar has finer crystals than regular sugar, so it dissolves faster and more evenly in the batter.This ensures that your cake has a balanced, smooth sweetness throughout — no gritty or patchy spots.

Sugar is hygroscopic, meaning it binds with water molecules. This locks moisture into the cake so it doesn’t dry out while baking in a pan.

• ALL PURPOSE FLOUR

All-purpose flour provides the structural framework that helps the cake hold their shape during and after baking. It contains proteins that, when mixed with liquid, form a web of gluten. This gluten network traps the air bubbles produced by the baking soda and baking powder, allowing the cake to rise and hold its shape instead of collapsing into a puddle.

Flour absorbs the butter and milk, binding all the ingredients together into a cohesive batter. It helps the tutti frutti to not sink at the bottom too.

• CUSTARD POWDER

Custard powder is primarily made of cornstarch, flavoring (usually vanilla), and sometimes a hint of color. It infuses the entire sponge with that distinct, nostalgic, warm vanilla aroma typical of Indian bakery tea cakes.
It gives the eggless batter a beautiful, rich yellow color that tricks your eyes into thinking the cake is full of egg yolks. Cornstarch weakens the gluten in the maida, resulting in an ultra-fine, tight, and velvety crumb structure.

• LEAVENING AGENTS

Since the cake is eggless, you’re relying entirely on chemical leavening for fluffiness. Baking soda needs an acid to activate — in this recipe, the vinegar does the job.  Without it, your cake would be dense, gummy, or sunken in the middle. Baking powder and baking soda release gases (mainly carbon dioxide) when they react with liquids and acids in the batter. These bubbles expand in the heat of the cooker, making the cake rise and become light and airy instead of dense or flat.

• TUTTI FRUTTI

Tutti frutti is a nostalgic Indian bakery staple — its presence instantly connects the cake to memories of birthday parties, sweet shops, and old-school confectioners. Tutti frutti adds sweetness and a slight chew to each bite. It gives the cake a fruit-candy flavour that pairs beautifully with the vanilla custard base — nostalgic and very bakery-style. I have used these tutti frutti to make my custard cake.

EQUIPMENT USED FOR MAKING CUSTARD CAKE IN KATORI

This recipe comes together quickly and hardly needs any special equipment.

Measuring Cups and Measuring Spoons. are an integral part of any baker’s kitchen and it’s very important to measure ingredients with precision. I make the batter in the pan itself and cook it in the same pan.

A spatula and a whisk help to bring the batter together.

OTHER RELATED RECIPES FROM THE BLOG

• CUSTARD LOAF IN A COOKER

• THANDAI CUSTARD CUPS

• NO-OVEN EGGLESS CUSTARD COOKIES

TIPS TO MAKE CUSTARD CAKE IN KATORI

1. Let the milk and vinegar rest for 5 minutes so it curdles properly. This makes the cakes softer and fluffier.
2. Use room temperature ingredients for a smooth, lump-free batter.
3. Toss the tutti frutti in 1 tsp maida before adding it to the batter to prevent it from sinking.
4. Whisk the batter only until smooth. Avoid overmixing, as it can make the cakes dense.
5. Fill the katoris only ¾ full to give the cakes enough room to rise.
6. Since every air fryer is different, start checking the cakes after 15 minutes with a toothpick.
7. Let the cakes cool for 5–10 minutes before demoulding to prevent them from breaking.
8. Store the cakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Warm them slightly before serving for the best texture.

If you like my custard cake in katori recipe and happen to make them in your kitchen, do tag me on Instagram and share pictures with me using #Bakewithshivesh. Happy Baking!