Tips for making crème brûlée

I would love to make crème brûlée but I’m never very sure how to go about setting up the water bath for cooking it in. What’s the best type of dish to use and how hot should the water be when I first put it in?

A water bath, otherwise known as a bain-marie, provides a moist environment in the oven for recipes such as baked cheesecake and crème brûlée, which would otherwise dry out and fail. All you need is a large roasting pan. Place in the oven with your crème brûlée standing in it in individual cooking vessels. Add hot water (just lightly simmered is fine) to your desired level. Bear in mind that some will evaporate while cooking. A plastic watering can is a useful tool here as you generally only want to fill the pan up to about halfway, which can be a bit tricky.