A Proper Yorkshire Pudding
What is a Yorkshire Pudding?
A Yorkshire pudding is a baked batter pudding that is a staple element of a Roast Dinner.
Where does the Yorkshire Pudding originate?
The Yorkshire pudding is believed to have originated centuries ago. Frugal innkeepers and cooks made use of the excess drippings of fat from roasting meat to make a batter pudding which they could use to pad the roast dinners at very little extra cost.
This method of cooking Yorkshire Puddings led to their original title – ‘Dripping Puddings’, the recipe of which is first found in the 1737 guide The Whole Duty of Woman.
10 years later, Hannah Glasse coined the phrase ‘Yorkshire pudding’ as the title for her recipe in her new cookbook The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Simple and thus the Yorkshire Pudding was born.
Where can you eat Yorkshire Puddings?
Everywhere! Yorkshire puddings are the pride of Yorkshire to the extent that there have even been multiple attempts to have them granted with protected designation-of-origin status – which would have placed them in the same category as Parma Ham, Wensleydale and Swaledale - whereby Yorkshire puds would only be able to be produced in Yorkshire.
While there has never been a literal protection of Yorkshire puddings status as a Yorkshire delicacy, we’ve made up for it by continuing to set the precedent for proper Yorkshire puddings.
Visit any one of Yorkshire’s Favourite Pubs on a Sunday and you will be delighted by the Yorkshire Puddings on offer.
A Proper Yorkshire Pudding Recipe
Ingredients (makes about 8):
- A mug of Eggs
- A mug of Milk
- A mug of Plain flour
- Cooking oil of choice
- Pick a vessel (a mug should be about right for 8 Yorkshire puddings, adjust accordingly depending on how many you want to make)
- Fill it with the eggs (4 should fill the mug) - put those eggs into a mixing bowl
- Fill the exact same vessel with milk (again 200mil - pour into a mixing bowl
- Fill the exact same vessel with flour - pour that into the mixing bowl
- Mix thoroughly, add salt and black pepper to taste (optional)
- Set aside until ready to use (for the best Yorkshire puddings, make the batter the night before). If the mixture separates - mix again before cooking
- Preheat the oven to 220°C
- Put 1tbsp of oil in bottom of muffin tin, put in oven until smoking hot, roughly 10 mins
- Use an oven glove to pull the muffin tray out of the oven just enough to put the mixture in, aim to keep as much heat as possible in the oven and the tray so move quickly but safely
- Fill each well two thirds of the way up with your batter
- Cook for 20-25 mins, do not open the door until at least 20 mins or you'll risk losing height
- Put your batter in a jug to make for easy pouring
- Put a tray of water at the bottom of the oven- this will increase the steam in the oven and make for a tastier end product
- In 2008, the Royal Society of Chemistry declared that a Yorkshire pudding wasn’t a Yorkshire pudding if it is less than four inches tall – so avoid opening that oven door at all costs