Homemade or Frozen?

Arts & Culture

A Yorkshire pudding isn't a Yorkshire pudding if it is less than four inches tall.

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One of the most famous foods associated with Yorkshire is the Yorkshire pudding. There is no concrete evidence that the pudding originated in Yorkshire but it was so called in a book written by Hannah Glasse in 1747 and we have since claimed it as our own. The first recorded recipe, then called a ‘dripping pudding’ dates back to 1737 in a cookbook and guide called ‘The Whole Duty of a Woman’. It was so called because the pudding was created by placing a large roasting dish under the meat cooking on a spit to capture the hot fat. The pudding mixture was poured into the roasting dish and left to rise up out of the fat.

Homemade or Frozen?

The Yorkshire pudding is traditionally an important ingredient in a typical British Sunday Lunch. For centuries British families have tried to make the time once a week, on a Sunday, to sit down together and eat a meal of meat and vegetables. During times of poverty many families could not afford a lot of meat and the pudding was eaten as a starter in order to fill hungry stomachs before the main course. The ingredients needed for a Yorkshire pudding are relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of a joint of meat – even today.

Homemade or Frozen?

To make 1 large or 12 individual Yorkshire puddings you will need;

250g plain white flour

150ml whole milk

4 free-range eggs, beaten

2 tbsp beef dripping or sunflower oil

1.       Sift the flour into a large bowl with a generous pinch of salt.

2.       Combine the milk in a jug with 150ml cold water.

3.       Create a hole in the middle of the flour and add the eggs.

4.       Pour in a little milk and water, and then whisk the lot together to make a smooth batter.

5.       Mix in the rest of the liquid, until you have a batter that is smooth and lump free.

6.       Leave at room temperature for at least 15 minutes.

7.       When the meat is cooked take it out of the oven to rest.

8.       Turn the temperature up to 230C and put a large roasting tin, or a 12-hole muffin tin, which has been greased with oil or dripping, on the highest shelf and leave for 10 minutes to heat up.

9.       Take the tin out of the oven, and keep warm while you pour in the batter – if it doesn't sizzle when you add the first spoonful, put the tin back into the oven until it does.

10.   Put the puddings into the oven and cook for 15–20 minutes until well risen and golden. 

Homemade or Frozen?

Yorkshire people are especially proud of the height they can achieve with homemade Yorkshire puddings and everyone thinks that either theirs, or their mothers, are the best. In 2008 a ruling by the Royal Society of Chemistry  announced that "A Yorkshire pudding isn't a Yorkshire pudding if it is less than four inches tall". 

So how do you think homemade Yorkshire puddings compare with the ready-made frozen Yorkshire Puddings that are available today in all supermarkets? Why not try one of the fabulous restaurants in York that offer a traditional Sunday Lunch and judge for yourself.

Homemade or Frozen?