What size and shape do you prefer (Yorkshire Pudding)

Member Name: lellagrace

Product:	Yorkshire Pudding
Date:	23/03/07 (2836 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Traditional dish tastes heavenly when properly made

Disadvantages: Too many poor imitations

Yorkshire Pudding - how do you like yours?

As a Yorkshirewoman I am very particular about my Yorkshires, they have to be made properly and taste as good as the ones my mother and grandmas used to make.

Therein lies a problem - theirs all tasted different so I suppose mine are a combination of all three, at least my kids love them! Whenever my grown up son comes home to eat he is always disappointed if I haven't made Yorkshire pudding!

HEAVENLY

Before I continue with recipes etc, I want to quote a monologue that Stanley Holloway wrote about Yorkshire Puddings -

The real Yorkshire Pudding is a poem in batter. To make one's an art, not a trade.

Listen to me and I'll tell thee how t'first Yorkshire pudding was made.

A young angel on leave from Heaven came flying over Ilkla Moor, and the angel, poor thing, got cramp in her wing and came down at an old woman's door.

The ole woman smiled and said "Eee it's an angel! Well I am surprised to see thee. I've not seen an angel before, but th'art welcome, I'll make us a nice cuppa tea."

The angel said "Eee thank you kindly, I will."

Well they had two or three cups of tea, three or four Sally Lunns, and a couple of buns. Angels eat very lightly you see. Then the old woman looked at the clock and said "By Gum, he's due home from t'mill is my Dan. You get on with your tea, but you must excuse me, I must make a pudding for t'old man."

Then the angel jumped up and said "Give me a bowl, flour and water and eggs, salt and all. And I'll show thee how we make puddings in Heaven for our Thomas and Peter and Paul."

Then the old woman gave her the things and the angel just covered her wings and said "Hush."

Then she tenderly tickled the mixture with t'spoon, like an artist would paint wi his brush.

She mixed up that pudding with heavenly magic, she played her spoon on that dough. Like Paderewski played his piano. Or Kreisler twiddling his bow.

And the old woman whispered "I reckon dear angel, the clouds that I see in yon sky, so fleecy and foamy, is batter for t'puddings for saints feasting in paradise. It's mixed with the rain and it's stirred with the rainbow and baked in the beautiful sun."

And the angel kept stirring and smiling, as she answered "And when a star drops then it's done."

"But joking aside" said the angel, "the secret of puddings made here or above is not the flour and the water, but mixing it. See that you mix it with love. "

And when it were done she put it in t'oven and she told the old woman "Goodbye."

Then she flew away leaving the first Yorkshire pudding that ever was made. And that's why it melts in the mouth like the snow in the sunshine, as light as a maiden's first kiss, as soft as the fluff on the breast of a dove. It certainly was mixed with love.

RECIPE

As you will notice from the monologue the ingredients for a successful Yorkshire pudding are flour, eggs, milk, salt and water. Not all recipes mention water, but to a true Yorkshirewoman this is essential as it makes a fluffier mixture.

Don't ask me for amounts - like my mothers and grandmothers I have my own special Yorkshire Pudding bowl and over the years I just throw in the ingredients, without ever weighing them.

Flour can be either Self raising or Plain, but you will get a different kind of texture with each of them. Plain flour will give you the crispy fluffy puffs with hardly any insides, whereas using SR flour makes a thicker texture. I use both kinds of flour, depending on the mood! I always used a fork to mix my pudding and a couple of years ago when a friend called she couldn’t understand why I didn’t use my mixer! I must admit I have now moved with the times!

SEASONED PUDDING

One of my grandmas used to make a Yorkshire pudding with a handful of sage and onion stuffing mix added. This made a thick, savoury pudding, which was about half an inch thick and tasted delicious! Try it next time you want a Yorkshire pudding to accompany pork or chicken.

TRADITION

Traditionally Yorkshire Puddings were served before the main course, to fill up the diners before they had the meat and vegetables. So the phrase Roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding is not strictly the true tradition as they would be eaten separately.

I sometimes serve Yorkshires as a starter, they need to be the size of a dessert plate - what they call "Giant" Yorkshire puddings in restaurants!!! Fill the centre with onion gravy and mmmmm delicious!!!!!

I do confess that I have occasionally used the frozen Yorkshire puddings and they were okay, but I would never use them as a substitute for the real thing.

SIZE and SHAPE

So what size and shape should a Yorkshire pudding be?

In a restaurant you will not be given a choice - your Yorkshire will be round, which is the traditional shape when it is being eaten as a starter.

I always make mine in a large oblong roasting tin like my mother and her mother used. This is then cut into pieces and some of us prefer the crispier corner pieces, some the middle pieces.

You can make them in individual tins, the 4 hole trays are okay, but I can never understand anyone using anything smaller, such as a bun sized tin!

SECRETS

The secret of a successful Yorkshire pudding lies not only in the addition of a drop of water to the mixture, but also in the fat you use to cook it in. Traditionally beef dripping was used, but I always use lard. I would never dream of using lard for cooking anything else, neither would I dream of using oil for my Yorkshire puddings!

Why? Because for a Yorkshire pudding to cook to perfection the batter has to be left to stand for at least half an hour prior to cooking and the fat has to be smoking hot before the mixture is added to it. Lard reaches a higher temperature than oil apparently, and so makes the perfect sizzle when the pudding batter is dropped into it.

SWEET VARIETIES

I read on a US website recently that someone suggested they add RAISINS (!!!!!) to their Yorkshire pudding!!! Well, I am sorry, but if you add anything sweet they are NOT Yorkshire puddings, but a kind of pancake. And as a Yorkshirewoman I feel very strongly about anyone abusing our traditional dish!

EAT IT WITH ANYTHING

So if you have read this far and your mouth is watering for a Yorkshire pudding, then don't think you have to wait until you have roast beef. We eat our puds with lots of things, even on their own, but please don't just save them for when you have roast beef!

Hope you enjoyed the review and I hope to hear that lots of Dooyooers have been busy mixing up the traditional Yorkshire Pud after reading this!

And on a final note, to all Yorkshire Pud lovers, when you die and go to heaven, the angels will be there to make you your favourite dish!

Summary: A heavenly pudding if made in true Yorkshire fashion