As a kid I thought Yorkshire pudding was a dessert
- Scott Daniels: We Ate Well and Cheaply
- December 14, 2023
- 684
When I was a kid, being American and from rural Ohio at that, I thought Yorkshire pudding was a dessert, like chocolate or banana pudding.
The first inkling this might not be the case came from reading one of the books by Yorkshire veterinarian James Alfred Wight, writing as James Herriot. They’re still some of my favorite books, and as a sidebar to one of the stories, Herriot speaks of his wife Helen having roast beef and Yorkshire pudding waiting for him after a tough day of delivering calves. “The pudding, with the soul of the meat in it,” he said. That was enough to send me off researching.
The first time I tried the pudding was with a plain pot roast and gravy, which was good but not the real deal. I used the recipe Herriot offered with the story, and my youth and inexperience produced something I knew couldn’t be right.
It was much later when my family began having a splurged beef rib roast for Christmas dinner every other year or so that I began to grasp what Yorkshire pudding was supposed to be.
I tried several versions of the recipe from numerous sources, searching for just the right thing. Finally, the ever-reliable Martha Stewart shared a foolproof route to perfection every time, with big, puffed, eggy pudding sporting both crunchy and soft bits to both hold and soak up the sauce or gravy.
If you haven’t tried to make Yorkshire pudding, let me give you a shove in the right direction. Next to the beef, it’s my absolute favorite part of the meal. The bonus is the pudding’s ability to play cheaper filler. As British moms promised their children, “Them that eats the most pudding gets the most meat,” knowing a smaller cut of beef could be stretched nicely if everyone piled on the amazing pudding and gravy.
Yorkshire pudding seems to be something that takes a little practice, and I’m unsure why. It isn’t at all difficult, but it really was several years of trying before I got it right.
I find you have to really beat the batter very well, incorporating as much air into the egg and milk mixture as possible. Though most recipes suggest having all the ingredients at room temperature, Martha has us put the batter into the fridge for a day before baking time to get really cold.
When it’s time to bake the pudding, you can use either a square or rectangular baking pan, cake pans, or a popover pan. Whichever you choose, the pan must be heated well on a burner, then a little fat added to the bottom of the pan before pouring in the batter. The fat should ideally be from the roasting pan, but you also can use vegetable or olive oil or melted lard. When the batter goes in, it should sizzle.
Once in the oven, the pudding will puff up well above the edges of the pan, with the outer edges getting a lovely dark crispness while the center remains soft and moist.
Once the pudding cools a bit, tear it into serving blobs and serve it around your roast beef or in a bowl on the side. This is not the time for gravy from a jar. Take the time to make a beautiful brown sauce using the browned bits from the roasting pan.
Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding for Christmas feels like going to Scrooge’s nephew’s house and stuffing yourself before playing a game of The Minister’s Cat.
YORKSHIRE PUDDING
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 large eggs
2 1/2 cups milk
Meat drippings or other fat
Add the flour and salt to a large mixing bowl, whisking to combine. Make a well in the flour and add the eggs. Whisk the eggs into the flour until you have a paste. Slowly whisk in 1/2 cup of the milk until a thick batter begins to form, then gradually add the remaining 2 cups milk. Give it all a good whisking, then transfer to a covered pitcher. You can make the batter a day ahead and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Preheat oven to 425 F. Using whatever pan you choose (the pan in which the beef was roasted is ideal), heat the pan until hot and add a few tablespoons of fat, give the batter another good mixing, and then add to the pan. Place the pan in the hot oven and bake for 25 minutes, until crisp and golden.