How to make the Best Ever Yorkshire Pudding
You can’t beat a light, crisp yet fluffy Yorkshire Pudding, and in our eyes, the bigger the better! For a dish that basically only consists of 3 main ingredients, everyone seems to have their own foolproof recipe. Many are kept a secret and handed down through the generations. So, what is the secret to the best ever Yorkshire Puddings?
Whatever the recipe, the real skill in our eyes is choosing the right fat for the tin. This needs to get to the exact temperature and be piping hot to ensure the maximum sizzle for the maximum rise in those puds! The oven temperature you’ll need is around 220oC / 200oC Fan.
What oil is best for Yorkshire puddings? We believe that a cold pressed Rapeseed Oil is the best oil for the job. But what is the secret? It’s the high smoke point that makes our oil the ideal choice for baking your Yorkshire Puddings. Heating any oil past its smoke point (generally much lower in other oils such as olive oil), gives food a burnt flavour and smell. This also releases harmful free radicals which can damage cells. Our cold pressed Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil can be heated to around 220oC, which is much higher than many oils. It makes it the perfect oil for your Yorkshire puddings.
This is not just a dish enjoyed in kitchens in Yorkshire though, it’s popular throughout the UK. We’re just lucky enough to live in the county that names it! The nearest town to YRO HQ, Malton, even has a giant street mural honouring the Yorkshire Pudding, with 18th century chef Hannah Glasse’s recipe dating back to 1747. With Malton widely recognised as Yorkshire’s Food Capital, it seemed only right for it to feature here. Though it’s not her recipe we use!
Malton's own Yorkshire Pudding Mural thanks to Visit Malton.
Jennie here has her own Yorkshire Pudding recipe. Whether that’s for serving a Yorkshire Pudding with gravy for a starter (the traditional way to serve them), an addition to the family Sunday Roast, or the family favourite dish, Toad in the Hole. We’ve even got a favourite BBC Good Food dessert recipe for Salted Caramel Pear Puffs, which uses a Yorkshire Pudding baked with pears and then drenched in salted caramel sauce. It’s delicious!
The Best Ever Yorkshire Puddings – Jennie’s not so secret recipe and top tips
Ingredients
2-3 tbsp Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil
4 medium free-range eggs
150g plain flour
250ml milk
Method
Whisk together all the ingredients, except the oil until you have a consistency like pouring cream. The odd lump or two is just fine. Leave to rest for an hour in the fridge. That’s important.
Preheat your oven to 220oC / 200oC Fan and when at temperature, pop in your Yorkshire Pudding tin, ensuring there’s a good drizzle of Rapeseed Oil into each of the 12 compartments of the tin. Pop in the oven for 10-15 minutes and remove when the oil is smoking hot.
A quick restir of your batter and then pour it evenly into the hot oil in the tin and quickly pop back in the oven for around 12-15 minutes until the puddings are well risen.
Top Tips for the Best Ever Yorkshire Puddings
• Don’t use self-raising flour for your Yorkshire Puddings. Believe it or not they can end up making them flat, and that’s not a Yorkshire pudding!
• The batter should be the consistency of pouring cream and you should let it rest for about an hour in the fridge. Cold batter and hot oil are the successful combination for a well risen and crisp pudding.
• Make sure your Rapeseed Oil is smoking hot before pouring your batter into the tin. It’s the best oil for the job.
• Don’t open the oven door whilst they are cooking. The oven temperature needs to stay as hot as possible to get the best rise.
• Never wash your Yorkshire pudding tin. Just a quick wipe over with a hot, damp cloth is all that’s needed.
• Freeze your puddings. You can freeze them for up to 3 months and just pop them in the oven for a few minutes to warm right through before serving.