No roast dinner is complete without a crispy Yorkshire pudding filled to the brim with gravy, and they are easy to make yourself at home as long as you use the right ingredients. Yorkshire puddings only need five basic ingredients, and most can be found already in a kitchen, but most people make the mistake of cooking them in the wrong oil.
Emma Wallace, a cook and founder of Kitchen Mason has shared you should never use olive oil on Yorkshire puddings, as it will cause them to turn bitter and not rise properly. She said: “In my experience, I’ve had the best results with Rice Bran oil. Why? Because it has a very high smoke point (250ºC). Meaning that you can get this oil really hot before it starts smoking. Olive oil’s smoke point can be as low as 190ºC, making it a bad choice for cooking Yorkshire puddings.”
Olive oil has a low smoke point, which means it will start to break down and smoke when heated at a high temperature which will cause the Yorkshire puddings to burn.
Yorkshire puddings need to be cooked in a oil that can withstand a lot of heat, otherwise the batter is more likely to come out the oven charred, soggy and flat.
The best cooking oil for Yorkshire puddings is rice bran oil, but you can also use vegetable oil, sunflower oil or rapeseed oil as they also have very high smoke points.
You can also try a old-school recipe and use beef drippings or lard to make Yorkshire puddings as they also have high smoke points, but they will also add a lot of fat to the dish.
Rice bran oil tends to work best as it withstands extremely high temperatures and helps the batter crisp up without becoming greasy or burning, but the puddings will rise properly as long as you avoid olive oil.
How to make taller and crispier Yorkshire puddings
You will need:
- One egg (beaten)
- 60ml of milk (four tablespoons)
- 60ml of water (four tablespoons)
- 32g of plain flour (flour tablespoons)
- A pinch of salt
- Cooking oil (rice bran, vegetable or sunflower oil)
You will also need a jug, cupcake tray, tea towel and oven mitts.
Method:
All you need to do is place the egg in a small bowl, and mix it with a fork until it is thoroughly beaten. Next, place the beaten egg, milk and water in a jug and mix with a fork.
Add the flour and a pinch of salt, and mix with a fork again until you have a smooth texture that has no lumps.
Cover the jug with a tea towel and then a timer to let the batter rest at room temperature. It is best to let it sit for up to four hours, but if you are in a hurry, leave for a minimum of one hour.
When there are 20 minutes left on the timer, preheat the oven to 230C (220C Fan). Place one teaspoon of oil in the tin holes of a cupcake tray.
Place the oil-filled tray in the oven, and leave it for roughly 15 minutes until the oil is incredibly hot.
Then, take the tray out of the oven, and pour the Yorkshire batter into each of the tin holes. The oil should sizzle once the batter touches it but be careful as it can also spit and splatter.
Quickly place the tin back in the oven, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Do not open the oven door as the Yorkshire puddings are cooking otherwise they might not rise properly.
Once the Yorkshire pudding are a dark golden brown, take them out of the oven, Your homemade puddings should be golden and fluffy with a satisfying crunch when you bite into them.