Anne here, asking what's for pudding?
That's what the English say when they're enquiring about dessert. In other parts of the English-speaking world people might ask what's for dessert, or what's for sweets, or "afters."
But puddings are not always sweet. There are savory puddings as well as sweet ones. They were the earliest puddings — minced meat — usually the less palatable parts of the animal— some kind of grain, fat — generally suet— and seasonings, mixed together and stuffed into the entrails or stomach of an animal, or sometimes a cloth, and then steamed or boiled to cook the contents. Sounds a bit gruesome, doesn't it, but that's more or less what a sausage is, only these days most sausages casings are made artificially.
And while the sausage is fairly ubiquitous, in some parts of the English-speaking world, some kinds of sausage are called black puddings or blood puddings, or by other pudding names. This is black pudding or blood pudding — looks a lot like salami, doesn't it, except it's most commonly sliced and fried and served hot. Apparently it was a favorite of Henry VIII's.
Some kinds of pudding are more famous than others. Do you know this quote?
Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
It's from Address to a Haggis, by Scots poet Robert Burns, and yes, haggis is a savory pudding. That's a haggis on your right.
When I was a little girl, my father used to read me stories about a magic pudding — he was called Albert and was very naughty and grumpy and used to run away. But the wonderful thing about Albert was that he was whatever kind of pudding you wanted him to be — you could cut a slice of steak-and-kidney pudding from him for your main course, and then he'd be a jam roll or plum pudding or apple dumplings for dessert. And no matter how much you ate, Albert never ran out. No wonder thieves were always trying to steal Albert. That's Albert, below.
A steak and kidney pudding (or just a steak one if you don't like kidney) is made with a savory pastry outside that's something between the texture of pastry and bread. It's made with suet and is steamed or boiled in a cloth or a pudding basin -- just a heatproof basin covered with a cloth or a lid or foil. You can learn more about it here.
And of course, what would roast beef be without Yorkshire pudding, which is a light, eggy batter cooked in the hot drippings of the roast.
But I'd say that everybody's favorite kind of pudding is the sweet kind, and these days if you say "pudding" most people assume you mean a dessert. But what kind of pudding? In some places "pudding" refers to a cold, creamy mix, often made from a packet, that's rather like a custard.
Some puddings are boiled in a cloth — plum pudding or Christmas pudding is the classic one there, though for many people they now come in a tin. A proper Christmas pudding though has a wrinkled skin, marked by the cloth, like this one, below.
Other sweet puddings are steamed or boiled in a pudding basin. This picture at the top of this post is that kind of pudding. The pudding mix, which is rather like a cake mix, is placed in the basin, often on top of a large dollop of jam or some kind of syrup, or chocolate sauce, depending on the recipe,the whole thing is covered tightly, placed in a pot of boiling water and kept simmering. An hour or two later, a delicious pudding is yours, to be served with custard, cream or icecream. You can try this recipe if you like. It looks utterly delicious.
So here are some famous traditional English puddings. Jam Roly Poly, Spotted Dick, Eton Mess, Flummery, Syllabub,Treacle Tart, Jam tart, Trifle (pictured left from this website), Plum Pudding, Bakewell Tart, Bread and Butter Pudding, Custard Tart, Queen of puddings, Apple Pie, Apple and Blackberry Crumble, Rice Pudding, Sticky Date Pudding, Lemon Tart, Summer Pudding.
Which ones have you tasted? Which intrigue you the most? Any favorites here? Any you've never heard of? Have I missed out on a favorite? Have you ever eaten haggis, or black pudding? Tell us about your favorite pudding.