This post may contain affiliate links.
Our favourite accompaniment to a British roast dinner, Yorkshire Puddings! Knowing exactly how to make them perfectly is simply a rite of passage for all home cooks. Follow our foolproof recipe for perfect puds, every time.
If you’ve ever had a classic British Sunday Roast, you will almost certainly have tried a Yorkshire Pudding.
Made from batter baked in a very hot oven, they are the traditional accompaniment to roast beef particularly, but we say, why stop there?!
This recipe makes 12 small light and crispy Yorkshire Puddings in a muffin tray, BUT we have also added an option to make a giant Yorkshire Pudding in a 7” tin in case you’d rather a bowl-sized version.
Why you’ll love this Yorkshire Pudding recipe
⭐️ A tried and tested version of the classic
⭐️ Includes tips for success every time
⭐️ With freezing instructions to make ahead
Can you make Yorkshire Puddings with Self-raising flour?
Short answer? No, you can’t make Yorkshire Puddings successfully with self-raising flour.
It turns the batter into something more like a cake, which results in it not being light enough to rise as we want it to, giving a flat and doughy pudding (maybe to some people’s taste, but it’s not the classic style!)
Make sure to always use plain flour (all purpose flour) in your recipe.
Sarah’s Notes
Yorkshires are so easy to make… when you know how!
I’ve had so many fails over the years and have finally perfected the method.
This is the recipe that you all know and love from my Toad in the Hole recipe.
Tips FOR PERFECT PUDS
1. How long to heat the oil for Yorkshire Puddings?
We need the oil to be as hot as we can get it, so add a little to your muffin tray (enough to cover the bottom of each hole), and leave it for at least 10 minutes at 220℃.
2. Can you use olive oil for Yorkshire Puddings?
Yes, but not extra virgin olive oil as…
1) the taste will be wasted in cooking and it’s very expensive
2) it can burn at very high temperatures we’re using here.
Regular olive oil is fine. It does add some taste so I tend to recommend a flavourless oil for this reason. Vegetable oils and animal fats are also fine, such as beef dripping or goose fat.
3. What the best way to add the batter to the oil in the oven?
When it comes to pouring the batter into the muffin tray, do it as quickly (and safely) as possible. The high heat inside the oven and the temperature of the oil is what helps to keep the puddings rising.
Put the muffin tray as close to the top of the oven as possible, but not so close that the puddings will touch the oven roof! They will need room to rise.
4. Keep the oven door closed❗️
DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN until at least 25 minutes has passed! If you open it too soon you’ll let too much cool air in and they may sink.
Can you make Yorkshire pudding batter in advance?
Yes, you can make it up to 24 hours in advance. Keep it covered in the fridge.
In fact, ‘resting’ the batter in the fridge is an important step in making Yorkshire Puddings, so make sure you do so for at least 15-20 minutes.
Ingredients for Yorkshire Puddings
- Oil – Olive oil, sunflower oil, or vegetable oil, or dripping. Just NOT extra virgin olive oil. We need to use something that can be heated to a very high temperature. Cover the bottom of the muffin tray holes to make sure the Yorkshires don’t burn or stick
- Plain flour – It’s important to use this and NOT self-raising flour for this recipe
- Salt – Add a generous pinch. Underseasoned Yorkshire Puds are nowhere near as delicious!
- Eggs – You’ll need 3 medium-sized for this. I use free-range
- Milk – Semi-skimmed or full fat. You can add a little more of this – or water – to get the right consistency if you’ve let the batter rest for a while and it has thickened
- Water – Cold water from the tap is fine
How to make Yorkshire Puddings
1. Whisk the flour and salt with the eggs until you have a very smooth, very thick paste. (Use an electric hand whisk if you have one.)
2. Add about a third of the milk, whisk until smooth, then add the rest, along with the water. Whisk until totally smooth.
3. Cover the bottom of each muffin hole with a little oil and pop in a preheated oven as per the recipe below.
4. Open the oven door and, very carefully, pour the batter into each muffin hole. Return to the oven and cook as per the recipe below.
TIPS: Transfer your batter into a large jug if you have one (this will help you to safely pour later). For best results, rest the batter for 15-30 minutes in the fridge. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN until at least 25 minutes has passed!
Why do my Yorkshire Puddings not have a hole in the middle?
Be sure to use a MUFFIN TIN, not a ‘Yorkshire Pudding tin’.
I find that the smaller tins make the puddings grow taller, which helps to give the best shape.
Leftovers
In the fridge You can keep this recipe in the fridge for 3 days. Reheat fully before serving or eat cold. Reheat by putting them onto a baking sheet in the oven at 200℃ for 10 – 15 minutes.
In the freezer Yorkshire Puddings are ALWAYS best fresh, but are still fine to freeze. Defrost and reheat them again in the oven as above. They will go soggy in the microwave.
What to serve with Yorkshire Puddings…
Slow Cooker Beef
Slow Cooker Beef Joint {Best EVER Roast!}
Winter Warmers
Slow Roasted Shoulder of Lamb
Slow Cooker Chicken
Slow Cooker Roast Chicken {with Lemon & Herb Butter}
Slow Cooker Beef
Slow Cooker Beef Stew {with Rich Gravy}
Accompanying sides…
Side Dishes
Roast Potatoes {Best Ever Easy Recipe!}
Side Dishes
Simple Onion Gravy
Side Dishes
Cauliflower Cheese {Easiest Ever Recipe!}
Side Dishes
Honey Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
FAQs
Our overseas friends may be baffled with the hysteria surrounding something called a ‘pudding’ that we eat as savoury!
Typically eaten with roast dinners, Yorkshire Puddings are sort-of high rise little round pancakes that have a hole in the middle.
We are proud of our humble origins of Yorkshire Puddings, which date back to the 18th century and were a way for the poor to feed their families (they are made up of eggs, flour and milk).
I find using a very small whisk works best if you have one, or an electric whisk. (I recommend this handheld whisk).
Add SOME of the liquid first (in this case I add the eggs first), then mix until it’s a smooth paste, and then add the milk gradually, each time making sure the mixture is smooth before adding more.
Yes! This recipe works just as well for this dish. You can follow my Toad in the Hole recipe here for a method and tips.
Check they are fully cooked (they can stick when undercooked).
Leave them to cool and sit for 5 – 10 minutes, run a dinner knife around the outside to loosen.
They should then pop out easily.
Let me know how you got on and what you thought of these recipes. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ below.
Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).
Yorkshire Puddings {Foolproof Recipe!}
Ingredients
To make 12 small Yorkshire Puddings:
- 2 tbsp Sunflower oil, See notes
- 150 g Plain flour
- Pinch of salt
- 3 Eggs, Medium, free-range
- 200 ml Milk, Whole or semi-skimmed
- 50 ml Water
Instructions
Make the batter:
- Whisk the flour and salt with the eggs until you have a very smooth, very thick paste.
- Add about a third of the milk, whisk until smooth, add the rest, along with the water and again whisk until totally smooth.
- Transfer your batter into a large jug if you have one (this will help you to safely pour later).
- For best results, if you have time, pop into the fridge to rest for 15-30 minutes (you can leave for longer in the fridge if it’s helpful to your timings, but you’ll need to give it a very good stir and may need to add a little more milk to return it to it’s original consistency).
To cook:
- Preheat the oven to 220℃ fan/240℃/Gas Mark 9.
- When you’re ready to cook, pour a little of the oil into each of the muffin tray holes and put into the oven for 10 minutes until the oil is smoking hot.
- Very carefully, open the oven door and remove the tray of hot oil (close the oven door quickly).
- Working very quickly, pour or spoon the batter into each muffin hole. (It should be hissing and bubbling).
- Return to the oven and reduce the temperature to 200°C. Cook for 30 minutes until they are a deep dark golden colour and very crispy. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN until at least 25 minutes has passed!
HOW TO MAKE 1 LARGE YORKSHIRE PUDDING INSTEAD:
- Use the following quantities instead: 75g plain flour | 100ml milk | 50ml water | 1 egg
- Preheat the oil in tin for 10 minutes at 220℃ fan/240℃/Gas Mark 9.
- Carefully pour in the batter, turn the temperature down to 200℃/220℃/Gas Mark 7. and cook for about 16 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool 5 mins so it’s easier to get out of the tin.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I am from Yorkshire and can confirm that this recipe passed the test with my very particular family on Sunday! Thank you – so easy to follow and perfect.
Great recipe, I found it hard not to open the oven to check on them for 25 minutes but it worked beautifully. I cooked them first and then the meat on a lower temperature and put them back in for 5 minutes to re heat. Perfect, thank you!
This recipe works! I had amazing Yorkshire’s with this.
fantastic, easy to follow recipe!
I doubled the recipe as I decided to make 24 for 6 people and we scoffed the lot – delicious.
My batter was quite liquid possibly because I used large eggs? It actually made 36. I didn’t have room for them in my oven yesterday so I left the remaining batter overnight in the fridge and have just cooked the last 12 ready for freezing (if we can resist them) and they look as good as yesterdays.