Help! Urgent Appeal: Repeated Yorkshire Pudding Failure

[NuhichNuhaymuh]

Aunt Bessies are better than mine

I just cannot make them it seems, no matter what. As a rule I'm not a bad cook (unless everyone's lying to me!))

I just tried this

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/9020/best-yorkshire-puddings

And produced several discus despite following it word for word

Are you sure you're getting your tin really really hot and putting the puddings straight in before it has a chance to cool down, and using a really hot oven?

What fat are you using?

Are you resisting the temptation to open the oven to check how they're doing?

Plain four and really really hot fat. Out and back into the oven quickly.

Or what Turnip said. It will work, I promise, provided that fat is hot and stays hot.

Vegetable oil.

Possibly not hot enough. Though I had the tray in 20 mins before.

No didn't open the door, I shall try again soon!!!

As all othere have said, Hot hot hot! And when you think it's hot enough, even more hot!
It's the single most important thing.....

I make toad in the hole about once a week and yorkshires once a month - so I'm qualified to comment - contrary to what has been said, I don't get hung up on the hot oil. I get it pretty hot (I usually use rapeseed oil) but what makes them foolproof is the addition of an extra egg. Try it, never fails.

Ooh, now you have said that two , I always use far more eggs than recipes say. For a tray of 12 puddings I would use 4 smallish, medium eggs.
Maybe that's it!

More eggs then - shall try.

I will succeeded some day!!!

I wouldn't use a random vegetable oil in case it's something that doesn't get hot enough. . Rapeseed, sunflower, groundnut are all good, or lard. I use goosefat because I had goose for Xmas and have a lot of fat to use up.

Lard is the key! Two eggs, plain flour, should be the consistency of double cream and leave the mixture to stand for 20 minutes while the tray gets hotter than the sun, 15-20 mind in the hottest oven, and you'll never touch any minging excuse for a yorkie that aunt Bessie churns out again, honest, lard!

Yep. You cant go wrong with an extra egg. Also it makes them extra tasty. Win/win.

You don't need more egg - you need more egg white

This is what you need

115g pl flour
pinch salt
2 whole eggs
1 egg white
175ml milk
50 ml water

Hot oven

Lard or dripping

I don't know why I said tasty. I actually hate that word.

This never fails I promise!
4 eggs
325ml milk
250g plain flour
Metal roasting tin or 12 hole metal muffin tin with generous bits of beef dripping in.
Beat the eggs and milk together and heat the pan for at least 15 mins on the highest heat possible for your oven.
Sieve in your flour and beat into the milk and eggs,then season.Pour batter into the tin or muffin tin and cook at 200oc for 20 mins.
These can be made in advance and then crisped up for a few mins before dinner,but they also freeze really well too.

12 yorkshires = 55g flour, 140ml semi skimmed milk, 1 egg, pinch salt. Smoking oil or lard, 220 degree oven, Muffin tins, 15 mins. Never fails.

Lard or Dripping in the tin for 10 mins AT LEAST, the fat should smoke. Use a metal tin.

OK, believe me this works, you are not going to measure anything.

Get a large jug, break one or two eds into it and beat with a whisk.

Start adding plain flour a spoonful at a time and beating. Once it looks like double cream you are there.

If you have time leave it to 'rest' for 10 mins to 24 hours.

OK open the oven, your tin should be on the top with smoking fat, pull out the tray and quickly pour in your mixture - it should bubble at the edges a little. This is why you beat the mixture in a jug.

Put the tin back and close the oven. Wait 15 mins.

You should have a decent YP.

A few extra tips
Use room temperature ingredients.
Beat the batter with a fork until large bubbles form and come to the top. Then let it sit on the counter for half an hour to an hour.

Then pour into a hot pan (I use beef drippings or melted butter).

Ooh lovely lots of tips. My family will be eating lots of yorkies while i get this right!

Lard, dripping or goose fat and it should be very hot with a haze coming off it.

Sift the flour to get some air in it.

How old is the flour? If it's been open a while or is past its use-by date bin it.

OK I'm attemptong again now. My family will think I've gone clean mad!!!

You need Nigella's (borrowed from Jane Grigson) Chinese Yorkshire Pudding recipe it never fails. Plus what everyone has said above about hot hot hot fat. If it doesn't have to be veggie, dripping will work better than vegetable oil as it will go to a higher temp. Goose fat works well too.

I did it!!!!!!

Used goose fat (as I had some) heated till it was smoking. I used James Martin's recipe this time (meaning more eggs than last time). I'd say it was the heat more than anything though.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!

Yay! Go you!