James Martin's Yorkshire pudding

James Martin's Yorkshire pudding
Prepare
overnight
Cook
30 mins to 1 hour
Serve
Makes 12 large Yorkshire puddings

James Martin uses a lot of eggs in this Yorkshire pudding recipe for extra lift and a softer texture. Beef dripping adds extra flavour, but you can also use vegetable oil. The recipe makes 12 really big Yorkshires, so halve the ingredients if you want to make a smaller batch (though any leftovers will freeze well).

For this recipe you will need three 4-hole Yorkshire pudding tins.

By James Martin

From Saturday Kitchen

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Ingredients

Recipe tips

Method

  1. Put the flour and a little salt and freshly ground black pepper in a bowl. Add the eggs and mix using a whisk or fork until you have a smooth paste. Gradually pour in the milk, mixing slowly to prevent lumps forming.

  2. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and chill in the fridge overnight. Alternatively set aside for 2 hours.

  3. Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7.

  4. Put a little of the dripping in the holes of 3 four-hole Yorkshire pudding tins. Put the tins in the oven until smoking hot (5–10 minutes).

  5. Remove from the oven and quickly add the batter. Each hole should be about half full. Return to the oven and cook for 20–25 minutes.

  6. Very briefly open the oven door to let any steam escape. Turn the oven down to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5 and cook for a further 10 minutes until crisp to set the shape of the Yorkshire puddings (so they don't collapse when removed from the oven).

  7. Remove from the oven and serve.

Recipe tips

Resting the Yorkshire pudding batter is important as it allows the gluten in the flour to relax. This means it will be more stretchy when it's time to cook the puddings and you will see them raise beautifully in the oven.

Make sure the oven is really hot, and don't open the oven door for the first 20 minutes of cooking. Opening the door will make the oven temperature drop briefly and you need it to stay really hot to set the shape of the puddings.

Egg size is medium (53–63g each), if yours are larger, use fewer eggs with a total weight of around 450–475g/1lb–1lb 1oz.