These heavenly puddings go hand in hand with roast beef or a classic beef prime rib roast. Crisp and golden brown on the outside and soft and eggy—almost custardy—on the inside, these individual love-puffs are very similar to popovers.
So, if you plan on making a big beefy roast this holiday (or for any large gathering, especially those happening during the blustery winter season), I highly recommend you add these to the menu. In the UK it was be unthinkable to serve roast beef without Yorkshire puddings.
Not only do you create a partnership between the meat and the puddings by adding some of the melted beef fat to the muffin pan before baking, but these little puffs are idea for soaking up all those flavorful meaty juices.
I recommend making the batter ahead of time and letting it sit out at room temperature because it will decrease the amount of work that the batter has to do once it goes into the oven. A well-rested and non-chilled batter equals taller, puffier puddings.
Right when the puddings come out of the oven, be sure to pierce them with a skewer or a thin knife to release the steam that is trapped inside. This ensures they hold their shape. Serve them right away, as they are best warm from the oven (not that there will be any leftover!).
Recipe: Yorkshire Puddings
Makes 6 servings
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Ingredients:
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups whole milk
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tbsp beef fat (from the roast)
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Instructions:
- About an hour before your roast is ready to be taken out of the oven, in a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, flour, and salt. Pour the batter into a glass measuring pitcher. Cover and set aside at room temperature for at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours.
- As soon as the roast comes out of the oven, increase the oven temperature to 425F. Measure out 6 tablespoons of the melted beef fat from the bottom of the roasting pan. Whisk 2 tablespoons of the beef fat into the reserved batter. Add 1 tsp beef fat to each cup of a 12-cup standard sized muffin pan (if your pan, like mine, has seen better days, you might want to spray it with nonstick cooking spray before adding anything to it).
- Put the muffin pan with the beef fat into the oven for about 3 or 4 minutes, then remove it and carefully divide the batter between the muffin cups, filling them about 3/4 full. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 20 minutes without opening the oven door. Reduce the heat to 350F and continue to bake for 10 minutes longer.
- Remove the pan from the oven and, using a wooden skewer, pierce the puddings to release the steam. Serve at once with thick slices of the beef.
