Time to make the Christmas pudding!
A couple of years ago I discovered this pudding recipe somewhere and scribbled the ingredients down onto a post-it-note. Apologies to anyone who created it as I don’t remember where I found it but I changed it a little from the alcohol perspective and used an old cherry brandy that I kept for Christmas cooking. You can also just use regular brandy as I did last year and it was still wonderful.
Christmas pudding is always a traditional one in our family. None of this ice-cream sort, trifle or pavlova. My daughter said it’s the best thing about Christmas! I will never forget we drove 13 hours to have Christmas with my parents once and my mother produced a ‘home brand’ pudding. Shock – horror, I don’t think she recovered for weeks! So the pudding last year was said to be the best pudding I had ever made (and that’s saying something!!) so I thought I would share it on the blog for you all to try to make nice and early this year.
Don’t make it the week before Christmas, it needs time to mature and more time for the extra brandy to be lovingly brushed over the top from time to time 🙂
Below are both steam oven and traditional stove top cooking options. This is where the steam oven really comes into play. In 6 hours you will need to re-fill the water container several times but that is SO much easier than attending to a pot on the stove. You can also attend to other things knowing that you have a good 90 minutes of cooking time in each full water bottle (depending upon which brand of steam oven you own. Please check your instruction book to see how long your water container will last before needing a refill). You can get a lot done in 90 minutes can’t you? Most brands will tell you when the container needs more water which is just so convenient. Overall it was incredibly easy to cook this pudding in the steam oven.
*Over the years I have had lots of comments on this post. Until now I didn’t think that it was possible to cook the pudding in a ‘cloth’ in the steam oven. I always have used the basin method and any puddings I have eaten that have been boiled in a cloth had quite a thick outer almost ‘skin’ which I always thought came from immersing it in boiling water. Tonight I witnessed Maggie Beer cook her Christmas cloth pudding in her steam oven! Certainly a first to my knowledge for TV viewers. So, apparently you can, so prepare your cloth in the usual way, fill the pudding, tie securely and cook for the same time as you would on the stove. Her recipe looked about a small 3 cup size and took 2½ hours. If you use my recipe which was very similar to Maggie’s then it will make two puddings in cloths, place them both on the large solid steamer tray and cook at 100°C for 3 hours. Remember to be present to top up the water tank if you don’t own the plumbed in model.
Ingredients: Makes 1 large 8 cup pudding
250g butter
1 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
750g mixed fruit
1/2 cup pitted prunes, chopped
3/4 cup dates, chopped
1 cup brandy
1½ cups Plain flour, sifted
1teaspoon mixed spice
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon bicarb-soda
½ cup slivered almonds
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
Method:
- Soak the fruit in the brandy overnight. A couple of days won’t hurt.
- In a large bowl beat butter and sugar with a mixer until pale.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. It may curdle but that’s OK. Remove beaters.
- Now in a big bowl fold through the fruit, brandy and then sifted dry ingredients, almonds and breadcrumbs
- Mix really well.
- Grease an 8 cup pudding basin or ceramic bowl well. Line the base with a baking paper circle and pour in mixture. Level out the top.
- Cover with 2 layers of baking paper that have a ‘pleat’ on the top to allow for rising. Tie securely with string around the rim of the basin. If you are using two small, metal steamers then you can just grease the inside of the lid and use that.
- Steam in steam oven @ 100°C for 6 hours. Because it will take a bit more time to go back to temperature after each water refill I ended up removing it about 20 minutes before the end of cooking time. Let it rest for about 15 minutes then run a knife around the sides and turn out onto fresh baking paper and foil. I prefer to remove it from the basin while it is hot so it wont stick. Wrap securely and when cold place in a plastic bag in a cool place until Christmas. In Sydney I think it’s better to store in the refrigerator just in case it is humid. This way I can open it up easily and brush with a little more brandy 🙂
- Bring your pudding back to room temperature a few hours before reheating, unwrap and return to the basin. Cover with foil and secure with string again. Reheat whole pudding, covered in basin for 2 hours @ 100°C. Line the basin with strips of baking paper you can use as ‘handles’ to get it out easily. You can do individual slices for approx. 10 minutes each, just uncovered in the solid steamer tray. This is what I do as it is really quick, I do four slices for about 20 minutes in total.
OR bring a large pot of water to the boil. Test that the water comes half way up the sides of the pudding and steam for 6 hours being sure to top up the water so it doesn’t boil dry. You will need to watch it carefully and do this a few times. If you are cooking in a pot I would also cover with a layer of aluminium foil.
See comment above here * for a traditional ‘cloth’ pudding method.
Serve with your favourite sauce, cream and fresh berries. Our favourite sauce is an old traditional Ballarat recipe that only one person I know uses. It is more like a ‘Brandy cream’ and you can find the recipe here.
Note: To cook two smaller pudding basins, say 5 cup capacity each cook for 4 hours. For individual 1/2 cup ramekins cook for 1 hour.
Ooh! It sounds fantastic, it’ll be a memorable Christmas! 🙂
I have an AEG steam combination oven which I love. I’m keen to try this as I’m sick of steaming my pudding on the stovetop. I have three different settings on my oven – full, half and quarter. Do you use the full steam for this recipe or would you suggest the half? The book that comes with the oven is less than enlightening! 🙂
Hi Karen,
I assume you have a full 600 size combi oven with the water container in the facia? You need full 100% steam and your water tank only lasts for 40 minutes so make sure your around to refill it 🙂
Enjoy,
Regards Trudy
Thanks Trudy – I can report that it worked a treat! I used the 100% steam and just kept filling the tank. Very pleased 🙂
I have a large 2kg pudding wrapped in calico – the host of Xmas has a steam oven which she would like to use to re- heat. Can you give advice – is pudding simply left in calico and placed in the oven and what cooking time & temp would you recommend?
Hi Libby,
Thanks for your email.
If the pudding is homemade (ie boiled in its calico) then you can just reheat in calico, sitting on a small flat plate, then on the rack. This will stop the pudding getting lines from the rack on the base. Steam @ 100oC for 2 hours. If it is a Commercial pudding, remove the calico and it will have plastic wrap under. Steam just in the plastic wrapping for same time.
Regards Trudy
Hi Trudy,
I have my puddings on the stove right now! I can’t wait till Christmas to have a taste!
I have them in pudding basins and want to use a steam oven to reheat them.
I will be reheating one in a medium size basin for Christmas Day. Do I take it out of the basin or leave it in it whilst it is in the steamer?
Jo
Hi Jo,
See Item 9 in my method in the Christmas pudding recipe.
All the best,
Regards Trudy
Hope you don’t mind, Trudy but I want to link to this recipe on my blog as I am hoping to be able to use your method with my recipe for the steam oven when I have my Miele steam combi in time for next Christmas. Hope that’s ok.
I have sent a few friends who are considering steam ovens to your site too. They have been very impressed. I, too, am trawling through the recipes in anticipation.
No problem Rachael. I have had a few people going to your blog from my link too. Make sure you send me your recipe, hope the renovations are going well 🙂
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Hi trudy. Can you explain how I would cook the half cup puddings and in particular how to cover Is it cover the whole tray or each individual one. I have about eight or so. When I cook ed them previously on stove top I had to make sure they were adequately and firmly covered. This was a large one though. Thx for your help and merry Christmas The posts thought the year have been fantastic and most welcome.
Hi Marie,
Yes, you will need to cover each individual pudding just the same as a large one. Use one layer of baking paper & one foil with a little ‘pleat’ in the top to allow for expansion. Try using rubber bands, easier than string.
Happy Christmas to you too 🙂
Cheers Trudy
I know this is last minute but can pudding recipes be made using a pudding steamer OR wrapped in calico? I would prefer to use a shaped container but most recipes use calico. The container would not allow water through so are ingredients different?
Hi Karen,
No the ingredients are not different but the basin is easier than cooking in calico. Calico needs to be soaked and boiled for 20 minutes, then floured. That’s what gives a boiled pudding the ‘skin around it’ as the water seeps into the flour. Then no need to hang it up and all that business so I say go with the basin!
Cheers Trudy
Hi trudy. The mini half cup puddings were a great success. It was so much easier time wise for the cooking process Followed all your directions and turned out very successfully. I have the siemens combi oven. perfect results. Thanks again. Happy new year to you and best wishes. This is such a helpful and concise website.
Just to let you know I am thrilled with my steam oven I have used it extensively and probably more than the conventional oven. It’s such a fabulous product and I feel very confident using it – thanks especially to your advice and knowledge.
Hi there,
Do you just put the pudding bowl on the wire rack in the steam oven? My bowl as a lid and I normally put the two layers of baking paper on and then lid, when I’m steam the pudding in a large saucepan. Is it the same for steam oven?
Many thanks in advance for your help
Hi Trish,
Yes, the basin just sits on the wire rack. You don’t need a lid if you use baking paper and foil with a pleat for the pudding to rise but you must tie it around the rim of the basin so it is secure. If you can’t be bothered then grease the inside of the lid and just use that. If you are using my recipe then check the size of your basin as the standard metal one is too small for this quantity.
Regards Trudy
If I do Christmas pudding in 2 x 4 cup basins does if affect the cooking the time and or reheating time
Hi Sue,
See my note at the end of the recipe. 2 puddings will take 4 hours and half the reheating time.
Regards Trudy
Hi Trudy,
Your site is a godsend. I love my steam oven but you’ve made things much easier with your tips.
I’d like to cook my pudding in calico. Can this be done in the steam oven or does it need to boiled first and then just re-heated in the steam oven.
Thanks for your help
Noelene
Hi Noelene,
Thanks for your email. As you know a boiled pudding has a ‘skin’ which you won’t get unless it is submerged in water. Although I haven’t tried it I doubt if it would work in the steam oven (and I didn’t want to waste all my ingredients to try it!) I could never be bothered with the calico and my steam oven version is SO much easier if you want to give it a try?
Anyway you should boil it if you want that type of pudding but definitely reheat in the steam oven as that will save you washing up another pot 🙂
All the best,
Regards Trudy
Hi Trudy, just wondering, how long before Christmas should I make it? As you can see, this year I am trying to be organised!
Cheers, Irene
Hi Irene,
Make it now! It improves with age, especially if you brush it with a little more brandy from time to time 🙂
Once cold, wrap in baking paper and then a layer of foil and store in the fridge if you live in a humid city.
I moved last year so we will actually be eating the half a pudding that I have left from last year!
Cheers Trudy