Dan Wicker
TVWBB Fan
My dad handed me a package of Niman Ranch uncured bacon over the weekend and said it was the best store-bought bacon he's had (but he's yet to try my homemade). I made some this morning in a skillet, and it was indeed very tasty for store-bought. I was also amazed at the amount of grease that four slices produced - easily a 1/4 cup! I thought of all the ways I could use this bacon grease, and the first thing that came to mind was Yorkshire Puddings. Now I love these devils with beef drippings, but bacon grease has to make them even better!
There are three rules to doing Yorkshire Puddings. Use room temperature batter, work quickly, and don't open the oven door while baking!
My base for the recipe is pretty similar to the Cooks Illustrated recipe.
3 large eggs , at room temperature
1 1/2 cups whole milk , at room temperature
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
3/4 teaspoons table salt
3 tablespoons bacon grease
1/4 cup of chopped, cooked bacon (optional)
1. Preheat your oven to 450. Whisk eggs and milk in large bowl until well combined, about 20 seconds. Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl and add to egg mixture; whisk quickly until flour is just incorporated and mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Whisk in the chopped bacon, if desired. Cover batter with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours. This resting period at room temp is crucial to getting a good rise!
2. Add one tablespoon of bacon grease to the batter and whisk well. Pour the batter into a large measuring cup or some type of pourable container.
3. Measure 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining 2 tablespoons of bacon grease into each cup of a standard muffin pan. Place the muffin pan into the oven and watch it carefully! After about 3 minutes at 450, the fat should begin to smoke. This is where you work quickly! Pull the pan out of the oven and start pouring the batter into each muffin cup, each one about 2/3 full. Put the pan back into the oven, lower the temp down to 400, and bake for 20 minutes.
Do not open the oven door or your puddings will not rise properly!. My gas oven runs a bit hot, so you might want to go a little longer if you're using an electric. Remove the pan from the oven when the puddings are a deep golden brown, shown in the picture below. Pierce each pudding with a skewer to release steam and prevent collapse.
Here's a one-third batch I made just now. I had a little extra batter so I made the little guy on the bottom of the picture. I didn't use bacon crumbles, but they had plenty of great flavor.
There are three rules to doing Yorkshire Puddings. Use room temperature batter, work quickly, and don't open the oven door while baking!
My base for the recipe is pretty similar to the Cooks Illustrated recipe.
3 large eggs , at room temperature
1 1/2 cups whole milk , at room temperature
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
3/4 teaspoons table salt
3 tablespoons bacon grease
1/4 cup of chopped, cooked bacon (optional)
1. Preheat your oven to 450. Whisk eggs and milk in large bowl until well combined, about 20 seconds. Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl and add to egg mixture; whisk quickly until flour is just incorporated and mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Whisk in the chopped bacon, if desired. Cover batter with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours. This resting period at room temp is crucial to getting a good rise!
2. Add one tablespoon of bacon grease to the batter and whisk well. Pour the batter into a large measuring cup or some type of pourable container.
3. Measure 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining 2 tablespoons of bacon grease into each cup of a standard muffin pan. Place the muffin pan into the oven and watch it carefully! After about 3 minutes at 450, the fat should begin to smoke. This is where you work quickly! Pull the pan out of the oven and start pouring the batter into each muffin cup, each one about 2/3 full. Put the pan back into the oven, lower the temp down to 400, and bake for 20 minutes.
Do not open the oven door or your puddings will not rise properly!. My gas oven runs a bit hot, so you might want to go a little longer if you're using an electric. Remove the pan from the oven when the puddings are a deep golden brown, shown in the picture below. Pierce each pudding with a skewer to release steam and prevent collapse.
Here's a one-third batch I made just now. I had a little extra batter so I made the little guy on the bottom of the picture. I didn't use bacon crumbles, but they had plenty of great flavor.