Suet puddings?

[Grizzly]

Suet is a fairly common ingredient over here, and can be readily found in the butters and spreads department in the supermarket.

I have done a bit of a search on-line and alternatives quoted are Lard, Shortening, Butter and Bacon Fat. There is also a vegetable suet which I understand you should be able to get in the States. Closest equivalent is something called Crisco.

As you cant get suet over there do you ever have dumplings?

[Tobus]

Suet is a fairly common ingredient over here, and can be readily found in the butters and spreads department in the supermarket.

I have done a bit of a search on-line and alternatives quoted are Lard, Shortening, Butter and Bacon Fat. There is also a vegetable suet which I understand you should be able to get in the States. Closest equivalent is something called Crisco.

As you cant get suet over there do you ever have dumplings?

I have used Crisco as a substitute (which is just a name-brand shortening), and I really think it's partly why my results were less than stellar. Lard would be a better option if one can't find suet. In making pastry shells, lard is always superior to shortening, and I'm thinking it would be the same for a suet pudding too. Mmmmmm.... tasty, tasty lard.

[Grizzly]

Mmmmmm.... tasty, tasty lard.

Lol Tobus, you will be able to borrow my kilts soon.

[sevenoaks]

I grew up on Suet Pudding or Plum Duff. My Grandmother made it in the winter and my Father made it until his death. I made it for my kids.
It was a mixture of milk, flour, salt and eggs kneeded together to make a bread like dough. Sultanas were mixed in and then it was rolled out in a rectangle. Any kind of fruit jam was then spread on it and then tightly rolled up in cheese cloth and the ends tied securely with twine. It then was inserted into a big kettle of boiling water then simmered for a couple of hours.
It was unwrapped and cut into 1 or 2 inch slices and served with a hot white sauce well laced with brandy.
As they always told me. "Eat this up Lad it sticks to u'r ribs and keeps the cold and damp out"
It was not greasy, economical, easy to make, and so very tasty.
I know I can buy suet all over Vancouver and think I will make it this weekend.
I know my partner will no be trying it as she watches what she eats. She did go to Ireland on a vacation this summer and ate Blood Pudding and loves it.
As a kid I remember it was my job to "Stir the bloody blood slow Lad, and dunna be mixing air into it". But that is another story.

[KenB]

Herewith, my Mother-in-law's recipe for Christmas Pudding - it's a beauty.

This is a double recipe. Makes two puddings

2 cups each of:
grated carrots, grated potato, bread crumbs, brown sugar, raisins, currants
1 cup of flour
2 teaspoons each of salt, and cinnamon
1 teaspoon each of baking soda, allspice and nutmeg
1.5 cups finely grated suet
4 tablespoons of sour milk
Mix ingredients in the order given. Turn into a well greased mold. Cover and steam individual molds for 1.25 hours and large molds for 3 hours.

Enjoy with brandy hard sauce.

[Pleater]

Do you know how to boil a pudding in a cloth?

The trick is to use a damp cloth and strew it with flour. Make a disc on one side entirely covered with flour - you don't need to do the corners as they don't touch the pudding, but the cloth and disc should be large enough to entirely enclose the pudding when drawn up and tied.

The flour sticks to the damp cloth and when it is plunged into boiling water the flour becomes a waterproof liner inside which the pudding cooks without becoming sodden.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[O'Callaghan]

Around here (Maryland) you can get suet from the meat department in Giant Foods supermarkets, if you ask the butcher for it, but it comes in one big solid lump. If you try to cut this up in a food processor, it will likely destroy your food processor, unless you freeze the suet first to make it brittle. This is a trick I learnt from another ex-pat. If you can somehow obtain a packet of pre-chopped Atora suet, that is much easier. OTOH, alternative recipes that don't use suet are much better for you (unless they just replace it with lard or Crisco, of course).

In recent years I have bought pre-made Cross & Blackwell Christmas puddings from Safeway, but last year and the year before they didn't have any. It's probably time I located a suitable source for this year's Xmas pud.

As for Spotted Dick, I don't think I've had any since I was a child and my mother used to make it.

[O'Callaghan]

(Double post)

[kilted scholar]

We lived in the USA for nearly thirty years. My wife, who is American, was able to get suet regularly by making arrangements with the butcher at the supermarket to set some aside for her. Latterly we were able to make arrangements to bring over packaged suet from the UK (which is what is normally used over here; it's sliced into small thin strips like tiny noodles inside a packet). Butter is a decent substitute but makes a lighter pudding. For some Americans who may not be aware of the terms, in this case pudding is closer to cake rather than a custard, as it's a substantial item, firm but with some give to it.