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Sussex pond pudding

Name: Sussex pond pudding
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h 30 min
Total time: 3 h 45 min
Yield: Serves 8
Cuisine: British recipes
Ingredients: 225g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting; 110g shredded suet; 150ml whole milk; 150g unsalted butter, chilled and diced, plus extra for greasing; 150g soft light brown sugar; 1 large ripe, unwaxed, thin-skinned lemon or 2 smaller ones, pricked all over with a skewer; You will also need; String

Published: 13 Jul 18
Updated: 18 Mar 24

This Sussex pond pudding is made with a crusty steamed suet pastry which encases a whole lemon, plus butter and sugar. The lemon should almost be candied in the sugar and, once cut into, the juices should spill out and form a pond around the pudding (hence the title).

Medium
February 2012

Test kitchen approved

Serves 8
Takes 15 minutes to make, 3½ hours to cook

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 433kcals
Fat: 29.1g (17.9g saturated)
Protein: 3.3g
Carbohydrates: 40.3g (19.3g sugars)
Fibre: 1.3g
Salt: 0.3g

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Ingredients

225g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
110g shredded suet
150ml whole milk
150g unsalted butter, chilled and diced, plus extra for greasing
150g soft light brown sugar
1 large ripe, unwaxed, thin-skinned lemon or 2 smaller ones, pricked all over with a skewer

You will also need

String

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Method

Sift the flour into a large bowl, then stir through the suet. Quickly mix in the milk äóñ enough so it just comes together as a soft (but not sticky) dough. You might not need all the milk. Remove a quarter of the dough. Roll the larger piece out on a lightly floured surface to form a 30cm circle. Use this to line a 1.5 litre greased pudding basin.
Spoon 75g butter and 75g sugar into the base, then put the pierced lemon on top. Add the remaining 75g butter and the sugar. Brush the exposed dough with water, then roll out the remaining dough to form a lid. Put over the top of the filling and press the edges together to seal. Trim off excess pastry and discard.
Grease a square of foil, top with a layer of baking paper and grease this as well. Fold a pleat into the centre and lay, greased-side of the baking paper down, over the basin. Scrunch around the sides and secure with a piece of string. Cut another piece of string just over twice the diameter of the basin. Fold this in half. Attach at opposite ends of the basin to make a handle.

Put an upturned saucer into the bottom of a large saucepan, balance the basin on top and pour in enough boiling water from the kettle to come halfway up the sides of the basin. Cover the pan with a lid, bring to a simmer and steam for 3_ hours.
Carefully remove from the pan using the handle, remove the paper, foil and string, loosen the sides, then invert onto your serving plate.