British Expatriate Network

Can anyone help me out. I have found a local store that sells British sausages and to celebrate Valentine's Day I decided to push the boat out and cook my husband toad in the hole, mash and baked beans. razz

I hunted around for a recipe for the batter and found one on Delia Smith's page. Have no clue where I went wrong but let's save it was more like toad in cement. The batter cooked rock hard and you almost needed a toffee hammer to break it.

Anyone any suggestions of where I may have gone wrong, or does anyone have an idiot proof recipe?

My wife uses the same batter recipe as that for Yorkshire pudding. Thats all I know.

She's American and she cooks the finest Toad in the Hole around.... lol

I use 4 big spoons of AP flour ( use something like a serving spoon...back in the day we called them tablespoons, cos they were used on the table to dish stuff out!), 2 large eggs, a good pinch of salt, and enough milk and water to make a batter the consistency of thick British cream (not that wussy heavy cream).

Beat the whole lot with a hand mixer, adding more liquid if needed. If it's too watery then leave it for half an hour or so until the starch grains thicken it a bit more. Alternatively you can add a tad more flour and beat again.

Meanwhile, cook the sausages in a bit of oil in an ovenproof dish until they are browned all over. Crank the heat up to 450-475f depending on your oven and do not pour the batter in until the oil is smoking hot and scary! Pour over sausages until the batter is about 3/4" up the side of the baking dish. Keep the remaining batter, if any, and use to make proper pancakes with lemon and sugar!

It'll be ready when it's ready...nice and brown and crispy on top and well risen. You'll know!

Best of luck!

Debs x smile

My first attempts were just the same.
I just had to keep practicing with different recipes till I had it as good as back home.
Although sausages . ..there's another story there

you didn't have the pan hot enough when you put the batter into it.

I think I posted a recipe in here that explains why so many people screw this up - you might want to perform a search as there are many recipes tips and tricks hidden from way back when...

recipe



Andrew

Thanks for all the tips, and I will try them out. I actually had the pan smoking on the top of the stove. According to Delia Smith's recipe, she said to put the cooked sausages in the dish with a small amount of oil or whatever you use. She then says that once the oil is smoking to pour over the batter and immediately cook in the oven. The only thing that did go through my mind at the time of making the batter was that it didn't seem very much to use with six bangers. I will try deb's recipe and see how that turns out. Many thanks.

I did however have 100% success with my egg custard, probably the first real success in many years.

It's safer and you'd be better off heating your pan with the oil in the oven....

If it flashes over you've got a recipe for trouble,

Andrew

That's very true. My mum used to heat it up in the oven first and she always made sure the mixture was a room temp. At least now I have some things to try out and hopefully it will turn out better. :)

Lynne

Oh dear gods your husband is a lucky man.

Actually you don't want to leave the batter too long at room temperature, however, not so long that the gluten develops as this would make it tough.

Andrew

I tend to make batter for Yorkshire's, TITH, pancakes, whatever, and use it straight away. Having tried both schools of thought and left it a while before using it, I found that it makes sod all difference...so I make it as needed.

BTW, Vegas, we had home-cooked fish, chips and mushy peas for dinner last night!

Did that get you slavverin"?!!

Debs x smile

I don't mind the chips and mushy peas but I'd rather have a battered sausage.

I'd heard Mrs VRB was a bit frisky.... :o

tea spitter!

I am so jacking that image for my office wallpaper