Ingredients
Batter
- 150 gplain flour
- 3eggs
- 250 mlwhole milk
- ½ tspsalt
- black pepper
- 1 tspEnglish mustard powder, optional
Sausages
- 8good pork sausages
Fat
- 3 tbspbeef dripping, lard or oil
Onion gravy
- 3onions, sliced
- 50 gbutter
- 1 tbspflour
- 500 mlbeef stock
- 1 tspWorcestershire sauce
- a splash of ale, optional
To serve
- mashed potato
- peas or greens
Directions
- Whisk the flour, salt and pepper, make a well, and beat in the eggs. Add the milk gradually, whisking until completely smooth. Whisk out every lump at this stage, because they will not disperse later. The batter should be about the consistency of single cream, thinner than a pancake batter.
- Cover it and leave it for at least 30 minutes, and an hour or more is better. Let it come to room temperature before it goes into the oven. A fridge-cold batter hitting hot fat rises less, so take it out well ahead.
- Use good sausages with a high meat content. Brown the sausages first in the roasting tin on the hob. Use a metal roasting tin rather than a ceramic or glass dish. Metal conducts heat fast and gets the fat properly hot, where ceramic heats slowly and the batter never gets the shock it needs.
- Add the dripping and put the tin in the oven at 220°C (430°F) for 10 minutes. The fat must be genuinely smoking hot before the batter goes in. Take the tin out and set it on the hob over a low flame to keep it hot while you work. It should hiss and bubble violently the moment it touches the fat.
- Cook the sliced onions slowly in butter for 20 to 25 minutes until deep golden and sweet. Take the onions genuinely dark rather than merely soft, since that caramelisation is the entire flavour of onion gravy.
- Stir in the flour and cook 2 minutes. Add the stock gradually, whisking, then the Worcestershire sauce and ale. Simmer for 10 minutes until it thickens, and season.
- Serve the toad in the hole immediately, straight from the tin. It begins to deflate within a few minutes, which is normal, so it goes to the table at once. Cut it into squares, giving everyone sausages and both crisp edge and soft centre. Serve with mashed potato, greens and plenty of onion gravy.
Technique
- The same batter makes Yorkshire puddings and the technique is identical.
- Hannah Glasse’s 1747 recipe uses pigeon rather than sausages.
- It deflates within minutes and is served straight from the oven.
Substitutions
- Vegetarian sausages, browned first in the same way.
- Oil in place of beef dripping, which is less flavourful.
Variations
- Made as individual portions in a muffin tin.
- With herbs or mustard through the batter.
- With black pudding alongside the sausages.
History
Batter stretched scarce meat in the eighteenth century; Hannah Glasse’s 1747 book gives a pigeon version of the same idea.
Frequently asked questions
What is Toad in the hole?
Toad in the hole is a main from United Kingdom: sausages baked into Yorkshire pudding batter, with gravy. Batter stretched scarce meat in the eighteenth century; Hannah Glasse’s 1747 book gives a pigeon version of the same idea.
How long does Toad in the hole take to make?
Toad in the hole takes 15 min plus 30 min resting of preparation and 40 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Toad in the hole?
Yes, within limits. Vegetarian sausages, browned first in the same way. Oil in place of beef dripping, which is less flavourful.
What is the most important thing to get right in Toad in the hole?
Use good sausages with a high meat content. Brown the sausages first in the roasting tin on the hob. Use a metal roasting tin rather than a ceramic or glass dish. Metal conducts heat fast and gets the fat properly hot, where ceramic heats slowly and the batter never gets the shock it needs.
