Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet (Figgy Pudding)

Embark on a nostalgic journey back to cherished Christmas traditions with a classic recipe for traditional Christmas pudding with suet. Unleash your creativity this holiday season with these innovative and delicious variations on the classic recipe. From adding unexpected ingredients like chocolate and nuts to experimenting with different suet alternatives, this article will inspire you to put a unique and unforgettable twist on your festive dessert.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet on a christmas plate with fresh holly sprig and dried orange slice

Unlock the secrets of achieving the ideal texture and moisture in your traditional Christmas pudding with suet. Delve into the science of steaming, baking, and the crucial resting period that allows the flavours to meld together perfectly.

Why you’ll love this Christmas pudding with suet recipe

Making a traditional Christmas pudding with suet is a great way to get into the festive spirit. They last a long time when properly stored so you can make this figgy pudding recipe early in the season.

You can easily make this Christmas pudding recipe with suet in a flash when you realise you’re sans Christmas pudding on Christmas day.

Everyone loves a traditional figgy pudding recipe. It’s perfect for dessert especially when covered in a generous scoop of ice cream or a pouring of double cream.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet topped with a sprig of holly

Ingredients for Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

For the full recipe and instructions scroll to the bottom of the page for the recipe card.

CHRISTMAS SPICES

They taste wonderful, but in my opinion, Christmas spices smell even better than they taste. Whilst the traditional Christmas pudding with suet cooks your house is filled with the smells of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.

Suet

Suet is a controversial ingredient in a figgy pudding recipe. It’s not vegetarian, due to being made from animal meat products. It helps make this a traditional Christmas pudding recipe.

DRIED FRUITS

For this version of the figgy pudding recipe with suet, I used a mix of cherries, raisins, cranberries, sultanas, currants and 1 chopped apple to give my Christmas pudding the warm, wintery flavour. You can use any mix of dried fruits or candied peels you like!

CHOPPED ALMONDS

Sweet, nutty and perfect for adding a little crunch to your traditional Christmas pudding. I loved adding almonds to the classic Christmas pudding recipe. You can always omit them if they are not to your taste but I just think they add that extra wow factor.

How to make Christmas pudding with suet – step by step

For the full recipe and instructions scroll to the bottom of the page for the recipe card.

Combine all your fruits, chopped nuts, spices and the brandy, stout and orange juice into a bowl and stir together.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

For best results, leave them to soak overnight before moving on to the next step.

Once you’ve let your fruit fully soak, add the butter, eggs, suet and flour.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

Combine until everything is mixed together and transfer the mix to your greased and lined tins.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

For a traditional Christmas pudding look, I used pudding basins. Then cook your Christmas puddings as in the recipe below.

Pouring brandy over a christmas pudding

Present your Christmas pudding with brandy or for a less fire-based serve with a sprig of holly or drizzle with custard or cream.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet Top Tips

Serve your figgy pudding with a topping. Think warm custard, cool ice cream or a double helping of double cream.

Adding chopped nuts to your Christmas pudding is a great way to elevate it. The crispy chunks offer a wonderful variety in texture and the flavour is perfect.

Don’t forget to serve your old-fashioned Christmas pudding with a pouring of brandy or cherry. Then when you bring it to the table, you can light the alcohol for a wonderful show of blue flames.

Serving Suggestions for an old-fashioned Christmas pudding

This traditional Christmas pudding recipe with suet is best served warm. If you can do it straight from the oven do, alternatively you can pop it in the microwave for 30-second blasts.

Once you’ve got a warm figgy pudding you can pour over your double cream, your warm custard or a big scoop of ice cream. There are so many toppings you can add to your Christmas pudding.

Equipment

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old-fashioned Christmas pudding – Substitutions and variations

Chocolate

Add chocolate chips or chunks in to your Christmas pudding mix before baking. I love biting into a piece of figgy pudding with suet to find a wonderful warm piece of melted chocolate.

Toffee Chunks

Another great addition to your traditional Christmas pudding with suet it toffee! It’s sweet and chewy and adds a wonderful taste. The chewiness is the perfect addition to make this a memorable Christmas pudding.

Orange

Add dried orange slices to your Christmas pudding. They look gorgeous and an extra hint of orange zest. You can dehydrate them in the air fryer or in the oven.

Storing Christmas pudding with suet / Making ahead of time options

This figgy pudding recipe is a traditional Christmas pudding recipe with suet, meaning you can make your Christmas pudding in advance and then just get out ready for Christmas day.

If you want to store your Christmas pudding, you should store it in the fridge. It will keep for about 2 weeks in the fridge or a month in the freezer. Just don’t forget to get it out of the freezer 24 hours before you need it so it can fully thaw.

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet – Top Questions

Why use suet in Christmas pudding?
Is it OK to use vegetable suet in Christmas pudding?
Can you use brandy instead of rum in Christmas pudding?
What is traditionally in a Christmas pudding?
What is Victorian Christmas pudding made of?

old-fashioned Christmas pudding FAQS

Why use suet in Christmas pudding?

You put suet in a Christmas pudding because it has a higher melting point than butter. Meaning it will keep your Christmas pudding soft and moist while it steams in the oven.

Is it OK to use vegetable suet in Christmas pudding?

Yes, using vegetable suet is a great way to make a traditional Christmas pudding recipe suitable for vegetarians. You follow the recipe as normal just subbing out the meat formed suet for your vegetable one.

Can you use brandy instead of rum in Christmas pudding?

Yes, you can easily swap the rum out in your Christmas pudding for a brandy or cherry depending on what you have in the cupboard. Any warming alcohol tastes amazing in this traditional Christmas pudding.

What is traditionally in a Christmas pudding?

Traditionally a Christmas pudding is made of chopped fruits and nuts and a heavy cake. The Christmas fruit cake is made of all the leftover winter bits and it’s decorated with a sprig of holly and some brandy that you light it when serving.

What is Victorian Christmas pudding made of?

Victorian Christmas pudding is made of the same ingredients that modern-day Christmas pudding is made of, dried fruit, suet, egg, flour, and other basic ingredients.

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Recipe

Traditional Christmas Pudding with Suet

Sisley White
Embark on a nostalgic journey back to cherished Christmas traditions with a classic recipe for traditional Christmas pudding with suet. Unleash your creativity this holiday season with these innovative and delicious variations on the classic recipe. From adding unexpected ingredients like chocolate and nuts to experimenting with different suet alternatives, this article will inspire you to put a unique and unforgettable twist on your festive dessert.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine British, English
Servings 6 Servings
Calories 530 kcal

Ingredients
 

For the Soaked Fruit

  • 75 g (½ cups) raisins
  • 75 g (½ cups) sultanas
  • 75 g (½ cups) currants
  • 50 g (½ cups) dried cranberries (optional)
  • 30 g (¼ cups) glace cherries
  • 25 g (¼ cups) mixed peel
  • 1 large (1 large) bramley apple (peeled and chopped)
  • 125 ml stout
  • 50 ml (50 ml) brandy
  • zest 1 orange
  • zest 1 lemon

Spices For The Pudding

  • ½ tsp ground cloves
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp (½) ground ginger
  • ½ tsp nutmeg (ground or grated)
  • ½ tsp mixed spice

To Make The Pudding

  • 60 g (¼ cups) dark muscovado sugar
  • 75 g ( cups) fresh white breadcrumbs
  • 50 g ( cups) chopped almonds
  • 50 g (1 cups) self-raising flour
  • 30 g (¼ cups) suet
  • 40 g (1 ¼ oz) unsalted butter (plus extra for the basin)
  • 1 eggs (beaten)

To Line the Pudding Bowl

  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 tbsp muscovado sugar

To Serve

  • Brandy
  • Custard or
  • Ice Cream or
  • Brandy Cream

Instructions
 

To Soak The Fruit

  • In a large bowl mix the dried fruits, glace cherries, mixed peel and chopped apple, then add the stout, brandy, orange and lemon zests and stir.
  • Cover and leave overnight to soak.

To Make The Pudding

  • Butter two small (0.9litre/16cm/6") pudding basins, place a circle of greaseproof paper into the bottom so it's a bit easier to get the pudding out later.
  • Sprinkle the buttered bowl with a light covering of muscovado sugar.
  • Add the sugar, flour, breadcrumbs, chopped almonds and suet to a bowl along with all the spices to the soaked fruit and mix together.
  • Grate the butter and add to the bowl along with the eggs and stir well.
  • Spoon the mix into the prepared basins and level the tops.

To Cook the Pudding on the Hob

  • Put the kettle on to boil.
  • Take a large sheet of foil and greaseproof paper. Butter the greaseproof paper and lay it face up on top of the foil layer.
  • Make a pleat in the two together and wrap over the bowl securing with string. The butter side should be facing the pudding with the foil on the outside.
  • Put the pudding on a heatproof saucer in a saucepan and pour in just-boiled water to come halfway up each basin.
  • Cover and steam on a low heat for 6 hours.
    Top up the water occasionally so it doesn't boil dry. I set a timer and check every 45 minutes.

Steam in a Slow Cooker

  • Place the Christmas pudding basin into the slow cooker. Pour the boiled water into the slow cooker so it comes up to 5cm from the top of the basin.
  • Set the slow cooker to low and leave for 8-9 hours. You can also do it as 4 hours on medium and 3 hours on high. When it is cooked the Christmas pudding should have risen slightly and have a darker top. You can serve it straight away or allow it to cool and store it for later.

Store the Pudding

  • When the pudding have cooled, remove the cooking foil then re-cover with fresh greaseproof paper and foil.
  • Store in a cool place ready to reheat on Christmas Day.

Feeding the Pudding (Optional)

  • If you want to feed it each week before Christmas add a tablespoon of brandy, sherry or whiskey.
    Use a skewer to make a few holes to help the brandy soak into the middle.

To Reheat and Serve the Pudding

  • Steam the pudding for 1 hr using exactly the same method as before.
  • OR microwave the pudding until it is piping hot throughout. Do this is short bursts and keep checking. It should take around 10 minutes in total. Remember to remove the foil before microwaving.
  • Pour a little brandy into a metal ladle or jug then set it alight. Pour the flaming brandy over the top of the pudding. It is best to do this at or near the table for the full spectacle.
  • OR add a sprig of holly to the top of the pudding and serve.

Notes

The nutrition estimate does not include any extra alcohol poured over or fed into the pudding. 1 portion is 1/6 of one small putting. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 530kcalCarbohydrates: 80gProtein: 7gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 55mgSodium: 124mgPotassium: 472mgFiber: 5gSugar: 46gVitamin A: 354IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 94mgIron: 2mg

Please note that the nutrition information provided above is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

Keyword British Christmas pudding, Christmas pudding, English Christmas Pudding, English Traditional Christmas Pudding, Traditional Christmas pudding
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