England; the pudding tradition is documented from medieval 'plum porridge' (a thick, fruited gruel); the compressed, boiled/steamed form dates from c. 17th century; the Victorian Christmas pudding (as we know it) was popularised through Charles Dickens and royal endorsement c. 19th century.
Christmas pudding — the dense, dark, steamed fruit pudding of the British Christmas table — is one of the most technically demanding and culturally significant seasonal preparations in the world. It is made weeks or months before Christmas ('Stir-up Sunday', the last Sunday before Advent, is the traditional making day), and improves dramatically with time as the brandy and dark sugars continue to develop the fruit. The preparation: dried fruit (currants, sultanas, raisins, mixed peel, glacé cherries) soaked in brandy or stout overnight; combined with suet, breadcrumbs, spices, treacle, eggs, and sometimes carrots and almonds; packed into greased pudding bowls; and steamed for 6–8 hours. It is then stored, re-steamed for 2–3 hours on Christmas Day, and served flambéed in brandy at the table — one of British cooking's great theatrical moments.
Soak the dried fruit in brandy for minimum 24 hours (1 week is better) — the alcohol both flavours and helps preserve the pudding during the long storage period Use suet (beef kidney fat) — the flavour of suet is specific and irreplaceable; vegetarian suet is an acceptable substitute Fill the pudding basin to within 2cm of the top and cover with double baking parchment plus foil — the pudding expands during steaming Steam on a trivet in a covered pan, water halfway up the basin, for 6–8 hours — replenish the water as needed; do not let the pan boil dry Store at room temperature in a cool place — feed weekly with brandy poured over the paper covering Re-steam 2–3 hours on Christmas Day and flambe with warm brandy for service
The 'Stir-up Sunday' tradition involves every family member stirring the pudding mixture (east to west, following the Magi's journey) and making a wish — maintain this ritual even if you make the pudding early A silver coin (or small clean coin wrapped in baking parchment) stirred into the mixture is the traditional lucky charm element — it is found by a lucky diner in their portion For the most efficient steaming at home: use an electric pressure cooker — it reduces the steaming time from 6–8 hours to 1.5–2 hours with excellent results
Under-soaking the fruit — the fruit should be plump and alcohol-saturated; dry fruit in the finished pudding is unpleasant Insufficient steaming — the pudding must cook through completely in the first steaming; under-cooked pudding never properly sets Boiling dry during steaming — the water level must be maintained; a burnt, dry pan ruins the pudding Not feeding with brandy during storage — the pudding improves with the weekly brandy addition Flambe with cold brandy — cold brandy doesn't ignite reliably; warm the brandy gently before lighting