Toad in the Hole

The exotically named toad in the hole is sausages in a yorkshire pudding batter. When we have guests from overseas, I always like to serve this as a traditional British dish. There is frequently some incomprehension over the name and occasionally some face pulling, but the flavours always win.

I’m very keen on the basic flavourings and don’t like to faff with the dish. You could add rosemary or fried onion to the batter for a change in flavour. Mainly though, I serve this with mashed potatoes and peas. Gravy is essential – I use bisto best beef granules which is absolutely adequate for this dish. If you want to make your own, try grandpa’s gravy: https://cookingwithfi.com/roast-chicken-and-grandpas-gravy/.

Another flavour you might like is mushroom gravy: https://cookingwithfi.com/salisbury-steak-with-mushroom-gravy/

Ingredients

• 8 sausages – posh ones, cheap ones, if using chipolatas use 16, even vegetarian ones
• Good lug -maybe 2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (not olive oil)

Batter ingredients

• 235ml milk
• 115g plain flour
• 3 eggs

Method

Turn the oven onto 200c. Find a shallow dish that fits the sausages in and gives some room for the yorkshire pudding. Put the vegetable oil in the dish and the seperated sausages, swirl to coat with oil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes until they have some color. This also heats up the oil for the yorkshire pudding.

Make the batter by sifting the flour into a mixing bowl. Wet into dry ingredients for batter – crack the eggs into a cup and beat the eggs, then add them and the milk to the flour. Get a whisk and whisk thoroughly until all the lumps are gone. You can use an electric beater if you like but I find a hand whisk works just as well.

Peel and cut 2kgs of general purpose potatoes and place into a large saucepan with cold water. Bring to the boil and cook for 15-20 minutes until they are soft enough to push a fork though but not soggy and disintegrating. Drain, alllow to dry then mash, add a tablespoon of butter and a slosh of milk to taste. Season with salt and pepper and leave with the lid on until ready to serve.

Whilst the potatoes are coming up to boil, your sausages should be catching some colour in the oven. When they are lightly browned, remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 220c. Carefully, as the oil should spit a bit, pour the batter into the dish, then try and even our the sausages so the dish is easy to serve. Put the toads back in the oven, close the door and set a timer for 20 minutes. Do not open the oven door for 20 minutes or we will get deflation in the yorkies.

Make the bisto gravy as per instructions on the jar. Boil some peas or other veg that you fancy. When the timer goes off, check the toad in the hole – it may need another few minutes to really crisp up.

When the toad in the holds comes out of the oven, serve in slices ensuring that everyone gets their fair share of sausages. Add the mash and veg, add the gravy to a jug and serve. A classic comfort dish.