The encyclopaedia of gravy
Yorkshire puddings need a gravy thin enough to pour into the middle and plentiful enough to fill it — and historically, the gravy came first.
A Yorkshire pudding is, structurally, a bowl. A gravy that is too thick sits on the rim; a gravy that is properly pourable fills it and soaks into the base.
Consistency is everything¶
Make it slightly thinner than you would for a plate of sliced meat — 25 g fat and 25 g flour per 500 ml rather than 30 g. It should pour in a smooth stream, not a slow glug.
Quantity¶
At least 200 ml per person. A Yorkshire pudding absorbs a startling volume and there is no sadder plate than a dry one.
📜 From the archives
Yorkshire pudding was originally served before the meat, on its own, with gravy — a cheap filler so that less of the expensive roast was needed. Hannah Glasse published a recipe for "a dripping pudding" in 1747, cooked under the meat to catch the falling fat. The pudding-with-gravy-first tradition survives in parts of Yorkshire today, and giant Yorkshire puddings filled with stew or sausages are a direct descendant.
The dripping connection¶
The same beef dripping that makes a good Yorkshire pudding comes from the same tin as the gravy. Skim the fat off the roasting tin, use the clear fat for the puddings (smoking hot, before the batter goes in) and the dark juices for the gravy. Nothing wasted.
See beef dripping.
Toad in the hole¶
The same batter with sausages in it, and it wants onion gravy rather than beef gravy — see best gravy for sausages and mash.