Toad in the Hole, an English classic of sausages baked in batter, is just one of many bizarrely named foods in British cuisine. We also have Cullen Skink, Spotted Dick and Welsh Rarebit, just to name a few.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Origin of Toad in the Hole
The origin of the name itself is always going to be in dispute. The more common theory is that the sausages poking out of the batter rather resemble frogs/toads peering out of their hiding places, hence the name.
Then there is the rather fanciful theory that it had something to do with a golfing event, a toad and a chef, somewhere in Northumberland.
I’ve also read that the toad refers to the dish, while the hole is the empty stomach it is meant to fill! So take your pick, I’ll just stick with the first one, I think.
Toad in the Hole History
However the name came about, suffice it to say that it is a favourite dish of many, me included. Toad in the Hole most likely started life sometime in the 18th century, as a means of making one’s larder go further. Meat was expensive, and toad in the hole was a perfect way for the family to enjoy a little meat bulked out by the inexpensive batter.
Batter puddings had started being rather popular in the early 18th century, with the introduction of the Yorkshire pudding or Dripping Pudding as it was known, in 1737.
The resulting combination of meat and batter was rather ingenious, really, when you think about it. And cheap. Many recipes abound for this economical combination of meat and batter; the first entry in the Oxford dictionary dates back to 1787.
Toad in the Hole is a Student’s Dream Recipe
Remember I said cheap? In her book, “Household Management”, published in 1861 (above), Mrs Beeton estimates that it would only cost 1s 9d (1 shilling and 9 pence) to make this recipe to feed 4-5 people.
In today’s money, that’s only about £5/$6.75, a pretty inexpensive meal, I would say. That’s probably why it has long been a favourite with students!
Mrs Beeton’s recipe calls for steak and kidneys cooked in the batter. She also notes that
The remains of cold beef, rather undone, may be substituted for steak, and, when liked, the smallest possible quantity of minced onion or shalot may be added.”
And that is how many of the Toad in the Hole recipes were made in the early days: with meat.
Incidentally, Mrs Beeton’s book has a permanent place on my bedstand, I find it fascinating reading.
What is the modern Toad in the Hole recipe?
Somewhere along the line, the meat became sausages but the batter remained that of the Yorkshire pudding. It really is a very quick and easy recipe to make and very vegetarian friendly with the use of vegetarian sausages.
How to cook Toad in the Hole
Did I mention that it’s easy? Haha, yes, I did! Really, all you need are some sausages, a good Yorkshire pud batter and some gravy to serve. All this can be done in under an hour, and you’ll still have time to sit and have a glass of beer! Just about!
Let’s deconstruct the Toad in the Hole and look at what we need to focus on.
The Sausages (The Toad)
Simple sausages will do, there is no need to go fancy schmansy with them, given that the whole dish is very, very unpretentious, and is indeed a rather rustic affair. Go with whatever sausages you like best; I am a huge fan of beef and venison when it comes to sausages, and that’s what I always tend to go for.
Vegetarian Toad in the Hole
If you are a vegetarian, there is such a great variety of vegetarian sausages today, that I reckon you’ll be spoilt for choice when making a Vegetarian Toad in the Hole.
It has become quite fashionable to wrap the sausages in some bacon or pancetta before cooking, as Nigel Slater does. By all means, go ahead and do that if you like, it will heighten the meaty flavour of the ensemble. I have tried it on more than a few occasions. It’s rather nice but entirely unnecessary.
There is also no need to peel the sausages, as far as I’m concerned.
One thing that I always do though, is brown the sausages first.
Simply because I am really, really put off by anaemic looking sausages that hint of being uncooked, whatever time they’ve spent in the oven! That’s the only reason I brown them for about a minute on each side; the bonus is that they do turn out rather brown and crispy when completely done in the oven.
The Batter
This is Yorkshire pudding batter, and a good Yorkshire pud should be light and fairly crispy, with not much of a doughy middle. This isn’t always as easy to achieve as you might think and there are many recipes and tutorials out there on how to achieve the perfect Yorkshire pudding.
Part of it is in the ingredients and part of it is in how hot you get your tin and fat before pouring the batter in. Some people use just milk in making their batter, resulting in a richer and slightly doughy pudding, which I’m not averse to at all. But I find that half milk and half water is a better bet, there is richness but it is still leaning towards the light and crispy.
Quite often, I go further and make my batter with half milk and half dry cider. It is in fact, my favourite combination for the Toad in the Hole batter. I’ll leave that up to you to experiment with.
One other thing that I like doing that I copied from Nigel Slater is adding a little wholegrain mustard to the batter. It gives just a hint of depth and a more rounded flavour.
The Gravy
You absolutely must serve your Toad in the Hole with gravy. Yorkshire pudding soaked in gravy is one of the best comfort foods to be had! And sausages in gravy, of course!
Here, we make a quick and easy onion gravy to go with it, using some stock (chicken or vegetable) and a touch of balsamic vinegar. You could add some of the leftover cider in there if you are using it for the batter, but I usually refrain from doing so, not wanting to repeat the flavour.
The gravy is made in just 15 minutes while your toad in the hole is in the oven so you have no excuse not to! These days, you can get really good stock cubes or stockpots with no additives, just a whole lot of flavour, so bin those OXO granules!
While my freezer always has some frozen homemade stocks, I also always have some stockpots handy in the pantry. Because, they are, well, very handy!
The Fat
If not making a vegetarian toad in the hole, the best fat to use is beef dripping. If you don’t make a habit of saving your own when roasting beef, start doing it now, it’s so good in so many different things. Failing that, I’m sure you can find beef dripping being sold at supermarkets and most definitely, the butchers.
Vegetarian – use any vegetable oil but not olive oil, as it has a higher smoking point and the taste will be all wrong.
Make sure that your fat is super hot and smoking before you pour the batter in, this is crucial for that initial rise.
In the picture here, I use a tin that measures 23cm x 23cm (9″ x 9″). Use something similar, whether it’s square or rectangular, doesn’t really matter.
What to Serve with Toad in the Hole
A combination of:
- Gravy
- Mash
- Chips
- Peas
- Green beans
- Any other seasonal vegetables
Right then, I think we’ve got everything covered. Shall we get our aprons on?
If you like the recipe, don’t forget to leave me a comment and that all important, 5-star rating! Cheers!
And if you make the recipe, share it on any platform and tag me @azlinbloor, and hashtag it #linsfood.
Lin xx
Toad in the Hole with Easy Onion Gravy
Ingredients
- 12 sausages of your choice
- 2 Tbsp + 1 tsp beef dripping or vegetable oil for vegetarians
Batter
- 3 eggs
- 130 g AP flour
- 100 ml full fat milk semi skimmed will work too
- 100 ml water or dry cider (hard cider in the US)
- 1 Tbsp wholegrain mustard
- pinch of salt
Easy Onion Gravy
- 1 Tbsp salted butter
- 1 large onion halved, then sliced thinly
- 1 Tbsp plain flour
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 500 ml chicken or vegetable stock (or 500ml water + 1 stock cube/stockpot)
- 1 rosemary sprig
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Make the batter
- Place all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to a smooth, light pancake-like batter. Use handheld beaters if you have them, it’ll be quicker. Don’t worry about the odd lump if you’re not using electric beaters.
- Set the Yorkshire pudding batter aside to rest for 15 minutes.
Let’s get cooking
- Immediately after making the batter, turn the oven on to 220˚C (Fan 200˚C/430˚F).
- Place the 2 Tbsp of beef dripping or oil into your chosen baking pan and place in the oven to heat up.
- Get a large frying pan, heat the 1 tsp of beef dripping (or oil) on medium heat and brown the sausages for 1 minute on each side. Do it in 2 batches if need be, as you don’t want your pan overcrowding and the sausages stewing. Tip onto a plate and set aside.
- When your beef dripping (or oil) is very hot and smoking (it should be at the end of the 15 minutes), take the time out and immediately, stir the batter once and pour it into the smoking hot oil/tin.
- Arrange the sausages as quickly as you can and place the tin back into the oven and bake for 23-25 minutes until crispy and a rich brown. Don’t open the oven to check before 20 minutes are up. These first 20 minutes are crucial as you don’t want to interrupt any last minute rise of the batter.
Let’s make the gravy while waiting.
- Heat the butter in saucepan on medium-low heat and fry the onions for 5 whole minutes, until they are soft and just catching in places, taking on brown burnt edges. Don’t let them burn though, turn the heat down, if need be.
- Add the flour and stir to mix for a few seconds.
- Add the balsamic vinegar and rosemary and stir to mix, then leave to cook for about 30 seconds.
- Add the stock (or water and stock cube), increase the heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat down and simmer for 10 minutes, to allow the gravy to reduce a little.
- Check the seasoning (add salt if it needs it), and finish with some freshly ground black pepper.
- You could keep it simmering away at the lowest heat until the toad in the hole is done, which should only take a few more minutes.
- Serve the toad in the hole immediately with the onion gravy and as suggested above.
Could I use semi skimmed milk instead of full fat?
Hi Anne Marie, yes you can. In fact, the end result will be lighter and crispier, which is a good thing.
Interesting. In the US we have pigs in a blanket but I’ve never heard of toad in the hole before. The concept looks similar though. I’ll have to give this a try for my next tailgate.
Ah, we have pigs in blankets too, that’s entirely different in its concept.
Really great recipe, everyone loved it. I followed your recipe exactly, thanks.
I’m pleased to hear that.
I went with the Vegetarian version, with some veggie sausages – wow! Will definitely make again.
Amazing history behind this. Thank you. Good reading.
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed the read. And thanks for leaving me a comment.
Thanks Azlin, made this over the weekend and it was absolutely delicious! Missus is asking it to be regular weekend fare and I’ll have to agree.
Thank you Jeremy, let me know how it goes!