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Spotted dick (also known as "spotted dog" or "railway cake") is a traditional
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
steamed
pudding Pudding is a type of food. It can be either a dessert or a savoury (salty or spicy) dish served as part of the main meal. In the United States, ''pudding'' means a sweet, milk-based dessert similar in consistency to egg-based custards, inst ...
, historically made with
suet Suet is the raw, hard fat of beef, lamb or mutton found around the loins and kidneys. Suet has a melting point of between 45 °C and 50 °C (113 °F and 122 °F) and congelation between 37 °C and 40 °C (98.6& ...
and
dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to t ...
(usually currants or raisins) and often served with
custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in consistency fr ...
. Non-traditional variants include recipes that replace suet with other fats (such as butter), or that include eggs to make something similar to a sponge pudding or cake.


Etymology

"Spotted" is a reference to the
dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to t ...
in the pudding (which resemble spots). "Dick" and "dog" were dialectal terms widely used for pudding, from the same etymology as "dough" (i.e., the modern equivalent name would be "spotted pudding"). In late 19th century Huddersfield, for instance, a glossary of local terms described: "''Dick'', plain pudding. If with
treacle Treacle () is any uncrystallised syrup made during the refining of sugar.Oxford Dictionary The most common forms of treacle are golden syrup, a pale variety, and a darker variety known as black treacle, similar to molasses. Black treacle has a ...
sauce, treacle dick."


History

The dish is first attested in
Alexis Soyer Alexis Benoît Soyer (4 February 18105 August 1858) was a French chef who became the most celebrated cook in Victorian England. He also tried to alleviate suffering of the Irish poor in the Great Irish Famine (1845–1849), and contributed a ...
's ''The modern Housewife or ménagère'', published in 1849, in which he described a recipe for "Plum Bolster, or Spotted DickRoll out two pounds of paste ... have some Smyrna raisins well washed". The name "spotted dog" first appeared in 1855, in C.M. Smith's "Working-men's Way in the World" where it was described as a "very marly species of plum-pudding". This name, along with "railway cake", is most common in Ireland where it is made more similar to a soda bread loaf with the addition of currants. The '' Pall Mall Gazette'' reported in 1892 that "the Kilburn Sisters ... daily satisfied hundreds of dockers with soup and Spotted Dick". The name has long been a source of amusement and double entendres; reportedly restaurant staff in the
Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...
decided to rename it "Spotted Richard" so it was “less likely to cause a stir”.


See also

* Clootie dumpling, a similar Scottish Traditional Pudding *
Figgy duff Figgy Duff was a Canadian folk-rock band from Newfoundland, Canada. They played a major role in the Newfoundland cultural renaissance of the 1970s and 1980s. Formed in 1976 by Noel Dinn, who named the band after a traditional pudding, Figgy D ...
, a bag pudding from Newfoundland * Poutchine au sac, Métis bag pudding from Western Canada *
List of fruit dishes This is a list of notable fruit dishes. Fruit dishes are those that use fruit as a primary ingredient. Condiments prepared with fruit as a primary ingredient are also included in this list. Fruit dishes * * ' * * * * * * * * * ...
*
List of steamed foods This is a list of steamed foods and dishes that are typically or commonly prepared by the cooking method of steaming. Steamed foods * Ada – a food item from Kerala, usually made of rice flour with sweet filling inside. * Bánh – in Han ...


References


Bibliography


External links


Alexis Soyer's original 1849 recipe for Spotted Dick
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spotted Dick British puddings English cuisine Custard desserts Steamed foods Fruit dishes