Non-VegetarianSouth East English cuisine Main Course

Buckinghamshire Bacon Badger

Name: Buckinghamshire Bacon Badger
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: South East English
Ingredients: 250 g self-raising flour; 125 g shredded beef suet; 0.5 tsp Fine sea salt; 150 ml cold water; 200 g smoked streaky bacon; 250 g floury potatoes; 1 medium brown onion; 1 tbsp Fresh sage; 0.5 tsp Coarse black pepper

A traditional Buckinghamshire steamed suet pudding roll packed with savoury bacon, diced potatoes, onions, and fresh sage.

🇬🇧United Kingdom· South East England

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 120 min
Total: 145 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: Medium
Calories: 540 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 9 gathered

Servings

250 g self-raising flour — plus extra for dusting
125 g shredded beef suet — or vegetable suet
½ tsp Fine sea salt — for pastry seasoning
150 ml cold water — to bind the dough
200 g smoked streaky bacon — finely chopped
250 g floury potatoes — peeled and finely diced
1 medium brown onion — finely chopped
1 tbsp Fresh sage — finely chopped
½ tsp Coarse black pepper — freshly ground

Equipment

•Large steamer pot
•Rolling pin
•Greaseproof paper
•Kitchen string
•Mixing bowl

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 540 kcal
fat: 32 g
carbs: 48 g
fibre: 3 g
protein: 16 g
calories: 540 kcal

Instructions

1
Peel the potatoes and cut them into very small five-millimetre cubes.
2
Finely chop the onion, slice the bacon into small ribbons, and finely shred the fresh sage leaves.
3
Combine the self-raising flour, shredded suet, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
4
Stir in cold water gradually until the mixture comes together into a soft, smooth dough.
5
Roll the suet pastry on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle measuring roughly twenty-five by thirty centimetres.
6
Scatter the diced potatoes, chopped bacon, onion, sage, and black pepper evenly over the rolled dough.
7
Roll the pastry tightly from the short end into a neat roly-poly shape.
8
Wrap the roll in pleated greaseproof paper and foil, leaving room for expansion, and tie the ends with string.
9
Place the wrapped roll into a steamer basket set over a large saucepan of boiling water on the hob.
10
Cover tightly with a lid and steam over low heat for two hours, topping up the water as needed.
11
Carefully unwrap the steaming roll and slice into thick rounds to serve immediately.

Chef's tips

Dice the potatoes very finely so they cook through thoroughly within the pastry during steaming. Always pleat your wrapping paper to give the suet crust room to expand as it cooks.

Ingredient substitutions

shredded beef suet → vegetable suet
smoked streaky bacon → unsmoked back bacon

Storage

Store leftover sliced pudding in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two days.

Reheating

Reheat slices gently in a steamer basket over boiling water for ten minutes, or pan-fry in a little butter until piping hot.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Dicing potato pieces too large, which leaves them hard and undercooked inside the pudding.
•Wrapping the pudding too tightly without a pleat, preventing the suet dough from rising properly.
•Allowing the steaming pot to boil dry during the two-hour cook.