Traditional British Crumpets
Crumpets are popular in the UK and are eaten at breakfast and afternoon tea.
We have made hundreds of them when living on Koh Samui as they were not readily available and the demand by our British friends was huge! It was easy to make them all happy.
What are crumpets?
Some call them griddle cakes because originally, they were made in a cast-iron griddle pan. Nowadays we make them in a frying pan which works well too.
The recipe is straightforward and requires only flour, milk, water and yeast as key ingredients. Rushing is never recommended when cooking, and especially so when making crumpets, as the batter mix needs to rest and rise, and the cooking must be done over a medium heat, so best to plan ahead.
The yeast in the batter creates the holes while cooking. Traditionally, they are toasted just before serving and eaten with lots of butter as well as jam and many other toppings.
We made some fancy crumpets and served them with sour cream, smoked salmon and Oscietra Caviar, but you can use your personal preferences to serve them.
British Crumpets
EQUIPMENT (click pictures for details)
Ingredients
Part 1
- 230 gr white bread flour
- 230 gr all purpose flour
- 15 gr bicarbonate of soda
- 8 gr baking powder
- 10 gr sugar
- 400 gr lukewarm water
- 150 gr lukewarm milk
- 10 gr dry yeast
Instructions
Part 1
- Sift the flours and combine them with the bicarbonate of soda, the baking powder and the sugar.
- Dilute the yeast in the milk.
- Add the milk and the water to the flours and whisk until well combined.
- Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let it rest for a minimum of 1 hour until the batter has air pockets and rises a little.
Part 2
- Combine the milk, the water, the salt and the oil and add to the mixture of part 1.
- Cover and rest again for 15 minutes.
Cook the crumpets
- Heat a frying pan over a moderate heat.
- Use greased crumpet rings and spoon batter into the ring to about 1cm thickness.
- From the moment the batter cooks, it should form holes. If they don’t form easily, add a little more lukewarm water to the batter mix.
- Don’t flip over the crumpet until the surface is completely dry and set and covered with holes. Remove the ring and only flip them over at the very end for a short time.
- The cooked side will be dark brown, but not burned, while the side with the holes keeps a pale golden colour.
Notes
- Crumpets can easily be frozen.
Nutrition for 1 portion
British tea and crumpets
British tea and crumpets is a tradition. It has been around so long that most people will have tasted crumpets and indeed, have their favourite topping.
Some like to add lots of butter to watch it seep into the holes, while others prefer clotted cream and jam. However you grew up eating them is probably how you most enjoy them now.
British tea and crumpets might seem like a breakfast, but can be served any time of the day, and with any other foods.
Highlights of British crumpets
For people that have never eaten British crumpets before, they often confuse them with English muffins. Whilst the two are very similar, the crumpet is much lighter, and made in a fry pan or on the griddle.
The fun part of the British crumpet recipe for kids and adults, alike, is the fact that the yeast makes the holes that everyone loves. It’s just as enjoyable to watch the condiments slink into the holes, as it is to eat the crumpets!