Steaming Christmas Pudding: Pressure Cooker Method

Christmas pudding is a British festive classic. Traditionally, it is boiled on the stovetop for 8 hours, but using a pressure cooker can reduce the cooking time to just a few hours. The pressure cooker also prevents evaporation and limits the amount of steam released into the kitchen.

To steam a Christmas pudding in a pressure cooker, first prepare the pudding basin by greasing it with butter or oil. Then, mix all the ingredients and pour the mixture into the basin. Cover the basin with greaseproof paper and foil, and secure it with string or an elastic band.

Next, add water to the base of the pressure cooker and place a trivet or steamer basket inside. Lower the pudding basin into the cooker, ensuring that it is not fully immersed in the water. Close the lid and bring the cooker to high pressure. Once the cooker has reached high pressure, reduce the pressure to low and cook for the appropriate time based on the size of the pudding.

After cooking, remove the pressure cooker from the heat and allow it to release pressure naturally. Open the lid, remove the pudding basin, and leave it to cool. Finally, serve the pudding with traditional toppings such as rum sauce, lemon sauce, or freshly whipped cream.

Prepare your ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make a Christmas pudding in a pressure cooker:

• Dried fruit (such as raisins, sultanas, currants, cranberries, apricots, prunes, mixed peel, etc.)
• Alcohol (rum, brandy, or another spirit of your choice)
• Butter
• Sugar (dark muscovado, brown, or white)
• Eggs
• Flour (self-raising or plain)
• Spices (mixed spice, cinnamon, allspice, ground cloves, ground cardamom, ground mace, etc.)
• Breadcrumbs (fresh or dried)
• Grated carrot or quince
• Baking powder (optional)
• Milk
• Lemon zest
• Treacle

You can also add nuts (such as pecans), chopped dates, or stem ginger for extra flavour and texture.

First, soak your dried fruit in the alcohol. This can be done overnight or quickly in the pressure cooker by combining the fruit with a small amount of alcohol and bringing it to high pressure. Allow the pressure to drop naturally, then stir in a couple of extra tablespoons of alcohol.

Next, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs. Mix in all the remaining ingredients, except for the flour, ensuring everything is combined well. Finally, lightly fold in the flour.

Mix your ingredients and place in a bowl

To make a Christmas pudding in a pressure cooker, you'll need to mix your dry and wet ingredients together, then fold in the dried fruits. You can use a big mixing bowl for this.

• Dried fruits (such as raisins, sultanas, currants, prunes, cranberries, apricots, etc.)
• Alcohol (rum, brandy, or another spirit of your choice)
• Flour
• Spices (mixed spice, allspice, ground cloves, ground cardamom, ground mace, etc.)
• Breadcrumbs
• Sugar (brown sugar, muscovado sugar, etc.)
• Grated fruit (apple, quince, carrot, etc.)
• Butter
• Eggs
• Nuts (pecans, almonds, etc.)
• Other mix-ins (glacé ginger, candied peel, etc.)

Once you've mixed all your ingredients together, you can pour the mixture into a greased pudding basin or bowl. Make sure to leave at least 2.5 cm (1 inch) of headspace.

Cover the bowl with greaseproof paper and foil

Covering the bowl with greaseproof paper and foil is an important step in the process of steaming a Christmas pudding in a pressure cooker. Here is a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to do it:

• Preparing the Greaseproof Paper and Foil: Cut a piece of greaseproof paper large enough to cover the top of the pudding bowl with some overlap. Take another piece of aluminium foil, slightly larger than the greaseproof paper, and also grease one side of it. These two layers will help trap the heat and moisture during cooking, ensuring even cooking and preventing drying out.
• Creating a Pleat: Make a pleat or fold in the centre of both the greaseproof paper and foil. This pleat will allow for expansion as the pudding rises during steaming. It also provides a convenient way to lift the pudding out of the pressure cooker later.
• Greasing: Lightly grease the side of the greaseproof paper that will be in contact with the pudding. This prevents the paper from sticking to the pudding and makes it easier to remove later.
• Securing: Place the greaseproof paper, greased side down, on top of the pudding, followed by the foil. Secure them tightly around the rim of the bowl with a piece of string or an elastic band. This ensures that the pudding is sealed and prevents water from entering during the steaming process.
• Lowering into the Pressure Cooker: Use a trivet or a folded cloth to lower the covered pudding bowl into the pressure cooker. The bowl should be placed on top of the trivet or cloth, not directly into the water.
• Water Level: Ensure that the water level in the pressure cooker is below the rim of the pudding bowl. The water should not touch the bowl to avoid the risk of water entering and affecting the pudding's texture.

By following these steps, you will effectively cover the bowl with greaseproof paper and foil, creating an ideal environment for steaming your Christmas pudding in a pressure cooker.

Place the bowl in the pressure cooker

If you are using an electric pressure cooker, turn on the Brown/Saute setting. For a stove-top pressure cooker, turn the heat to the highest setting. When steam begins to escape from the valve (this should take around 10 minutes), lower the heat to medium and start counting down 15 minutes of steam-without-pressure pre-cooking time.

After 15 minutes, remove the lid, tilting it to the side to guide the condensation under the lid away from the pudding. Add the pressure cooking lid, or put the valve and gasket back on—the lid will be hot, so use oven mitts or tongs to do this. Close the lid and set the valve to the pressure cooking position.

Cook the pudding

First, either soak your dried fruit in the rum overnight or use a pressure cooker to quick-soak the fruit. If you are quick-soaking, put your dried fruit in the pressure cooker and add whatever liquid your recipe calls for. A general rule of thumb is 500g of dried fruit needs around 150ml of liquid to just cover it. Close the lid, bring up to high pressure and remove from the heat. Allow the cooker to drop pressure naturally (NPR).

Next, mix all your ingredients together with a generous pinch of salt, then add the fruit. Transfer the mixture to a greased pudding basin, leaving at least 2.5cm of space at the top. Cover with a triple layer of greaseproof paper or a layer of greaseproof paper tied securely with string and covered with foil.

Now you are ready to steam your pudding. Add around 3cm of water to the base of the cooker. The exact amount will depend on the diameter of your pressure cooker. Bring up to high pressure. For mini puddings, steam for 10 minutes; for a medium pudding, steam for 15 minutes; and for a large pudding, steam for 30 minutes.

After steaming, close the valve and set to high pressure for the main cooking phase. Mini puddings will need 40 minutes; a medium pudding will need between 1.5 and 2 hours, depending on how dark you like it; and a large pudding will need 3 hours.

When the cooking time is up, allow the pressure to drop naturally (NPR) and then retrieve the pudding carefully, using oven gloves. Remove the paper and foil and allow to cool.

Storing and reheating your pudding

When your pudding is cool, dry the top with kitchen roll and replace the covering with fresh paper and foil. Store in a cool, dark place until required. This could be done a year in advance but tradition dictates at least 5 weeks before serving to give a full, matured flavour.

To reheat your pudding on the day you want to eat it, place the pudding on a trivet and pour in boiling water to just below the rim of the basin. Set the Instant Pot to 20 minutes on Steam (this time, close the valve). If you like your pudding extra rich and dark, give it 40 minutes on Steam and leave it for an hour or two on Keep Warm. You can then either allow the pressure to release naturally or do a QPR and serve right away.

Frequently asked questions