Shin Beef Chili Filled Yorkshire Pudding Recipe

This is my latest idea for seasoning and filling a giant Yorkshire pudding, following on from the recently shared Chicken Fajitas Yorkshire Pudding. It's effectively a further fusion of TexMex and English cuisine but with very different textures and flavors. If you prefer, the chili recipe featured on this page could easily be swapped for one of your own choice and made to fill the pudding in precisely the same way. Similarly, the shin beef could be swapped for ground (minced) beef or a quicker cooking cut to reduce preparation time but the wonderful flavor of shin makes it more than worth the effort where time permits.

Ingredients (Chili Quantity Serves 2)

Beef Chili

• 1 pound shin beef meat
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1 small white onion
• 1 large garlic clove
• 14 ounce can chopped tomatoes in tomato juice
• 1 cup fresh beef stock
• ½ red bell pepper
• ½ green ball pepper
• ½ yellow bell pepper
• 1 large, medium strength red chili
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
• 8 ounce can red kidney beans in water
• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped cilantro (coriander leaf)

 

Yorkshire Pudding (Per Pudding)

• 2 medium eggs
• Similar volume of all purpose (plain) flour
• Similar volume of full cream milk
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• Generous pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions

Chop the shin beef meat to around one inch chunks. Do not be tempted to cut away and discard any of the seemingly excess fat. This fat represents flavor and will also help keep the meat moist and tender as it cooks. It will render down during the long, slow cooking period and won't be visible or otherwise detectable in the served dish.

Pour the two tablespoons of vegetable oil in to a large pot and bring it up to a medium heat. Add the shin beef chunks and season with salt and pepper. Stir the pieces around with a wooden spoon for two or three minutes until each piece is evenly browned and sealed.

Peel the onion and cut it in half down through the core. Lay each half flat and moderately thinly slice across the way. Peel the garlic clove and dice. Add both to the pot with the browned beef and saute for another couple of minutes to just soften the onion strands.

Pour the canned tomatoes in to the pot along with the beef stock. Stir well.

Turn the heat up under the pot until the liquid just begins to simmer. Reduce the heat to achieve and maintain a gentle simmer, cover the pot and cook in this way for two hours, stirring occasionally.

Cut the seeds and inner membrane from the bell pepper halves before slicing to a thickness of around half an inch. Cut the top off the chili and slice fairly thinly in to discs.

Add the sliced peppers, chili and (optional) teaspoon of chili powder to the pot and stir them through. Cover again and simmer for a further hour or until the beef is tender. If necessary, a little bit of boiling water can be added to the pot as required.

You should start preparing the Yorkshire pudding around half an hour before the beef chili is due to be ready. Begin by breaking the two eggs in to a porcelain ramekin then fill two identical ramekins to the same level with the flour and the milk. This is an easy way of ensuring you have exactly the same quantity by volume of the principal ingredients. This factor is imperative to the quality of the finished pudding and it's vital not to simply estimate.

Pour the flour, eggs and milk in to a large mixing bowl. Season with a little salt and the teaspoon of chili powder. Beat with a balloon whisk to combine in to a batter. Refrigerate while you prepare the oven and cooking dish.

Pour a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil in to a seven inch diameter casserole dish and place it in to your cold oven. Turn the oven on to preheat to 450F/220C/Gas Mark 8.

Pour the canned kidney beans in to a colander in your sink and rinse under running cold water to get rid of the canning impurities. Tip them in to the simmering chili and stir them through.

When the oven and the oil are heated, carefully take the dish from the oven and pour in the pudding batter. Return to the oven for twenty-five to thirty minutes.

When the cooking time is almost up, stir the cilantro in to the chili. Allow to simmer for another five minutes to start the flavors infusing.

Turn the heat off under the chili and lift to a cool part of your stove top. Let it rest for the ten or fifteen minutes before the Yorkshire pudding is ready.

After twenty-five minutes, the pudding should be beautifully risen with a central well in to which you will spoon the chili. It will still be slightly soft and chewy at this stage so if you prefer it crispy (at least on the outside) grant it another five minutes in the oven.

Lift the pudding carefully from the casserole dish with a slotted spoon and lay it in a deep serving plate. Spoon the chili in to the center and serve immediately.