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Black pudding is a distinct national type of blood sausage originating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is made from pork or occasionally beef blood, with Lard or Suet, and a cereal, usually oatmeal, oat groats, or barley groats. The high proportion of cereal, along with the use of certain herbs, such as Mentha pulegium, serves to distinguish black pudding from blood sausages eaten in other parts of the world.Jaine, T. and Davidson, A. The Oxford companion to food, OUP, 2006, p.104
As a product of the slaughtering process, eating black puddings was historically associated with Martinmas, when the annual slaughter of livestock took place. By the 19th century black pudding manufacture was linked with towns known for their large markets for pork, such as Stretford,Waugh, E. (1869), Lancashire Sketches, p.78 The Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume 20, 1929, p.13 then in Lancashire, and Cork, Ireland. By this time, black puddings were generally omitted from recipe books aimed at urban housewives, as they no longer usually had access to home-killed pork, although recipes continued to appear in Scottish books until the 20th century.Leach, Helen. "Translating the 18th century pudding" in Clark et al (eds) (2008) Islands of Inquiry: Colonisation, Seafaring and the Archaeology of Maritime Landscapes, ANU, p.390
Most traditional recipes from the UK involve stirring the fresh blood,Floyd, K. (1988) Floyd on Britain and Ireland, BBC, p.97 adding fat and some form of rusk, and seasoning, before filling the mixture into a casing and boiling it. Natural casings of beef intestine were formerly used, though modern commercially made puddings use synthetic cellulose skins, and are usually produced from imported dried blood. The relatively limited range of ingredients and use of oats or barley to thicken and absorb the blood is typical of black pudding in comparison to Continental blood sausages. Despite this, black pudding recipes still show more regional variation across the islands than other sausages, with many butchers having their own individual versions.Tatlow (1998) Good enough to eat: how we shop, what we eat, Macmillan, p.41 Breadcrumbs or flour are sometimes used to supplement the oats or barley, and the proportion and texture of the fat or suet used can also vary widely. Mentha pulegium, marjoram, thyme, and peppermint are all traditional flavourings: pennyroyal was known as pudding-yerb in the North Riding of Yorkshire for its use in black puddings.Robinson (1876) A glossary of words used in the neighbourhood of Whitby, English Dialect Society, p.147 Other herbs and spices sometimes used in traditional black puddings include cumin, Ruta graveolens, and parsley.Dampney (1977) All about herbs, Exeter, p.13
While the dish has been known as black pudding for centuries, blak podyngs having been recorded , Black pudding, The Foods of England, accessed 21-04-25 a number of dialect names have also been used for the dish, such as black pot (in Somerset),Nares (1876) A Glossary: Or, a Collection of Words, Phrases, Names, and Allusions to Customs, Proverbs, Etc: Which Have Been Thought to Require Illustrations in the Works of English Authors, Particularly Shakespeare and His Contemporaries, vI, p.82 and bloody pot.Wright, J. The English Dialect Dictionary, vol I, p.306
In Ireland, in addition to the more general type of black pudding, there is a distinct regional variety called drisheen, which is particularly associated with Cork.Walker, H. (ed) (1995) Disappearing Foods: Studies in Food and Dishes at Risk, Oxford, p.175 Drisheen is usually made from cow's blood, although until the recent past it was often also made with sheep blood, and was sometimes flavoured with tansy. Sneem Black Pudding is a local variety produced in County Kerry; it has Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status.
In parts of north-western England and in the Black Country, it was usual to serve a whole black pudding boiled as a complete meal, with bread or potatoes. Elsewhere in the UK and Ireland, slices of fried or grilled black pudding are more usually served as part of a traditional full breakfast, a tradition that followed British and Irish emigrants around the world.
Some chip shops, particularly in Scotland and Northern England sell deep-fried, battered black pudding.
Novel culinary uses for black pudding include black pudding ice cream, while perhaps a more conventional modern recipe is using it as an accompaniment to . made with black pudding, such as the "Manchester egg", have become common.
In past years, the Bacup Food and Black Pudding Festival has been held in Bacup.
There is an annual European Black Pudding competition held in the Halles de Boudin in Mortagne-au-Perche, Normandy.
Regional popularity
In the United Kingdom, black pudding is especially associated with the Black Country, the North West and Scotland; it is considered a particular delicacy in Stornoway and in Lancashire, notably in towns such as Bury, where it is traditionally boiled and served with malt vinegar out of a paper wrapping., accessed 30 April 2010 It was also found in Yorkshire, where black puddings were flavoured with lemon thyme and Winter savory:Sinclair (ed). (1998) International Dictionary of Food and Cooking, Taylor and Francis, p.589 Barnsley black puddings were particularly well-known. How Albert's pudding put the town on the map, Barnsley Chronicle, 29 September 2006 The Stornoway black pudding, made in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, has been granted Protected Geographical Indicator of Origin status. In the wake of this designation, butchers in Bury sought to demonstrate their history of manufacturing and selling the product. One such claim dates back to 1810. Having been brought there by immigrants, black pudding is now part of the local cuisine of the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Consumption
Black pudding can be grilled, fried, baked, or boiled in its skin. It can also be eaten cold, as it is cooked in production.
Nutrition
Black pudding is a good source of protein; it is low in and high in zinc and iron. It has been described as a "superfood" because of these nutritional qualities, although many recipes are also very high in saturated fat and salt.
Festivals
Since the 1980s, the World Black Pudding Throwing Championships has been held annually in Ramsbottom. The humorous competition invokes the traditional Roses rivalry, with participants throwing the black puddings at piles of Yorkshire puddings. It takes place in September, and draws thousands of competitors and spectators.
See also
External links
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