Crumpet

Classic British Crumpets

Soft, holey crumpets with a yeasted batter, cooked in rings on a griddle — the perfect butter-soaking vehicle for teatime.

Prep

20 min

Cook

25 min

Total

45 min

Serves

8 crumpets

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •250 g (8½ oz / ~2 cups) plain flour, all-purpose; weigh for accuracy
• •7 g (1 packet / 2¼ tsp) instant yeast, or active dry yeast
• •5 g (1 tsp) caster sugar, fine granulated
• •5 g (1 tsp) fine sea salt
• •300 ml (1¼ cups) whole milk, lukewarm (≈38°C / 100°F)
• •120 ml (½ cup) warm water, ≈38°C / 100°F
• •3 g (¾ tsp) baking soda, bicarbonate of soda
• •30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to serve
• •10 ml (2 tsp) neutral oil, for greasing the rings and griddle

Steps

1. 1 In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Make a well in the centre.
2. 2 Pour in the lukewarm milk and warm water and whisk from the centre outwards to form a smooth, thin batter — about the thickness of single (light) cream. Beat vigorously for 2–3 minutes to develop structure.
3. 3 Cover with a tea towel and leave in a warm spot for 45–60 minutes, until bubbly and roughly doubled in volume. The batter should look spongy on top.
4. 4 Meanwhile, lightly grease 4 metal or silicone crumpet rings (about 7–8 cm / 3 in wide, 2 cm / ¾ in deep) and a heavy-based non-stick griddle or large frying pan.
5. 5 In a small bowl, dissolve the baking soda in 1 tbsp of warm water. Stir the melted butter and the baking soda mixture into the rested batter — it will foam and loosen slightly. Do not beat out the bubbles.
6. 6 Heat the griddle over medium-low (around 150°C / 300°F). Place the rings on the griddle and wipe a little oil into each with kitchen paper.
7. 7 Ladle about 60–70 ml (¼ cup) of batter into each ring — fill roughly two-thirds up the side.
8. 8 Cook for 8–10 minutes on the first side: bubbles should rise, burst on the surface, and the top should set to look dry with characteristic holes. The base should be pale gold, not dark brown — turn the heat down if it colours too fast.
9. 9 When the top is set and holey, carefully lift off the rings with tongs, flip each crumpet and cook the second side for 1–2 minutes just to set.
10. 10 Transfer to a wire rack; rinse/wipe the rings between batches and re-grease. Repeat with remaining batter.
11. 11 To serve, toast crumpets until golden and hot through, then top with a generous knob of butter so it melts into the holes. Keep cooked crumpets in a tea towel to stay soft.