Crumpets

Name: Crumpets
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: English
Ingredients: 200 ml whole milk; 150 ml water; 1 teaspoon sugar; 5 g dry yeast; 250 g white bread flour; 1 teaspoon salt; half a teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Hot, buttered crumpets are a quintessentially British treat. Our homemade versions are delightfully airy and spongy in texture. They are well worth making at home. Will you enjoy yours with just butter, with a dollop of jam, or a smear of Marmite?

50 minutes

4 persons

Breakfast

If you're British, you probably already know all about crumpets; thick, yeasted pancakes with a light, airy texture. A cratered surface just ready to soak in hot butter. I sourced the perfect recipe and went with it!

After I made a batch of crumpets, I shared them with our British friends, who gave them the thumbs up. A real taste of home in France; they confirmed that these are truly authentic crumpets.

They are scrumptious, and I now understand the British love of crumpets. While some may prefer to eat the crumpets with so much butter that it drips down the chin while eating, others top them with Marmite, and som go full savoury and add melted cheese.

Recipe crumpets

Made by Véronique

Published at 2024-01-04, this recipe is for 4 persons and takes 50 minutes.

Founder of Ohmydish (since 2014), she prefers to spend all day in the kitchen. Once working in the hospitality industry as an independent chef, she loves helping you gain confidence in the kitchen. With her easy-to-follow recipes, handy tips, and cooking knowledge, you'll make the most delicious dishes yourself! The recipes are accessible to everyone, from beginners to advanced home cooks.

Updated at: 2024-07-31

Let's get started

Preparation time

20 minutes

Time cooking

30 minutes

Total time

50 minutes

Making the crumpet batter – 20 minutes + waiting time

Make sure the water (100 ml) and 200 ml of milk are lukewarm; it's important that they're not too hot. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar and 5 grams of yeast and stir well.

Let the yeast mixture stand for around 15 minutes until it starts to foam vigorously.

Mix 250 grams of white bread flour with 1 teaspoon of salt, then slowly add the yeast mixture. Stir to make a smooth batter, cover with a clean tea towel and leave the batter to rise in a warm place for 2 hours.

Mix half a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda with 50 ml of lukewarm water and stir it into the batter. Let the batter rise for another half hour in a warm place.

Cooking the crumpets – 30 minutes

Use a brush to grease a cast iron frying pan and cooking rings with neutral oil, then place the rings in the pan. Heat the pan over a medium-high heat. Heating the rings with the pan will help prevent the crumpet batter from sticking.

Turn the heat to low and add a spoonful of batter to each cooking ring, making sure the rings are half-filled with the batter.

Cook the crumpets until the top has dried out; you will see that the surfaces are peppered with little holes. This may take a while, as they are best cooked slowly over a low heat.

Remove the crumpets from the cooking rings; you can use a small knife for this. Grease the cooking rings again and repeat for the remaining batter.

If you plan to serve the crumpets later, let them cool on a cooling rack. If you are going to serve the crumpets immediately, fry the tops until golden brown. You can do this in the pan, in the toaster or under the grill of your oven.

Serve generously spread with butter, marmite, jam or a combination of these. You can also top the crumpets with cheese and let it melt under the grill for a savoury crumpet. Enjoy!

Tips!

Are crumpets savoury or sweet?

Crumpets are not necessarily savoury nor sweet; hope you top them determines how you enjoy them. For a sweet crumpet, choose butter or jam, honey or golden syrup. For a savoury crumpet, go for Marmite, or cheese (which is usually melted a little under the grill).

What is the difference between crumpets and English muffins?

Crumpets and muffins are both a type of baked good which is cooked in a pan instead of the oven. There is no egg in crumpet batter, whereas a bread dough is used to make muffins. Both are made with yeast.

English muffins are slightly firmer than crumpets, and they are cooked on both sides in the pan. Crumpets are only cooked on one side. Crumpets are eaten whole, while muffins are sliced in half (like in the classic Eggs Benedict).