Cookbook:Pudding

Puddings are a broad class of soft foods, either sweet or savory. The term probably comes from the French boudin, originally from the Latin botellus, meaning "small sausage," referring to encased meats used in Medieval European puddings. However, the meaning has since expanded to encompass a wide range of foods.

For the Commonwealth meaning signifying a sweet dish, see Cookbook:Dessert.

Types
Due to the long history of puddings, there are a wide range of types. They may be prepared in various ways, such as boiling, steaming, and baking. Many varieties are typically enclosed in some form of casing or mold (e.g. intestines, cloth, dish, pan) before cooking in order to make them hold their final shape. An incomplete catalog of types follows.

Sausage pudding
Perhaps the original type of pudding, sausage-type puddings are made by mixing ground/minced meats with various other ingredients and/or binders. This mixture is then stuffed into a casing or otherwise enclosed in a dish or other wrapper, before cooking by boiling, steaming, or baking. Haggis and black pudding are typical examples.

Suet pudding
Steamed pies consisting of a filling completely enclosed by suet pastry are also known as puddings. These may be sweet or savoury and include such dishes as steak and kidney pudding.

Sponge pudding
Sponge puddings are made from a batter, and they may be baked or steamed within a container. The final dish is very similar to a sponge cake. Sticky toffee pudding is a well-known example of this type of pudding.

Bread pudding
Bread pudding is a bread-based dessert popular in many countries' cuisines. It is made with stale bread and milk or cream, generally containing eggs, a form of fat such as oil, butter or suet and, depending on whether the pudding is sweet or savory, a variety of other ingredients

Milk pudding
Milk or cream pudding is a soft, thick dish that may or may not be sweetened. It generally consists of milk or a similar liquid plus a thickening agent such as cornstarch, gelatin, eggs, rice, and/or tapioca. These puddings are generally made either by simmering or baking, and they may be made from scratch or from a pudding mix.

This is the most familiar meaning of the term "pudding" in North America and some European countries such as the Netherlands.