Vegans can now enjoy a Sunday roast with all the classic trimmings as ‘amazing’ vegan Yorkshire puddings finally hit the UK.
Created by Somerset-based company Plantside, they are one of the first commercially available vegan alternatives on the market, making them a game-changer for vegans.
Plantside, based in Somerset, originally opened as a vegan cafe – just two weeks before the first Covid lockdown. Chef Anna, with 25 years of culinary experience, spent some seven frustrating weeks trying to nail the recipe for vegan Yorkshires while they were shut. And finally, she says, she nailed it. “Not just passable, the result was perfection – super light and crispy top, deep hole for the gravy and a slightly denser bottom,” she says.
Yorkshire puddings are made from a batter of eggs, milk, and flour – much like a pancake batter. However, as eggs are the main ingredient that help give them rise, vegan cooks have long struggled to make vegan Yorkshire puddings that are crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside.
However, Anna put her culinary skills to the test, eventually managing managed to circumvent this issue by using a soy base along with pea protein. Once the cafe reopened, they were so popular that people wanted to take extra to make at home with their roasts. According to Anna: “Then friends of customers from further afield heard about them got in touch asking if we could post them all over the country. We gave it a go. Sometimes they arrived in perfect condition, sometimes they looked like had been through a heavy rugby match on the way,” Anna says.
To resolve this, Plantside partnered with online vegan retailer Mighty Plants, and sent them frozen, so they arrived as they were supposed to.
Where to buy vegan Yorkshire puddings
In 2022, they partnered with Essential Trading to distribute them via smaller retailers. The UK-wide distribution will begin in February 2024, going live with CLF Distribution in selected independent vegan, health food and zero waste shops.
In another exciting development, last year, they took their vegan Yorkies to Vegan Camp Out where they went ‘down an absolute storm (had the biggest food queue on Sunday the festival ever seen)’. They also showcased their ‘epic new Toad in the Hole made with THIS sausages’ and say they are ‘looking forward to seeing you all again there next year.’
Huge growth is expected according to the business, which said on its website: “Sales are predicted to increase at least 200 per cent and we are looking forward to listings with national retailers and food service chains.”
Original source: https://www.veganfoodandliving.com
https://www.animalagricultureclimatechange.org/vegan-pub-wins-prestigious-award-for-best-roast/
