Right then, let’s talk about getting your head around British baking ingredients. When I first decided to tackle some proper British recipes, like things my Gran used to make, I stood in the supermarket aisle feeling a bit lost, I tell you.
Starting with the Basics: Flour and Sugar
First off, the flour situation. You see “Plain Flour” and “Self-Raising Flour” everywhere. Plain flour, that’s easy enough, it’s pretty much like the all-purpose flour I was used to. Good for pastry, thickening sauces, that sort of thing.
But then there’s self-raising. I picked up a bag, read the side. Turns out, they’ve already put the baking powder in it for you. Saves a step, I suppose? Took me a couple of flat cakes to realise you really don’t need to add more raising agent unless the recipe specifically says so. Live and learn, eh?
Sugar was another one. Caster sugar. It looked finer than regular granulated sugar. I grabbed a bag and found it dissolves much quicker, which is great for meringues and sponges. Then you’ve got all the brown sugars: Demerara, Muscovado (light and dark). They have more flavour, a bit caramelly. Had to try them all to figure out which one worked best for different things like fruit cakes or sticky toffee pudding.
Fats, Syrups, and Other Bits
Butter is butter, mostly. But then I saw recipes calling for suet. Little hard pellets of fat. Felt weird buying a box of shredded fat, honestly. But I tried it for making dumplings and a steak and kidney pudding. It really does make a difference for that traditional texture, melts away lovely.
And let’s not forget the syrups. Golden syrup is magic in a tin. It’s got this lovely buttery, light treacle taste. Perfect for flapjacks or drizzling on porridge. Found it much nicer than corn syrup for most baking. Black treacle is the stronger stuff, like molasses. Deep, dark, and intense. You use that more sparingly, gives richness to gingerbread and dark fruit cakes.
Other bits I had to get straight:
- Bicarbonate of Soda: Just baking soda, simple.
- Baking Powder: Yep, same stuff, but remember about that self-raising flour already having some!
- Cornflour: That’s cornstarch, used for thickening.
- Mixed Spice: A pre-blended mix, usually cinnamon, coriander seed, nutmeg, cloves, pimento, ginger. Very handy for Christmas baking or hot cross buns. Saves you having loads of jars open.
Getting the Hang of It
It took a bit of practice, reading labels carefully, and sometimes asking shop assistants who looked at me like I was daft. My first few attempts at certain recipes weren’t perfect. Used plain flour when I needed self-raising once – that was a sad, flat Victoria sponge. Used granulated sugar instead of caster and ended up with slightly crunchy bits in a meringue.
But you figure it out. You start stocking your cupboards with these specific things. Now, when I pick up a Mary Berry or a Delia Smith book, I know exactly what I’m reaching for. It feels good, like I’ve unlocked a bit of the local baking code. It wasn’t complicated, just different. Just needed to get my hands dirty and try it out.
