Vegan Spotted Dick – classic British spotted dick made vegan. This old fashioned fruity steamed sponge pudding is easy to make and a delicious cold weather pud.
Serve it hot with custard for the ultimate retro comfort food dessert.
All giggles about the name aside, spotted dick is a classic for good reason.
This moist, tender, lemon scented sponge dotted with currants and served hot with custard is pure comfort food.
My vegan version is easy to make and is just the kind of delicious, stick-to-your-ribs sort of comforting dessert that is needed during cold weather.
What Is Spotted Dick?:
Spotted Dick, also known as Spotted Dog, is a traditional British pudding, first recorded in around 1849, though it is probably older than that.
It is a steamed, suet based pudding filled with currants, which may be cooked in either a pudding basin, or wrapped and shaped into a log. It is only slightly sweet and usually delicately flavoured with lemon.
It doesn’t traditionally contain eggs, so it is an easy recipe to veganise!
While the name sounds a bit rude, ‘dick’ was merely an old pronounciation of ‘dough’, which was commonly used to refer to pudding.
‘Spotted’ clearly refers to the currants that spot the dough.
It has gone out of fashion a bit, possibly due to it’s slightly unfortunate name, but I think that it is definitely worth a revival!
What Do I Need To Make Vegan Spotted Dick?:
Vegetable suet/vegan block butter/coconut oil: Traditionally, spotted dick is made with beef suet. Vegetable suet is easily available in pretty much all supermarkets in the UK and is an easy direct replacement.
I realise that it may be harder to find in other countries however, so I also tested the pudding with cold vegan block butter and cold coconut oil. Both of these options work really well.
If using butter it must be the solid block variety, not the spreadable kind in a tub. I recommend Naturli vegan block or Flora plant butter.
If using coconut oil it should be cold, as it needs to be solid. You may also wish to use refined rather than virgin so that your pudding doesn’t taste like coconut which is obviously not very traditional!
Plain flour plus baking powder: Usually self-raising flour would be used but to make it more accessible I’ve opted for plain flour and baking powder instead. I haven’t tested it gluten-free so can’t say how well that will work.
Caster sugar: Spotted dick isn’t a super sweet pudding but you do obviously need some sugar. I use caster, but granulated or light brown soft will also work. Don’t swap the sugar for sweeteners or liquid sugars.
Lemon zest: The zest of a lemon gives the pudding a lovely fresh, lemony flavour.
Currants: While you could technically swap these for raisins, they just aren’t quite the right size. Definitely go for currants if you can.
Milk: Any kind of unsweetened non-dairy milk will work (except tinned coconut), but I like soy best as it has the highest protein content and a neutral flavour.
How To Make Vegan Spotted Dick:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Start by preparing your pudding basin – grease it very well and place a disc of baking parchment in the bottom to prevent the top of the pudding from sticking.
Pop the kettle on and place an upside-down saucer or small plate in the bottom of a deep saucepan with a lid.
Cut a large square of baking parchment and another of tin foil. Make a pleat in the centre of each square, this gives the pudding room to rise. This will form the lid of your pudding basin so if yours has it’s own lid you can skip this step.
Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
Add the vegetable suet, cold block butter or cold coconut oil. Rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. You can also do this in a food processor to make things easier.
Stir through the sugar, currants and lemon zest then add the milk and mix to form a firm but moist dough.
Transfer the dough to the pudding basin and use the back of a wet spoon to spread it level.
Place the baking parchment on top of the pudding basin with the pleat in the middle, followed by the tin foil. Press the foil over the edge of the pudding basin.
Tie a length of string very tightly several times around the foil – there should be a lip on the pudding basin; tie the string just under that.
Tie a length of string across the top of the basin to make a handle. Trim off the excess foil and parchment, leaving at least a centimetre below the string. If your pudding basin has it’s own lid, you can skip the above and simply put the lid on, making sure it is tight.
Place the pudding basin on top of the saucer in the pan. Pour boiling water into the pan so that it comes about halfway up the pudding basin.
Don’t let the water touch the foil/baking parchment otherwise you may end up with a soggy pudding. Put the lid on the pan and place over a low heat. Cook at a gentle simmer for 1 ½ hours.
Top Tips:
All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
Make sure that you really grease the pudding basin well to prevent it from sticking.
If you don’t have a pudding basin with a lid you will need to make your own using baking parchment, tin foil and string. Take your time doing it to make sure that it is very tightly tied, and when steaming the pudding DO NOT let the water level come up as far as the baking parchment/tin foil.
It’s not traditional, but I like to add 1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla extract.
This spotted dick is delicious as it is, but if you want to add a bit of a twist then you can add the finely grated zest of 1 large orange (instead of or as well as the lemon), and/or ½ teaspoon mixed spice.
Spotted dick must be served with custard. It’s the law.
I highly, highly recommend drizzling the cooked pudding with a couple of tablespoons of warm golden syrup before serving. Do it.
Can I Make It In Advance?:
I wouldn’t recommend making this vegan spotted dick in advance, it is best freshly steamed.
Any leftovers can be wrapped and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheated in the microwave to serve.
Can I Freeze It?:
Any leftover spotted dick can be frozen in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Allow to defrost in the fridge then reheat in the microwave to serve.
More Vegan British Dessert Recipes:
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
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Vegan Spotted Dick
Vegan Spotted Dick – classic British spotted dick made vegan. This old fashioned fruity steamed sponge pudding is easy to make and a delicious cold weather pud. Serve it hot with custard for the ultimate retro comfort food dessert.
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 125 g (4 ½ oz) vegetable suet, cold vegan block butter, OR cold coconut oil
- 80 g (¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 125 g (4 ½ oz) currants
- finely grated zest of 1 large lemon
- 180 ml (¾ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
Instructions
You will need a 1.2 litre pudding basin, a large saucepan with a lid, a saucer, baking parchment, tin foil and string (unless your pudding basin has it’s own lid).
Start by thoroughly greasing a 1.2 litre pudding basin. Place a disc of baking parchment in the bottom to prevent the top of the pudding from sticking.
Pop the kettle on. Cut a large square of baking parchment and another of tin foil. Make a pleat in the centre of each square. The pleat gives the pudding room to rise. (If you have a pudding basin with a lid you can skip this step.)
Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
Add the vegetable suet, cold block butter or cold coconut oil. Rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. You can also do this in a food processor to make things easier. (I recommend using the food processor!)
Stir through the sugar, currants and lemon zest then add the milk and mix to form a firm but moist dough.
Transfer the dough to the pudding basin and use the back of a wet spoon to spread it level. There should be a decent gap at the top to allow the pudding plenty of room to rise.
Place the baking parchment on top of the pudding basin with the pleat in the middle, followed by the tin foil. Press the foil over the edge of the pudding basin.
Tie a length of string very tightly several times around the foil – there should be a lip on the pudding basin; tie the string just under that.
Tie a length of string across the top of the basin to make a handle. Trim off the excess foil and parchment, leaving at least a centimetre below the string. If your pudding basin has it’s own lid, skip the above and simply put the lid on, making sure it is tight.
Place a saucer upside down in a large saucepan with a lid and place the pudding basin on top. Pour boiling water into the pan so that it comes about halfway up the pudding basin. Do not let the water touch the foil/baking parchment otherwise you may end up with a soggy pudding.
Put the lid on the pan and place over a low heat. Cook at a gentle simmer for 1 ½ hours, it will do the pudding no harm to let it cook for a while longer however. Check after an hour to see if the water needs topping up but resist the urge to take the lid off the pan too often.
Once the pudding is done steaming, cut off the string and remove the tin foil and parchment. Run a knife around the edge to loosen it then place a serving platter on top and flip it over. The pudding should drop out of the basin (you might need to give it a bit of a wiggle).
Serve right away with custard.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
- I like to add 1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla extract along with the milk.
- This spotted dick is delicious as it is, but if you want to add a bit of a twist then you can add the finely grated zest of 1 large orange (instead of or as well as the lemon), and/or ½ teaspoon mixed spice.
- Spotted dick must be served with custard. It’s the law.
- I highly, highly recommend drizzling the cooked pudding with a couple of tablespoons of warm golden syrup before serving. Do it.
