breadsecrets blog

Being a native of North Staffordshire (UK), I was brought up on these, and make a batch every week or two (the ones you can get from the supermarket are OK but not as good as those from a proper oatcake shop, or home made, of course). So, imagine my surprise when, having made a batch this morning, my wife pointed out the “In praise of Staffordshire Oatcakes” editorial in today’s Guardian newspaper. However, they didn’t include a recipe, so here’s mine.

One Dozen Staffordshire Oatcakes

8 oz/225g fine oatmeal (if you can only find medium oatmeal or porridge oats, blitz them in a food processor for a couple of minutes - you should be able to get them through a sieve with only a little bran residue at the end. Tip the residue in as well.)
4 oz/112g wholemeal flour
4 oz/112g plain flour (called “all purpose” in the US. Don’t use strong bread flour)
15 fl oz/430g skimmed or semi skimmed milk
15 fl oz/430g water
1 teaspoon “easy blend” dried yeast
1 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil for frying

Mix all the ingredients in a large jug or bowl. You can use an electric whisk to get the lumps out. Cover with cling film/plastic wrap, and leave at room temperature for at least two hours. The flavour will improve if you leave the batter covered in the fridge overnight.

You should now have a bubbly, runny batter, more or less the same consistency as normal pancake/crepe batter but grainy because of the oatmeal. From here on, you’re just making pancakes. A good pan is really important - you can find a non-stick crepe pan cheaply at many supermarkets or kitchen shops (mine only cost 7 UKP; I bought two so I can cook two at once), or a “tava” from an Asian supermarket is also ideal. Oil the pan lightly and heat it until you see smoke coming off - it must be good and hot. Wipe the oil over the pan using a wad of paper towel, so the whole pan surface is coated with a thin layer of oil.

Pour in a ladleful of batter and quickly tilt the pan around so it is covered with batter. Cook until the top has solidified and is darker and very slightly translucent, then loosen with a spatula and toss. You can flip the oatcake with a spatula if you like, but they do break sometimes, so it’s worth learning to toss them properly.
The cooked side should be evenly browned like this:

Cook the other side until well browned.

Home made Staffordshire oatcakes

After every two or three oatcakes, add a drop more oil and wipe round again. Do NOT wash the pan afterwards, and never use it for anything else other than pancakes/oatcakes.

The classic way to serve oatcakes is to put cheddar cheese on the top (that’s the side that was cooked second) and put under the grill (broiler if you’re in the US) until the cheese is melted. You can then add other savoury fillings of your choice: bacon, ketchup, HP sauce, sausage, mushrooms … then roll them up and eat. Or you can have them just with butter, or with jam, honey, nutella, etc.

Hope you enjoy making and eating this traditional food - let us know how you get on.