Black Pudding with Fried Apples

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy frying pan or 10-inch cast iron skillet
• •Sharp knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Slice the pudding

   Cut the black pudding into rounds about a centimetre thick. Not too thin, or they'll crumble in the pan. Not too thick, or the middle stays cold while the outside burns. A centimetre is right. Core the apples and cut them into thick wedges, skin on. You want six or eight pieces per apple, something substantial enough to hold together when they cook.

   A good black pudding will feel firm and slightly springy when you press it. If it's crumbly before it reaches the pan, it won't improve in it. Find a butcher who makes their own, or at least one who can tell you where it came from.
2. 2

   Fry the black pudding

   Put a heavy pan over a medium-high heat and add half the butter. When it foams and the foam subsides, lay the black pudding slices in a single layer. Don't crowd them. Leave them alone for two to three minutes until the underside has gone properly crisp and dark, almost black at the edges. Turn them once. The second side needs the same patience. When both sides are crisp and the centre has softened into something rich and yielding, lift them onto a warm plate.

3. 3

   Fry the apples

   Add the remaining butter to the same pan, with all the dark, savoury residue still in it. This is flavour you've already built. Don't wash it away. When the butter foams, lay the apple wedges in a single layer. If you're using sage, drop the leaves in now and let them crisp alongside the fruit. Cook the apples for a couple of minutes on each side until they're golden at the edges and softening but not collapsing. They should still have some bite to them. The smell in the kitchen at this point, butter and fruit and something deeper and more mineral from the pudding, is worth the whole exercise.

   Choose an apple with sharpness. A Cox's or a Braeburn, something that pushes back against the richness of the pudding. A sweet apple will make the whole plate cloying. You need that acid.
4. 4

   Plate and serve

   Pile the black pudding and the apples together on warm plates with the buttery pan juices spooned over the top. Toast alongside, thick-cut and properly golden. There are few better feelings than putting this in front of someone on a cold morning. The plate does the talking. You don't need to.

Chef Tips

• •Buy your black pudding from a butcher who makes their own, or from a good supplier you trust. Stornoway black pudding is worth seeking out if you can find it. The texture and spicing are a different thing entirely from the supermarket sort, and in a dish this plain, the ingredient is the whole story.
• •Choose an apple with backbone. Cox's Orange Pippin is the one I reach for in autumn, but a Braeburn or a russet will do the job well. What you need is sharpness and a firm flesh that holds its shape in the pan. Anything sweet or floury will let you down here.
• •Strong tea on the side. Not coffee. This is a breakfast that belongs to the British morning, and a proper pot of tea, brewed dark and poured without apology, is the only company it needs.

Advance Preparation

• •Black pudding keeps well in the fridge for up to a week and can be sliced ahead of time. Keep the rounds covered on a plate until you're ready to cook.
• •This isn't a dish that waits. Cook it, plate it, eat it. The crisp edges soften within minutes, and the apples lose their warmth. If you're feeding more than two, fry in batches and keep the first rounds warm in a low oven while you finish the rest.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)