Is Indian Pudding Ready for a Comeback?

Published on Wednesday, October 13, 2010, by Joyce Slaton / Edit Post

Indian pudding is a classic dessert that dates back to Colonial times. It's derived from hasty pudding, a dish made from flour or oatmeal boiled with milk. Lacking wheat to make flour, the Colonists made do with cornmeal, sweetening it with molasses and cooking it slowly until it thickened and set. Indian pudding takes hours to cook and it's usually served warm (with ice cream), making it more of a special occasion treat than an everyday thing. Unless you can order it at a restaurant, that is!

Durgin Park is one of the few places you can still get it, but Alcachofa thinks that Locke-Ober's version is better. Hounds also speak up for the IP at Summer Shack. And it seems that numerous places make an Indian pudding ice cream, but Alcachofa disapproves, saying that the dessert depends on the interplay between warm, slightly grainy pudding and cool, creamy ice cream.

Durgin Park [Downtown]
340 Faneuil Hall Market Place, Boston
617-227-2038

Locke-Ober [Downtown]
3 Winter Place, Boston
617-542-1340

Summer Shack [South Boston]
310 Northern Avenue, Boston
617-426-0603

Discuss: Indian Pudding

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POST A COMMENT |6 Comments

COMMENT

  • My family is Italian and Greek, but Indian Pudding is a fundamental Thanksgiving tradition (perhaps because we went to school in Boston and love Durgin Park). We cook it at home using their recipe and adjust the amount of milk depending on the size of the pot we use and the heat of the oven. And I agree with Alcacohofa--with vanilla ice cream and very yin yang dessert--hot and cold, light and...+READ

    My family is Italian and Greek, but Indian Pudding is a fundamental Thanksgiving tradition (perhaps because we went to school in Boston and love Durgin Park). We cook it at home using their recipe and adjust the amount of milk depending on the size of the pot we use and the heat of the oven. And I agree with Alcacohofa--with vanilla ice cream and very yin yang dessert--hot and cold, light and dark, bright and musky.-COLLAPSE

  • Does anyone want to share a great recipe for Indian Pudding?

    mermaid on ack

  • I, too, am a Pilgrim-descended resident of Massachusetts and have been eating Indian pudding since before I can remember. I've always liked Durgin Park's version, and may try Locke-Ober's. When I make it at home I'm as apt to serve it with heavy cream (NOT whipped) as with ice cream. And the Maine Diner, Route 1, Wells, Maine serves a great IP - no frills - just slow cooked pudding with vanilla...+READ

    I, too, am a Pilgrim-descended resident of Massachusetts and have been eating Indian pudding since before I can remember. I've always liked Durgin Park's version, and may try Locke-Ober's. When I make it at home I'm as apt to serve it with heavy cream (NOT whipped) as with ice cream. And the Maine Diner, Route 1, Wells, Maine serves a great IP - no frills - just slow cooked pudding with vanilla ice cream.

    When I was a kid I thought this was a dish the Indians made, but later learned it's very English in origin, only made with "Indian" which was the name they used for maize (corn) they were taught to grow by the Indians.

    And one last thing - do not EVER put raisins in the Indian Pudding! I don't know why anyone would, but once I was served it this way and lost all respect for that coook! Traditional dishes are best left traditional!-COLLAPSE

  • My family has been in Massachusetts since the Pilgrims. We've been using the same Indian pudding recipe for as long as anyone can remember. I love Indian pudding and make it often. Comeback? No, it was never out of fashion, IMHO.

  • I went to college in the Boston area and at Durgin Park I developed a taste for Indian Pudding. I moved to St Louis and one Thanksgiving I made Indian Puding. None of my friends would eat it. More for me

  • OMG I sure hope not! You can still get it at my in-laws house. They are from New England and never venture into unknown food territory...have been making the same family recipe for generations. I think it is one of the worst tasting foods I have ever eaten.