How to Make a Classic Bread and Butter Pudding — The Irish Baker Abroad’s Comforting Method

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Few desserts say “home” quite like a warm bread and butter pudding. It is the kind of dish that warms you from the inside out — soft, custardy bread studded with plump raisins, a delicate hint of cinnamon and nutmeg, and that golden, caramelised crust that crackles just slightly under your spoon. Chris from The Irish Baker Abroad has a version of this classic that does everything right, and it is simpler to pull together than you might expect.

Bread and butter pudding has deep roots in Irish and British home baking. It was born out of necessity — a clever way to use up stale bread and turn it into something genuinely spectacular. What makes Chris’s approach stand out is his attention to the small details: the rum soak for the dried fruit, the way he layers the bread to let it drink up the custard properly, and that final flourish of cane sugar that creates a crust worth cracking into. If you have been looking for a reliable go-to pudding recipe, this is it.

Why Stale Bread Is the Secret

One of the most common mistakes people make with bread and butter pudding is using fresh bread. Fresh bread is too springy — it resists the custard rather than absorbing it. Stale bread, on the other hand, acts like a sponge. It soaks up every drop of the rich egg-and-cream mixture, resulting in a pudding that is moist and yielding rather than dense and heavy.

Chris uses 400g of white stale bread — a whole loaf works perfectly here, sliced thickly. If you have a sourdough loaf that has gone slightly dry, that works brilliantly too, adding a subtle tang to the finished pudding. The key is avoiding anything too airy or filled with large holes, as it will collapse rather than hold its shape during baking.

The Rum-Soaked Raisins — Optional, but Worth It

Chris is upfront about the rum: it is completely optional. If you are making this for children or simply prefer to skip the alcohol, the pudding is every bit as delicious without it. But if you do choose to use rum, what it does to the raisins and sultanas is remarkable. The dried fruit swells up, becoming plump and juicy, with a warmth and depth that plain soaked fruit simply cannot match.

Pour 60ml of rum over 50g each of raisins and sultanas and leave them to soak while you prepare the rest of the dish. By the time the custard is ready, the fruit will have absorbed most of the liquid and transformed entirely. You can substitute dark tea for a non-alcoholic alternative that still plumps the fruit beautifully — something Chris’s readers have noted works wonderfully alongside a cup of traditional Irish tea brack.

Full Recipe: Classic Bread and Butter Pudding

Ingredients

• 50g raisins
• 50g sultanas
• 60ml rum (optional)
• 400g white stale bread
• Butter, for greasing the dish and spreading on the bread
• 100g caster sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 250ml whipping or double cream (38% fat)
• 350ml whole milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• Cane sugar, for sprinkling

Method

1. Soak the dried fruit. Place the raisins and sultanas in a small bowl. Pour over the rum, stir well, and set aside so the fruit plumps up and absorbs the liquid. You can leave them to soak while you prepare everything else.
2. Slice the bread. Cut the stale white bread into thick slices, approximately 2–3cm each. You can also cut them into triangles at this stage — Chris tends to do this for a more elegant arrangement in the dish.
3. Butter each slice. Spread a generous layer of butter on one side of every slice. Do not be shy here — the butter is what makes this pudding so indulgent.
4. Prepare the baking dish. Grease a 20cm x 30cm baking dish thoroughly with butter. Arrange the buttered bread slices or triangles in overlapping layers, buttered side facing up where possible.
5. Make the custard. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together 100g of caster sugar and 3 large eggs until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is slightly pale. Pour in the cream, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and nutmeg, then whisk until everything is well combined and uniform.
6. Combine and pour. Stir the soaked raisins and sultanas into the custard mixture. Pour the entire custard over the layered bread in the baking dish, distributing it as evenly as possible. Gently press the bread down with your hands or the back of a spoon to help it begin absorbing the liquid.
7. Distribute the fruit. Use a fork or spoon to gently lift layers of bread and tuck some of the fruit underneath. This prevents the raisins from sitting on top of the pudding where they might burn during baking. Aim for a good spread of fruit throughout all the layers.
8. Marinate. Cover the dish with cling film or a clean tea towel and leave it to rest for at least 30 minutes. This resting period is important — it gives the bread time to fully soak up the custard, which results in a much more uniform, moist texture throughout.
9. Preheat and bake. When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 180°C (fan 160°C / gas mark 4). Remove the cover and place the dish in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes.
10. Add the sugar crust. After 30 minutes, remove the pudding from the oven and sprinkle a generous layer of cane sugar over the top. Return to the oven for a further 5–8 minutes, watching closely until the sugar has caramelised into a golden, slightly crunchy crust.
11. Rest and serve. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. Serve warm, ideally with a pouring of warm custard or a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Tips and Variations from Chris

After making this recipe dozens of times, Chris has picked up a few insights that make all the difference:

• Use pre-sliced bread if needed. While a whole loaf gives you more control over thickness, a pre-sliced white sandwich loaf from the shop works perfectly well. The slightly drier texture of shop-bought sliced bread actually works in your favour here.
• Tuck the fruit underneath. This is Chris’s most important tip: raisins left sitting on top of the pudding will burn during the final bake. Take the time to push a portion of the fruit down between the bread layers before the marinating stage. Your pudding will look much better for it.
• Do not rush the marinate. Thirty minutes is a minimum — if you have an hour, even better. The longer the bread sits in the custard before baking, the more evenly the pudding will cook and the more luxuriously moist the final result will be.
• Rum alternatives. Dark tea, apple juice, or even a tablespoon of whiskey all make excellent alternatives to rum for the dried fruit soak. Each brings its own subtle flavour to the dish.
• Serving suggestion. Chris serves this warm, with extra custard poured over the top. A scoop of vanilla ice cream alongside the warm pudding creates a lovely contrast of hot and cold.

Watch Chris Make It

Chris walks through the entire method in his video below — it is worth watching for the detail on how he layers the bread and handles the fruit to get that even distribution throughout the pudding. Seeing the finished dish come out of the oven with that golden caramelised crust is genuinely mouth-watering.

The History Behind the Pudding

Bread and butter pudding has been a staple of Irish and British kitchens for centuries. It appears in cookbooks as far back as the early eighteenth century, when it was considered a sensible way to use up bread that had gone stale rather than throw it away. In Irish homes, where nothing was wasted, it became a weekly fixture — something mothers and grandmothers made without measuring, adjusting by feel and taste.

The dish travelled with the Irish diaspora around the world and took on local variations wherever it landed. In some households, marmalade was spread on the bread instead of butter; in others, whiskey took the place of rum in the fruit soak. What remained constant was the spirit of the dish: transforming something humble into something comforting and delicious.

It shares that same philosophy as many other beloved Irish bakes. Chris’s homemade apple pie operates on the same principle — honest ingredients, a technique refined over time, and an end result that tastes like home. His sticky toffee pudding carries that same warmth. It is no coincidence that these recipes endure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make bread and butter pudding the night before?

Yes — in fact, making it the night before can improve the result. Assemble the pudding up to and including the marinating step, then cover the dish tightly and refrigerate overnight. When you are ready to bake, allow it to come to room temperature for about 20 minutes first, then bake as normal. The overnight soak gives the bread an exceptional chance to absorb the custard fully.

Can I use leftover brown bread or soda bread?

Absolutely. Leftover Irish soda bread or brown bread adds a heartier, more rustic character to the pudding. The slightly denser crumb holds up well in the custard and gives the finished dish a more earthy flavour. It is a particularly good way to use up leftover soda bread from the weekend.

What can I serve with bread and butter pudding?

The classic accompaniment is warm pouring custard — the contrast of the warm, creamy custard against the slightly caramelised crust of the pudding is hard to beat. A scoop of good vanilla ice cream works equally well, especially for summer. Some people enjoy it with a dollop of whipped cream, though Chris seems partial to a generous pour of custard straight from the jug.

How do I store leftover bread and butter pudding?

Cover the dish with cling film and refrigerate. It will keep for up to three days. To reheat, cover the dish with foil and warm in the oven at 160°C for about 15 minutes, or warm individual portions in the microwave for 60–90 seconds. The pudding reheats well and arguably improves on the second day as the flavours continue to develop.

A Pudding Worth Making Again and Again

Bread and butter pudding occupies a very particular place in Irish culinary memory. It is not flashy — it does not need to be. It is the pudding you make when you want something reliable, comforting, and deeply satisfying. Chris’s approach keeps it simple while paying careful attention to the details that genuinely matter: the quality of the custard, the patience of the marinate, and that golden crust at the end.

If you enjoy Chris’s recipes, his apple and cinnamon traybake is another wonderful addition to your weekend baking repertoire. For something a little more indulgent, his millionaire’s shortbread is utterly irresistible. And for a warm, spiced bake perfect for a cold Irish evening, his Irish Christmas cake is in a class of its own.

Bake it once, and you will understand immediately why this humble dessert has been beloved in Irish kitchens for generations. Bake it twice, and it will be on permanent rotation in yours.

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