I know we recently posted about the differences between Irish and American breakfasts, but we thought one more post on food wouldn’t hurt. This time we’ll consider the different meanings of the word “Pudding”.

In America, Pudding is a dessert food. It can be chocolate or vanilla, but it’s always sweet and soft, about the same consistency as yogurt.

In Ireland, pudding can take other shapes:

Blood Pudding is mentioned in our recent post about breakfast. Not sweet. Not soft. But works better for breakfast than vanilla pudding would.

Yorkshire Pudding is a kind of bread that has a distinctive bowl shape and is typically served with a roast dinner and often covered in gravy (which it holds quite well because of the bowl shape). Not sweet. Not soft. But compliments meat better than any chocolate pudding could.

Christmas Pudding only comes around one time of year, as the name implies. It’s something like a cake made of dried fruit, eggs, suet, and spices. It is also imbued with such levels of alcohol that it can age for a month or a year and never spoil. It is often served with a fresh layer of brandy, which is then set on fire. It’s sweet, but not soft.

Now you know.