Want to make scrumptious, puffy popovers without special equipment? This recipe is easy, using just 5 ingredients, a standard muffin pan, and a little TLC!
What Is a Popover?
A popover is a light roll with a crispy exterior and a semi-hollow interior. It’s made simply with flour, eggs, milk and butter, yielding buttery, endearingly eggy flavor.
Popovers are the American version of Yorkshire pudding. The biggest difference is popovers are made with butter whereas Yorkshire pudding is made with leftover meat drippings (typically from a Sunday roast!).
Popovers are often served with butter or jam like Strawberry Preserves, whereas Yorkshire pudding is typically stuffed with savory meats and gravies.
How to Make Popovers
Learn how to make popovers. Full instructions in the recipe card; this is just an outline!
- Prepare oven.
Rearrange oven racks so one is closer to the bottom of the oven, and one is closer to the top of the oven. Preheat oven to 425 degrees..
- Grease.
Grease the entire muffin pan very well, including each well and the top of the muffin pan. Place greased muffin pan on the lower rack of the oven to preheat while you make the batter.
- Blend.
Using a stand or hand mixer and the whisk attachment, blend room temp eggs, microwaved milk, and salt until uniform.
- Blend again.
Add flour, and blend on low until smooth.
- Froth.
Add melted butter and blend on medium-high speed until frothy.
- Fill.
Fill each preheated well of your muffin pan 2/3 of the way up (you should be able to fill 11-12 wells).
- Bake.
Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes without opening the oven. Reduce heat to 350 degrees (still without opening the oven), and bake for 10-15 more minutes until popovers are deep golden. If your popovers are getting too brown before the 10 minute mark at 350, lay a piece of foil on the top rack of the oven.
- Serve.
Serve immediately.
Popover Ingredients
- Eggs – popovers have a distinct buttery, eggy flavor. Eggs create the crispy structure that traps steam inside the popovers when they’re rising in the oven.
- Whole milk – whole milk adds rich flavor and creates an emulsion with the eggs.
- All-purpose flour – flour creates a batter.
- Butter – butter adds flavor and richness.
- Salt – salt adds flavor.
Popover Tips
- Grease, grease, grease! It is SO important that you grease your muffin pan well, including the wells and the top of the pan. Otherwise, your popovers will stick to your pan and make you very sad!
- Preheat your oven completely before getting started with the batter.
- Don’t open the oven during the baking process.
- Room temp eggs and milk help the batter immediately start rising once it hits your preheated pan.
What to Serve With Popovers
Popovers are absolutely delicious on their own. But here are some sweet and savory options to serve with your popovers, for breakfast, lunch and dinner!
- Butter (or as I say, BUTTAH!)
- Homemade Strawberry Preserves
- Pumpkin Butter
- Sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar
- Muhammara
- Whipped Ricotta
- Stuffed with crumbled sausage, herbs and cheese
- As a side dish with soups like Chicken and Rice Soup, Black Bean Soup, and Split Pea Soup
- As a side dish with the Pot Roast
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Popovers are the best right out of the oven. If you make them ahead, pierce the tops with a knife right out of the oven so steam doesn’t get trapped inside, helping the popovers not lose all their puff! Regardless, the popovers will partially collapse over time. They’ll still taste delish though!
Store leftover popovers in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Reheat popovers, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes until hot and crispy.
Yes, you can freeze popovers but they won’t be as puffy as when they first come out of the oven. Reheat them straight from the freezer on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes until hot and crispy.
I have not tested this recipe with a popover pan but it should work with some tweaks. The bake time will likely be longer since the popover wells are deeper and each popover will be bigger. This recipe will also likely make half the amount of popovers with a popover pan!
You can mix in a handful of herbs to the batter or a handful of cheese. Do not add too much cheese, which will impact the rise.
The main difference is that popovers are made with butter whereas Yorkshire pudding is made with leftover meat drippings. Yorkshire pudding is also typically served stuffed with savory ingredients, while popovers are usually served with butter and/or jam.
More Bread & Roll Recipes You’ll Love!
Easy Popover Recipe
Equipment
- muffin pan
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature for 20 minutes
- 1 ½ cups whole milk, microwaved for 30 seconds
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Rearrange oven racks so one is closer to the bottom of the oven (instead of the middle), and one is closer to the top of the oven. Preheat oven to 425°F before getting started. If oven isn't fully preheated, popovers won't rise.
- Grease the entire muffin pan very well, including each well and the top of the muffin pan. If your pan isn’t greased enough, your popovers will stick! Place greased muffin pan on the lower rack of the oven to preheat while you make the batter.
- Using a stand or hand mixer and the whisk attachment, blend room temp eggs, microwaved milk, and salt until uniform (about 20 seconds).
- Add flour, and blend on low until smooth.
- Add melted butter and blend on medium-high speed until frothy (about a minute).
- Fill each preheated well of your muffin pan ⅔ of the way up (you should be able to fill 11-12 wells). It's okay if the oil on the bottom of each well is dark (you won't be able to taste it).
- Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes without opening the oven. Reduce heat to 350°F (still without opening the oven), and bake for 10-15 more minutes until popovers are deep golden. If popovers are getting too brown before the 10 minute mark at 350°F, lay a piece of foil on the top rack of the oven to protect the top of the popovers from direct heat.
- Serve immediately. If you aren’t going to enjoy them right out of the oven, pierce each popover with a knife when they come out of the oven to keep steam from building inside and deflating them.
Video
Notes
- This recipe for popovers in a muffin pan yields delicious, puffy popovers that are a bit smaller than your classic popover pan result.
- While you can use a popover pan for this recipe, the bake time will likely be longer since the popover wells are deeper and each popover will be bigger. This recipe will also likely make half the amount of popovers with a popover pan!
- If your popovers stick, don’t panic. Use a sharp steak knife to gently loosen them from the pan.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
