Pudding Basin - Ceramic or Plastic?

loveisdivine

Just looking for opinions on which is better, ceramic or plastic pudding basin.
I currently have a small ceramic one which I use for suet puddings and its good. I dont feel the pastry comes out quite moist enough though. The outside of the pastry can be a bit dry.

Anyway, I'm going to do my first ever christmas pudding this year and I need a bigger bowl. The plastic appeals to me cos it has a lid which is covenient and probably better for storing the pudding. They are also cheaper too, but do they work?

Shopgirl123

I've never used the ceramic, but I have used plastic and glass(Pyrex), I had to use glass because I had extra left over, have to say it gave it a lovely dark rich glazed look, plastic does the job, grease it well and it should look great.

loveisdivine

Thanks for the reply. Ended up getting a couple of 3 pint plastic ones in home store and more. Half price! €3 each.

Magic Monkey

Just a word of advice loveisdivine, don't store your puddings in the plastic bowls after you've cooked them. We did that in work once, must have had ~300 individual puddings kept in their bowls. Unfortunately, they all decided to absorb the taste of plastic. They were unpalatable and had to be discarded. Storing them outside of the bowls well-wrapped is fine.

Jellybaby1

Store bought puds are usually in plastic bowls though!

Magic Monkey

Are the store-bought ones wrapped individually and then placed in the tubs though? Maybe it was because it was really cheap plastic we used before, as far as I remember they were simple jelly moulds. Anyway, it can't hurt to wrap them in parchment then re-house them once they're done. There's nothing worse than plastic-tasting Xmas pudding!

Jellybaby1

Most of my puds were made in ceramic bowls but if I was making a small one it would be in a plastic one but I would have put a small piece of buttered greaseproof paper at the bottom to help it out. Never noticed any plasticy taste mind! People bake in silicone moulds now. I only used one once for a traybake and didn't like the wobbliness of it when taking it out so don't use it anymore. No-one said the bake tasted like silicone!

huskerdu

Magic Monkey wrote: »

Just a word of advice loveisdivine, don't store your puddings in the plastic bowls after you've cooked them. We did that in work once, must have had ~300 individual puddings kept in their bowls. Unfortunately, they all decided to absorb the taste of plastic. They were unpalatable and had to be discarded. Storing them outside of the bowls well-wrapped is fine.

I have ben eating Christmas pudding which was stored in the plastic bowls it was cooked in for months, every year for years now and never had a problem with the taste of plastic.