Popovers, Why They Rise (2024)

FAQs

Popovers, Why They Rise? ›

What makes popovers pop? Unlike cake or bread, popovers use neither baking powder/baking soda nor yeast to provide leavening. Steam is the engine that makes them rise — and rise, and rise!

The high proportion of liquid in the batter creates steam that causes the popovers to puff up like the popover pictured below. The conversion of the liquid in the batter to steam is dramatic. One part liquid converts to 1600 parts steam.

Because popovers rely on steam to rise — as opposed to baking powder, baking soda, or yeast — you want your batter warm when entering the oven. This King Arthur Flour article says it best: “The warmer your batter going into the oven, the more quickly it'll produce steam: simple as that.” Use room-temperature eggs.

Popover pans are designed to convey heat directly to the batter, which is quite wet. As the batter bakes, that heat turns the moisture into steam, causing the popovers' dramatic rise. The deep cups of a popover pan give the batter plenty of room to rise, and provide support for the sides of the popovers as they do so.

The cookie sheet will shield popovers' tops from direct heat. If you plan on serving the popovers immediately, remove them from the oven, and stick the tip of a knife into the top of each, to release steam and help prevent sogginess.

Start with room-temperature ingredients. Why? Room temperature ingredients mix together to form pockets of air, which when baked result in a higher rise. If you want your popovers to rise high, let your ingredients come to room temperature before mixing.

Let batter rest for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and place rack in the bottom third position (to make room for tall popovers and to ensure the tops don't burn!) and another rack in the top position.

Preheating your oven to the correct temperature is probably the most important thing you can do to ensure popover success. The hotter your oven, the higher your popovers will rise. Which makes sense: the faster liquid in the batter turns into steam, the more chance your popover has to expand before its crust sets.

A popover pan should be greased. I prefer to use melted butter, but oil or nonstick spray would work too. Greasing the pan ensures that the finished popovers don't stick and promotes browning on the exterior of the popover. After you've greased your pan, place it into the oven while it preheats.

Bread flour produces a popover that's 30 percent taller; weighing the flour ensures that the batter is always the right consistency for the best rise.

What is the difference between popover and pop up? ›

Popovers are a type of popup. They are on the same level as dialogs and other groups like alerts, notifications, lightboxes, etc. Popovers are typically non-modal. They usually don't use backdrops since dimming the interactive content wouldn't make sense.

This steam helps them puff up beautifully when baking, but if the bread is removed before the steam has time to cook out it will condense again. This is why you see popovers fall even after you think they're done. So to keep your popovers standing tall, just give them a little extra time in the oven.

Chef's Notes. The difference between popovers and Yorkshire puddings is that Yorkshires use the beef fat (the drippings from a beef roast). These popovers are a bit lighter in flavor and you can also prepare them before the roast is even done.

My biggest tip for creating perfect popovers is to use warm milk and room-temperature eggs with absolutely no chill on them. Do not take the milk and eggs from the fridge and use them. Cold ingredients will give you dense popovers. Warm ingredients will give you light, airy, and perfect popovers.

Remove from oven:

Popovers lose their crunch if they linger in the pan, so turn them out on a wire rack immediately and poke a small opening in the side of each with a paring knife to let the steam escape. Serve right away.

I heated the pans before greasing them, I greased them before heating them. Some popovers rose triumphantly, only to fall faster than a rock. Others stuck to the pan or cups and had to be chiseled out with a screwdriver. ``That's because you didn't flour the pans after you buttered them,'' a friend sniffed.

Why are my popovers dense? Dense popovers (either from not rising or not getting nice hollows inside) can result from a couple things but usually it is by either not starting with room temperature eggs and milk, not preheating the popover pan, not using a quality popover tin, and/or making too thick of a batter.

The leavening agent Jessie should use is Steam. This is so because the volume is increased when water is converted to steam. Popovers triple in volume during baking, most of the leavening is steam.

If your popovers lose volume when they come out of the oven, they are probably underbaked. When these airy baked goods aren't cooked enough, too much steam stays trapped inside. That moisture condenses once they're removed from the oven, causing them to collapse.