Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

A gooey chocolate sauce hiding below a warm, soft chocolate pudding – this Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding Recipe helps you create the ultimate chocolate indulgence.

While it's a simple dessert to whip up, it has a comforting and decadent allure that makes it perfect in so many situations – whether you're craving a cozy treat on a cold winter night or want to impress at your next dinner party.

The Recipe for Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

This recipe has been popular for decades, and I came across a similar version in many of the community cookbooks I've collected over the years along with a 1968 edition of The Australian Women's Weekly.

The community cookbooks I've collected include recipes that have been tried and tested by home cooks for years. Unsurprisingly, the recipe for Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding has been shared around a lot.

So here, I've created a simple and classic old fashioned chocolate self-saucing pudding that closely follows these shared recipes.

Ingredients for Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

The ingredient list is another thing that makes this recipe so popular.

Chocolate Self-Saucing Pudding is made from ingredients that you most likely have in the pantry and fridge right now. No trip to the shops necessary!

Here's what you'll need:

• caster sugar (superfine sugar)
• egg
• cocoa
• SR flour (or plain/all purpose flour + baking powder)
• milk
• butter
• brown sugar
• boiling water.

Precise quantities for all ingredients can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

How to make Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

The thing that makes this dessert so wonderful is the layered structure – a tender, cake-like layer that holds its own in terms of flavour and texture and then underneath a heavenly pool of warm, molten chocolate sauce.

And this all happens magically as it bakes, with the sauce sinking to the bottom to create the signature self-saucing effect.

So the method is actually surprisingly simple.

Prepping

Grease a baking dish generously with butter and pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees celsius.

Mix it all up

Sift the flour and first measure of cocoa into a mixing bowl, then whisk in the sugar.

Add lightly beaten egg, milk and melted butter and whisk together until combined and smooth.

Pour into the greased baking dish.

Using a spoon or spatula, spread out the mixture to evenly cover the bottom of the dish.

Add the topping/sauce

Mix the brown sugar and cocoa together for topping and sprinkle over mixture.

Carefully pour over the boiling water. You can use the back of a spoon to break the pour.

Baking

Bake for 40 minutes or until the top of the cake is a little crusty and springs back when you touch it gently.

Serving your Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

There's nothing like enjoying this straight from the oven. It's great by itself and even better with ice cream and strawberries.

Use a large spoon to scoop out the pudding, making sure everyone gets their fair share of the warm chocolate sauce.

Because that sauce is so good it could seriously start an argument!

You could also serve this pudding with a generous dollop of freshly whipped cream, sprinkled with chocolate shavings, nuts of coconut or dusted with icing sugar (powdered sugar).

You could also substitute the strawberries for a different fruit. Banana, raspberries and cherries also pair well with chocolate.

Variation ideas

In my book, you really can't beat this classic recipe.

However, you could experiment by:

• adding a hint of espresso powder for a mocha twist
• incorporating a dash of orange zest for a jaffa-inspired pudding
• substituting a little of the milk for Bailey's Irish Cream to add even more indulgence.

Chocolate Self-Saucing Pudding Recipe FAQs

Q. Can this Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding be re-heated?

Yes. It is best re-heated in the microwave to ensure that gooey sauce becomes gooey again.

Q. What type of cocoa works best?

I use regular (or natural) cocoa powder which is the most common type of cocoa powder and widely available in stores. It's the cheapest option and is more commonly used in recipes.

However, you could also use Dutch process cocoa powder, which has a smoother and more mellow flavour.

Q. Why wouldn't I just use a packet mix rather than this self saucing chocolate pudding recipe?

You could, but just imagine it's a cold, rainy night and you don't have packet mix in the cupboard.

You can't get that self-saucing chocolate pudding craving feeling under control, so you desperately search the web and come across this recipe.

You are surprised to discover you already have all the ingredients on hand.

You are then delighted to discover, it really is just as easy to make up this recipe as it is to prepare the packet mixture.

You bake it off, and when you taste it you exclaim, "Oh my goodness, this is so much better than the packet version, I'll never buy packet mixture again."

Q. Do you have any other pudding recipes?

Yes. You can find all the favourites here, including Sticky Date Pudding, Butterscotch Self Saucing Pudding, Canary Pudding, Lemon Delicious, Carrot Pudding, Sago Plum Pudding and Cold Mango Pudding.

You can also browse the entire dessert collection here.