Food
Old-Fashioned Durgin–Park Indian Pudding
For many, this recipe for Durgin–Park Indian pudding, served warm and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, is the gold standard.
By Yankee Magazine|Jun 29 2022|
Coffee By Design | Portland, Maine
Photo Credit : Katherine Keenan
I was born in Ma. and worked inBoston for some time but now living in Michigan. I go to Durgan Park as often as I can and encourage friends heading out east to be sure to go to DURGAN PARK!! YEAH!!
I can’t use sugar or the substitutes like stevia, xylitol, maltitol. What could I do instead?
Would agave or date syrup (silvan) be helpful?
I suggest that you make a paste of equal parts flour and water and eat that instead.
Hi Monique. Unfortunately, we have not tested this recipe without sugar, and are not familiar enough with substitutes to advise you on what to use instead. Molasses is a natural sweetener, so you may want to try making a batch and just omitting the sugar or Googling sugar free Indian Pudding. Or perhaps another commenter will have a better idea… Good luck!
7 hours? Ain’t nobody got time fo’ dat.
I just made this and followed the recipe exactly. It’s not very sweet, and the kids don’t like it. It’s really not very good at all, and not worth 5+ hours of gas.
Hi Tim. We’re sorry to hear you were disappointed. Better luck next time!
Just curious if this would be okay to do the long baking time in a slow cooker on low. Has anyone tried this? Just may experiment!
Have done this recipe completely as it appears here many times, including long cooking time. Did it in a regular bean pot though. Still one of our favorite (winter) desserts.
Using my Old family Recipe for Indian pudding today. Love Durgin Park!
I’ve made this recipe twice to perfection ! It’s the real thing. Thank you.
I made this and the pudding turned out fine, but I didn’t like the “skin” on the top. Canyon stir it now and then, or put foil over the pan to keep it soft?
Can non-fat milk be used?
For Kim, who asked about using a slow cooker on low instead of an oven, I’ve been doing exactly that at least once a year for 40 years. I heat 3 cups of milk at a time in a pot on the stove. In a larger pot on the stove, I mix all but the second 3 cups of milk and heat until they’re bubbling; say, less than 10 minutes. I add the second 3 cups of hot milk, stir it around, and dump it all into a crock-pot set to low. I stir every few hours or so to keep it from sticking to the crock-pot walls.
To Tim, Baked Indian Pudding has a robust flavor that is somewhat of an acquired taste, more suited to adults than to sweet-craving children. When served with vanilla ice cream, it’s a food of strong simultaneous contrasts: sweet/sour (from molasses), creamy/grainy, cold/hot.
To Maureen, it’s only half an hour of preparation, and 6½ hours of cooking time to practice sophisticated writing. Everybody has time for that.
For Monique, if you ust stay away from sugar-like compounds, you might want to be careful of the molasses, which is derived from sugar cane (or sugar beets).
How is this different from Hasty Pudding?
I used a 2 qt stoneware baking dish, but there is no way all the ingredients will fit. What am I missing?
I have made this every Thanksgiving for the last 3 years.We all love it. followed directions to the tee. When in Boston stopped to have some at Durgan Park tasted just like mine, was very pleased…. If you follow the directions it should come out just like the original recipe… Good Luck
I would like to add raisins; any tips??? Thanks in advance! Remember this from a visit to Durgan Park …. in 1971!
We have a very similar recipe handed down from my grandmother’s grandmother, who supposedly didn’t like the grittiness of the cornmeal and decided to make it with Cornflakes instead, so our holiday tradition is Cornflakes pudding rather then Indian pudding. A friend of mine’s husband made his grandmother’s recipe for Indian pudding for me to taste and I made my grandmother’ grandmother’s Cornflakes pudding for him to taste, both of us preferred our own recipe over the other, but it was interesting to try something different. Regarding substitutes sweetners, I think my grandma made it that way for a friend and while our family preferred it without raisins, her sister preferred it with raisins. *:)
Back in the ’40’s to ’50’s D-P was my favorite eatery downtown, enticed by the reality of Indian Pudding always being the desert choice. I hope you will do a story about this wonderful second oldest restaurant in Boston.
So I guess my oven was too hot? The whole thing separated. The top was custard and was full of bubbles, and the bottom had all the cornmeal and got very dark. Does it usually have the same texture from top to bottom? Please advise, thanks!
I think you may not have allowed it to boil at 450 for long enough. I had to add 5 minutes and waited until it indeed got bubbly before moving the temp down. You need the cornmeal to thicken. that’s my guess.
Brings back memories. We moved from MA years ago and I have not gotten back to Durgin Park since. I remember the crusty waitresses, most of whom were over 50 bringing us dessert and plunking the bowls down in from to us. The pudding was outstanding and I think I am going to have to make some soon.
Alas Durgin Park closed in January 2019 🙁
I use almond milk instead of Dairy. Would this affect the recipe?
Yes.
Thank you! I love Indian Pudding and it is VERY hard to find in any restaurant. I used to go to Durgin Park, JUST for it – well, the food was good too. Now I have THE quintessential recipe. Thank you!
I grew up going to Boston (in town) all the time. Durgin Park was one of our favorites, along with Pattens Restaurant. Both had wonderful Baked Indian Pudding. We still bake it every Christmas.
as a kid, this was a staple on the thanksgiving table, along with baked beans and the turkey, all of which has slow cooked overnight. i haven’t made it in the last couple of years, but indian pudding and baked beans are both part of my thanksgiving table on the tundra this year…partly because of an injury, but mostly because of history and tradition…and pure joy
Went to Durgin Park often. Loved that place. I still make baked beans in a DP bean pot. They served popcorn in the pots in the pub downstairs. Best way to get a seat in the restaurant was to buy a drink in the pub and then they send you up the back stairs.
This is awesome. I live in NYC and years ago found a restaurant in the Village, Elephant’s Castle, that serves Boston Indian Pudding, almost as memorable as the one I used to get at Durgen Park.
I stir the corn meal into the hot milk and cook for a couple/few minutes before taking it off the burner and adding the other ingredients – eggs last to make sure the mixture is cool enough so the eggs won’t cook before they’re mixed in (don’t know if that’s a possibility or not). Then it’s pretty thick before pouring into my porcelain casserole. It takes around 15 minutes at 450 before it bubbles and i turn it down, but then it is done in 3 and 1/2 hours – maybe even sooner.
Also, i substitute maple syrup for the sugar. If someone wants to lower the glycemic load, coconut sugar would probably work as well.
And i used 3 medium/small eggs instead of 2 large ones.
Turns out fine – delicious, for my partner and me.
Again, if we don’t use molasses, we don’t get that distinctive flavor — that’s what makes this pudding a tradition. If you use maple syrup, that’s a different flavor entirely and not “Indian” pudding.
You’ll want to read the post you’re replying to again –
They substituted maple syrup for SUGAR. No molasses was harmed in the making of this Indian Pudding.
????
I started making Durgin Park’s Indian Pudding for Thanksgiving in 1976. It always comes out perfectly if you follow the directions.
cover the baking dish? How do I check? When completely cooked
I understand Durgin Park closed in 2019 🙁
I have used agave syrup as a substitute for molasses in gingerbread— perhaps it will work in this recipe? Sad that Durgin Park is no longer. It was a beloved Boston institution for good reason.
You really need to use molasses — it creates the distinctive flavor.
Any different directions for using in an insta pot?
Love, love, love Indian pudding. My mom used to make it
I went to Stonehill College in Mass. in the early 1970s. Coming from Miami, my dear Uncle Fr.Tom would pick me up at the airport…and off we would go directly to the wonderful DurginPark! Four years of marvelous Tradition ! Fall 1st Semester started there and then 2nd Semester in January started there!!! Summer vacations up to Boston brought my husband and 3 children there all delighting in the charm, flavor, personality and history of this very special oldest eatery from the 1700s. Then as Mother aged I began to take her up to Boston every Autumn to see the incredible Leaves Show for 14 fab years … and never was there a time that we didn’t start our Girls Fall Long Weekend at Durgin Park for a special Lunch following that early 8am departure from Miami to Boston. Right now our middle child Tom is in Boston with his wife Natalie. In the FamilyChat they are sending all of us photos of Beautiful Boston! I sent back be sure to get to Durgin Park! And then googled the address to send them- and read that it has been closed. So incredible! Soooo hard to believe! Most wonderful memories from youth through 2016 when Mother passed away. Wonderful food ambiance location employees guests & Hostess ! Thank you-
But PLEASE !!! SOMEBODY reopen it ! Since 1774 pre Revolution it has been going !!! Please !!! Colonists had to have eaten there ! Too Special to EVER let go !
I totally agree!!! It must reopen.
This recipe is older than dirt please don’t try to change it if you change it it’s not Indian pudding if you change it it’s something you made make the recipe the way it’s written.
I put the three cups of warm milk in the baking dish after 10 minutes at 450 degrees but did not notice “bubbling.” This was at 6:15 now it is 8:30 I’m wondering whether this is going to mess up everything and it won’t turn out right. I got the oven at 275 degrees.