The second part of your question I think I can answer: changing fashion. 'Stew' which is what our parents brought us up on is considered less of a culinary delight than the French-sounding casserole. But the same ingredients could be in each, and its quality varies according to the cook's ability, not the name.


As for your first question, I used to be able to make these but have not done so for years so won't be able to remember everything. Our recipe came from 'Radiation Cookery', a popular gas cooker book. What I do remember is that lightness depended on using the minimum of water when mixing them.

My mother used to do a sweet version, adding a few currants when making them and pouring on a little Golden Syrup afterwards. These were cooked over water by putting a collapsible steamer into a saucepan. The water did not touch the bottom of the steamer insert, which was lined with a greaseproof butter paper. Another butter paper was placed over it. I think it took about 20 minutes to cook the little dumpling balls.

Savoury dumplings were put into the top of the stew (or casserole!) about 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time.

Bramble I would agree with Raphael that a casserole and a stew are one and the same just different names.

As for suet dumplings, my way of making them is half the quantity of suet to SR flour, add water very gradually until you get a stiff paste, roughly shape them with a spoon and drop them into the stew/casserole tweny minutes before you serve. As a change, a teaspoon of dried sage gives a bit of a kick as does some grated onion. I hope this helps.

That's fine Anna, our methods seem very similar but I leave the salt out and add pepper mostly.

I do mine in the oven - leaving off the lid and turning up the heat a bit for twenty mins or perhaps a bit longer to brown/cook dumplings.

Is your slow cooker 'pot' suitable to go in oven ?
Some are - but some are not !

Yes thanks Raphael I think I'll follow you advice next time. When the slow cooker is up to heat the contents do actually simmer. I'll give it an hour next time.
Cheers all.

I agree with the definitions in Anna's link - a stew is cooked in a pan on the hob (and in my case usually sticks to the bottom of the pan!), whilst a casserole is cooked in a dish in the oven. They may both consist of exactly the same ingredients, just different methods of cooking - like pancakes and Yorkshire puddings.

Elaine

Use plain flour and baking powder for much fluffier dumplings.