# Christmas Pudding, Figgy Pudding or Plum Pudding? A Guide for the US **By British Food Supplies** · 2026-10-24 If you grew up in Britain, Christmas dinner isn't over until someone carries a dark, glossy pudding to the table, sets it alight and everyone claps. If you grew up in the States, you probably know it from a single line of a carol: "Now bring us some figgy pudding." This guide explains what the pudding actually is, why it goes by three names, how to heat a shop-bought one, and where to buy a proper British one in the US. ## What is Christmas pudding? Christmas pudding is a dense, dark steamed pudding made with dried fruit, suet, breadcrumbs, sugar, black treacle and warm spices, usually moistened with brandy, rum or a dark beer such as stout. It is cooked for hours when it is made, left to mature, and then simply reheated on Christmas Day. The texture is much closer to a very moist fruit cake than to an American pudding, which is why first-timers are often surprised. Families who make their own traditionally do it on Stir-up Sunday, the fifth Sunday before Christmas. In 2026 that falls on 22 November. Most people today buy theirs ready-made, which is exactly what the brands below are for. ## Figgy pudding, plum pudding or Christmas pudding: what is the difference? - **Plum pudding** is an older name for the same dessert. From the 1700s, "plum" was used to mean a raisin, so there are no plums in it. Walkers Shortbread still sells its version as a Rich Fruit (Plum) Pudding. - **Figgy pudding** is the one in "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". It goes back to medieval times and was a simpler dish of figs, honey, fruit and nuts, and it is usually seen as an ancestor of today's richer pudding. - **Christmas pudding** is simply what the dessert is called in Britain now. So if someone asks you for figgy pudding this December, a British Christmas pudding is the closest thing you can put on the table. If you want the name to match the carol, Cole's makes a [Figgy Christmas Pudding](/products/coles-figgy-christmas-pudding-275g-1). ## How to heat a shop-bought Christmas pudding A shop-bought pudding is already cooked, so you only need to heat it through. Every brand prints its own times on the pack and those are the ones to follow, but almost all of them give the same two methods. - **Microwave:** take off the outer packaging, pierce the film lid and heat on full power. A 400 to 454g pudding usually needs around 3 minutes, followed by a minute's standing time. - **Steam:** leave the film or cloth on, sit the pudding in a steamer or in a pan of gently simmering water that comes part of the way up the basin, cover, and heat for the time on the pack. For a 400 to 454g pudding that is usually 1 to 1½ hours. Top up the water so the pan never boils dry. Either way, check it is piping hot all the way through before serving, and don't reheat a pudding once it has cooled. ## How to set your pudding alight, safely 1. Turn the hot pudding out onto a heatproof plate and take off any plastic holly first. 2. Warm a few tablespoons of brandy gently in a small pan or ladle. Never pour brandy straight from the bottle anywhere near a flame. 3. Light the warm brandy with a long match, pour it over the pudding and dim the lights. 4. Keep the flames well away from decorations, curtains, hair and small children, and let them burn out on their own before you cut it. ## What to serve with Christmas pudding - **Brandy butter.** In the US this is often called hard sauce. Beat soft butter with icing (powdered) sugar, add brandy to taste and chill it, so it melts slowly into the hot pudding. Rum butter works the same way. - **Custard.** Make it from [Bird's Custard Powder](/products/birds-original-custard-powder-250g), or warm a tin of [Ambrosia Devon Custard](/products/ambrosia-custard-can-400g). - **Cream, brandy sauce or vanilla ice cream**, if you want something lighter. Victorian families used to stir a silver sixpence into the mixture for luck. If you try it with a modern pudding, warn everyone before the first spoonful. ## Which Christmas pudding should you buy? - **To try one, or for one person:** [Matthew Walker Classic 100g](/products/matthew-walker-classic-christmas-pudding-100g), [Matthew Walker Luxury 100g](/products/matthew-walkers-luxury-christmas-pudding-100g), [Cole's Brandy 112g](/products/coles-brandy-christmas-pudding-112g-1) or [Tiptree 112g](/products/tiptree-christmas-pudding-112g). - **For a family table:** [Matthew Walker Classic 400g](/products/matthew-walker-classic-christmas-pudding-400g), [Matthew Walker Luxury 400g](/products/matthew-walker-luxury-christmas-pudding-400g), [Cole's Classic 454g](/products/coles-classic-christmas-pudding-454g-1), [Cole's Brandy 454g](/products/coles-brandy-christmas-pudding-454g-1) or the [Walkers Rich Fruit (Plum) Pudding 14.1oz](/products/walkers-shortbread-luxury-rich-fruit-plum-pudding-14-1oz-1). - **For a big gathering:** [Matthew Walker Classic 800g](/products/matthew-walker-classic-christmas-pudding-800g) or [Matthew Walker Luxury 800g](/products/matthew-walker-luxury-christmas-pudding-800g). - **Something a little different:** [Cole's Figgy 275g](/products/coles-figgy-christmas-pudding-275g-1), [Cole's Rum and Double Cream 350g](/products/coles-boxed-rum-and-double-cream-christmas-pudding-350g-1) or [Matthew Walker Gluten Free 400g](/products/matthew-walker-xmas-pudding-gluten-free-400g). ## Where to buy a British Christmas pudding in the US We import our Christmas puddings from the UK and keep them in stock at our own warehouse in Massachusetts, so your order ships within the US and there are no customs to clear. You'll find the full range in our [Christmas Puddings and Desserts](/collections/christmas-puddings-desserts) collection. Sending one as a gift for Christmas Day? Check our [Christmas 2026 order deadlines](/pages/lastdayfororders) first. ## Christmas pudding questions ### Is figgy pudding the same as Christmas pudding? Not quite. Figgy pudding is the older, simpler medieval dish named in the carol. Today's Christmas pudding is its richer descendant, and it is the closest thing to figgy pudding you can buy. ### Why is it called plum pudding when there are no plums in it? From the 1700s, "plum" was used to mean a raisin. The name stuck, even though the pudding is made with raisins and other dried fruit rather than plums. ### Do I need to cook a shop-bought Christmas pudding? No. It is already cooked, so you only heat it through, usually in the microwave for a few minutes or in a steamer for 1 to 1½ hours. Always follow the times on your pack. ### What is hard sauce? Hard sauce is the American name for brandy butter: butter beaten with sugar and brandy (or rum), served cold with hot Christmas pudding. ### Can I buy a British Christmas pudding in the USA? Yes. British Food Supplies imports Christmas puddings from Matthew Walker, Cole's, Walkers Shortbread and Tiptree and ships them from our Massachusetts warehouse to addresses across the US. **Tags:** British Christmas, Christmas, Christmas pudding --- > Source: [British Food Supplies](https://www.britishfoodsupplies.com/blogs/news/christmas-pudding-figgy-pudding-plum-pudding-guide)