Stottie cake or stotty is a relatively unknown bread in Britain except in the North East of England, in and around the Newcastle Upon Tyne region- hence ‘Geordie’ bread (Geordie’s being the name of the people originating from this area). It’s an iconic part of the Geordie heritage, a people who have more in common with the Scots than the rest of England. Still to this day their unique dialect has influences from Scotland and even the Vikings.
The name stottie is said to originate from the fact that when it was first invented it’s texture allowed it to ‘stot’ or bounce off the floor!
Why stottie hasn’t become more popular I don’t know. It’s quick and easy to make, it doesn’t require much kneading and it’s great for sandwiches or ‘butties’ as the Geordies would call them.
A traditional filling would be ham and pease pudding but it’s often filled with eggs and bacon or a delicious mixture the Geordies call ‘cheese savoury’. It’s also great served with soup because it’s texture means it soaks up liquids like a sponge.
It’s a flat, round loaf, usually made about 12 inches in diameter and rises to about 2 inches. It’s often made with a small indent in the middle.
So how did the stottie come about? Well the saying goes that it was the ideal meal for miners and laborers to eat when they were out at work. There was a time when it was made with scraps of leftover dough, by working class families in the mostly mining region of the North East. It was easily made in the coal-fired ovens that warmed the Victorian kitchens, baking it low to create that distinct texture.
The Dutch oven placed a few inches above the coals and the lid placed on with no coals on top will make a great substitute for those Victorian coal ovens. Make sure the heat rises from below with plenty of room to circulate over the top.
Makes one 12 inch stottie.
If you are new to dutch oven cooking, no worries, read this article- How to cook on a campfire with a dutch oven. Click here
Once you are done with this recipe, be sure to check out these other camping bread recipes
Dutch Oven Spanish Rustic Bread Camping Recipe Pan de Pueblo
Ingredients
- 2½ cups strong flour
- 1 tsp salt
- Butter, just under half a stick
- ½ tsp dried yeast (heaped)
- ½ tsp sugar
- ⅓ cup warm water
- ⅓ cup warm milk
- Pinch of white pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the Dutch oven.
- Mix the yeast with 1 tbsp of the water and all the sugar and leave until frothy (about 15 minutes).
- Chop up butter into small pieces and rub into flour and salt.
- Add the rest of the water and milk to the yeast mixture and stir into the flour and butter mixture to form a ball.
- Knead for a few minutes until smooth and elastic. It should be quite wet but if it’s too wet to handle add a bit more flour.
- Leave in a warm place in an oiled bowl or bag with enough room for the dough to expand to double its size (At least an hour).
- Leave in a warm place in an oiled bowl or bag with enough room for the dough to expand to double its size (At least an hour).
- On the parchment paper roll out the dough to an inch thick and make an indent in the middle with the end of the rolling pin. Prick the top with a fork.
- Put in the Dutch oven and cover with the lid. After 15 minutes lift out and turn it over and bake for another 5 minutes.
