A SUNDAY roast is nothing without a mouth-wateringly crisp, golden and puffy Yorkshire pudding – it’s the perfect accompaniment to beef and a handy receptacle for the gravy.

But for something so simple it can be mighty difficult to get just right.

Two aficionados, who have perfected their puds and are ready to do batter in the name of friendly competition, run a neighbouring pub and restaurant in Black Jack Street, Cirencester.

With bowls and whisks at the ready Mark Lindesay, owner of The Golden Cross Inn, and Amol Patil, who runs Jesse’s Bistro, will be whipping up a storm with the flour and eggs for National Yorkshire Pudding Day this Sunday.

Neither wants to be left with egg on their faces in the battle to be named Yorkie King of Cirencester 2017.

For born-and-bred Yorkshireman Amol it is a matter of regional pride — but Southerner Mark believes his towering pub puds will take top spot.

“I have a great chef and kitchen team, but each Sunday they use the batter I personally prepare to go with our fabulous roasts – and our customers can’t get enough of them,” said Mark.

Yorkshire pud isn’t on the menu at fine dining Jesse’s, which holds two coveted AA Rosettes, but Yorkshireman Amol loves them and prepares and serves them up at home two or three times a week.

“They are a great accompaniment to any meal, not just roasts,” said Amol, 37, who comes from Sheffield.

He and his partner Vanessa Curnock, 33, took over Jesse’s two years ago after returning from Australia.

“Vanessa was born in Australia and we went there for a holiday,” said Amol. “That holiday turned into an eight-year stay!

“We had our own restaurant in Noosa, Queensland, and it was brilliant, but eventually we wanted to come home and started looking for a business in the countryside – which is how we ended up in Cirencester. We love it here, it’s a great town and a wonderful community.”

He and Mark, 50, are great mates, but the pub owner’s boasts about his mega Yorkshire puds has got the Yorkshireman all fired up.

“To be fair, Mark’s Yorkshires are really tasty and if we finish up our lunchtime service early on a Sunday we’ll pop next door to The Golden Cross for one of his roasts,” said Amol.

“But his puds are definitely not as good as mine! It’s my Yorkshire pride at stake here, so next Sunday it is going to be ‘whisks at dawn’ in the battle of the batters and I intend to win.”

And rising to the challenge is what this competition is all about.

The Royal Society of Chemistry has suggested that a Yorkshire pudding isn’t a Yorkshire pudding if it is less than four inches-tall, so the pressure is on.

It was originally baked in a dripping pan underneath the roast meat. A recipe for ‘dripping pudding’ appears in a cookery book in 1737. With its basic low-cost ingredients — flour, eggs and milk — it was served as a first course with thick gravy to dull the appetite so the more expensive meat would go further.

These days Yorkshire puds take a starring role alongside the roast meat, and Mark’s first job on a Sunday morning each week is to whip up 12 pints of batter – made to his own tried and tested recipe.

Mark, who was brought up in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, took over The Golden Cross in Cirencester eight years ago when he returned from South East Asia, where he lived for 16 years.

A journalist, he launched Vietnam’s first listings and lifestyle magazine which introduced him to the then fledgling hospitality industry.

Mark became a hospitality consultant and had partnerships in restaurants, bars and a hotel resort, but he pulled out in 2008 after the financial crash and returned to Britain looking for a fresh challenge.

“I went looking for a pub and The Golden Cross, owned by Arkell’s, fitted the bill perfectly,” said Mark.

“Cirencester is a fantastic town – my parents retired here. It’s a tough industry, but things are going well and we have been steadily improving and revamping the pub.

“You have to keep things fresh — if you sit still you go backwards.”

Mark’s cooking skills have been inspired by his mum Kathleen Lindesay, who, says her son, “does a cracking roast and fantastic Yorkshire puds”.

“Mum is an accomplished pastry cook, and our customers love the scones and cakes she makes that we serve in the pub,” he added.

And it is Kathleen’s Yorkshire pud recipe that is the basis of her son’s closely guarded mix.

“I took mum’s recipe and tweaked it a bit, with input from Scottish chef Nick Nairn’s Yorkshire pud recipe – I’ve amalgamated both,” Mark revealed.

But he would not be drawn any further.

“All I can say is it’s heavy on egg and there is one little killer ingredient that I can’t divulge – though I suppose if someone is prepared to spend enough money in my pub I might whisper it in their ear!”

Mark describes his Sunday roast as of ‘generous’ proportions, and the Yorkshire pud is of mighty size too. A roast with one meat is £14.75, rising to £19.75 for the mixed roast option featuring beef, lamb, pork and chicken.

“It’s a large plateful, but it’s really popular,” enthused Mark. “However, we do offer smaller portions too — we cater for all tastes.”

Mark’s Yorkshires are cooked in smoking hot goose fat, with the oven as hot as it will go, for about 15 minutes. It’s super-essential not to open the oven door during that time. He also employs the ‘double dip’ method, where he pours a thin layer of batter into each patty tin, then goes round and tops them up.

“This way, the thin layer sets before you put in the rest of the batter – meaning there’s no danger of the dreaded soggy bottom!” he laughed.