A HEATED battle of the batter has crowned one pub the winner of the best Yorkshire Pudding competition.

Four Arkell's pubs – The Angel Hotel of Royal Wootton Bassett, Cirencester’s Golden Cross Inn, The Riverside Inn of Lechlade and The Priory Inn in Tetbury and fought for the title crowning them the King of the Batter.

Judges, including BBC Points West reporter Steve Knibbs, the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire Lady Bathurst, and award-winning chefs Sam Edwards and Bob Parkinson from Cirencester favourite Made by Bob, helped crown the winner.

Winning chefs Rob Goves and Amerigo D’ercole from The Priory Inn took the coveted title.

Head chef at The Angel Hotel Chris Avery told the Adver how the high-temperature battle went for him.

“I went for volume to get that perfect looking Yorkshire pudding,” he said.

“My strategy was to go for the visuals to try and make the perfect shape.

“You have to make sure the batter is room temperature and to get the oil nice and hot.”

But in honest British pub fashion judges gave more weight to taste than aesthetics.

“The Priory won it. They did a little bit of seasoning on the top which obviously won it for them on taste, which was very clever,” Chris added.

The chef, previously the head chef at the Pear Tree Hotel in Purton before it closed last year, is a traditionalist when it comes to his Yorkshires.

“It can be used in quite a lot of different ways,” he said.

“Some chefs use them in desserts and with chocolate, but I keep it old fashioned, as it should be in my eyes.

“It’s comfort food, and it can help break up the rest of the meal.”

Chef and The Priory director Rob Goves said: “We were delighted to win and show off what our Sunday diners enjoy so much.”

“The humble Yorkshire pudding is sacred and a part of British culinary folklore.”

Sam Edwards, head chef at Made By Bob and one of the judges, said: “We particularly liked the crispy and seasoned edges to the winning Yorkies.

"There were some great examples there and it was fun to be involved.”

The competition asked customers to share photos of their Yorkshires on social media to help chefs to perfect their puds before the big day.