English Cooking, English Produce, English Recipes, English Chefs
Friday, March 28th, 2008To Celebrate St George’s Day, Over 65 entries from all over the world insist that English Food is Not A Joke Because…
Fish & Chips ‘Samanda’-style: Malt vinegar marinated local sardines, modern mushy peas and hand-cooked potato chips. Photographed by T.Shane Gilman
…there are so many other things we can pick on [the English] for: Food’s not one of them!
Bacon Press in San Francisco declares “Rule Baltannia” and guides us through Balti Cuisine: “Originating in the 1970s, Balti cuisine is an Anglo-Asian culinary phenomenon relatively unknown in America and on the Indian Subcontinent. It’s birthplace centers in what now is referred to as the Balti Triangle of Birmingham, England; a one-mile area comprising over 50 restaurants, or balti houses.” Read more…
…[English] regional produce is seriously good
Ian from Yorkshire Deli in Yorkshire, England shares his virtual Yorkshire Dinner Party Menu using only ingredients that can be sourced from the county of Yorkshire, and most from within just twenty miles or so of his front door. Anyone who thinks eating locally is only possible in Northern California will be deliciously surprised by this post. Read more…
…it’s interesting not insipid, brilliant not boring and yummy not yawnsome!
Freya from Writing at the Kitchen Table based in Colchester, Essex is a woman after my own heart when she says “A well made, well flavoured Kedgeree made with undyed smoked haddock, heavily scented with a hot curry powder, enveloped with cream and parsley is a wonderful thing. I agree. Read more…
…I am fond of all British, including the food
Ulrike from Küchenlatein of Kronshagen/Kiel Germany tells us “I have good memories when I had a language stay as teenager in Bognor Regis. There I had, for the first time in my life, Baked beans on toast with sausages and fried egg.” Read more…
…Irresistable Traditional English puddings.
Margaret who blogs at Kitchen Delights in the West Midlands, England, wants everyone to know about her Syrup Sponge and The Pudding Club: “In the Cotswolds way back in 1985 The Pudding Club was set up for pudding lovers and is still going strong today. The Club meets at The Three Ways House Hotel in Mickleton, Chipping Campden. The Club’s philosophy is ‘A little bit of what you fancy does you good’. Wonderful words of wisdom.” Read more…
…the food is practical and timeless
Allen of Eating Out Loud in San Jose, Ca, notes some language barriers between English and American: “In researching my entry for Fish & Quips, I was determined to make the funny-named, Spotted Dick, an English pudding creating giggles here in the US. However, I accidentally stumbled upon a food that I am all too familiar with — the pasty, pronounced past-ee *not* paste-y (those are something entirely different and not food blog appropriate!)” Read more…
…I learned an English cup of tea can solve almost any problem
Andreea has a blog called Glorious Food and Wine in Brussels, where she declares “I love Colman’s Mustard!” “…I helped myself to a generous serving of mustard at the above mentioned party. Little did I know the host was English, and well, the mustard too. Let’s put it this way: no party food ever made such a long lasting impression. There was very little talking after that. But I fell in love.” Read more…
…Any culture has its quirks - and some English food is truly great I am fond of Anne’s Food in Sweden and she is fond of cucumber sandwiches. “When I think of English food, I think of Afternoon Tea. And there’s certainly nothing funny about that. (Or is it?) I think it’s a rather lovely tradition, and I much enjoy the ritual of it.” Read more…
…when isn’t life better after a hot cuppa?
On her blog, A Veggie Venture, Alanna in St Louis, Missouri makes English peas with fresh mint:”I’ve had plenty of good food in England, in pubs along the Inland Waterways, in restaurants and hotels in London, in country hotels further north, but especially in the home of my grandfather’s cousin, our family’s much loved Lyla, and her now-deceased husband Vic , who were married for a few days short of 62 years and were still giggling with stories about their wedding night the last time I saw them…” Read more…
…we have open minds, embrace new cultures/food as well as having our own great foods I was very excited to discover the Little Foodies blog written by Amanda in South East England who shows us a fascinating attitude to English food through the eyes of a five year old. Brilliant perspective! “Mummy - did we invent ice cream? ‘No I don’t think so - shame though or we’d have it in the bag darling and nobody would think English food is a joke!’” Read more…
…Marmite and Custard, but maybe not at the same time Looking at Englishman Andrew’s entry over at Spittoon Extra, Nigel Slater’s Delightful Trifle, makes me rightly proud of our cuisine. “Really though when attention is turned to great English food it is the pudding that eclipses all. My up-bringing is littered with memories of fabulous desserts - steamed treacle sponges, Queen of Puddings tied with a warning that the jam is ‘really, really hot’, gorgeous Blackberry and Apple pie with lashings of custard, Elderberry ices made from garden harvested fruit, clove scented Apple pies, strawberry tarts topped with whipped cream and rhubarb crumble.” Read more…
…it’s a serious matter and yet fun to discover more and more of them. I’m excited! Arfi from Homades in New Zealand makes Toffee Apple Cup Cakes and declares “I particularly love English afternoon tea. A batch of scones or ginger gems, still warm and fragrant which are served with butter, butter and jam or jam and clotted cream, how good is that? Now do you say that an afternoon tea ritual a joke? How those people who think it’s a joke do their afternoon tea, I wonder.”Read more…
…I don’t find it funny My sister, Beccy, English but living in Ireland, had rather exotic plans for Fish & Quips which culminated in a simple but always delicious Ploughman’s Lunch: “The authentic ploughman’s lunch consisted of stale bread or a crusty loaf, and an English Cheddar or Stilton, and some variety of pickle. An apple would be included with the lunch to take away the spicy taste of the pickle and to provide a sweet finish, perhaps to be complemented by cider. Ideally, the apple would be of the same variety as that the cider was made from.” Read more…
…when done right, it can actually make you forget about the weather Brandon who Eats in Virginia chooses to highlight a recipe using purple asparagus from Rose Gray and Ruth Rodgers’ The River Cafe Cookbook. “English food is not a joke. Most of the time it can even make you forget about the appalling English weather. Judging from all of the recipes I’ve been posting lately, from British cookbooks by Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Nigel Slater, Rose Gray and Ruth Rodgers, I’ve developed a bad case of anglophilia this spring” Read more…
……world class chefs like Fergus Henderson and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall are not to be trifled with! Brett from In Praise of Sardines, a chef who will be opening his own restaurant in San Francisco later this summer, is better known of his love of Spanish cuisine. His entry about Trifle contains so many choice quotes, it’s difficult to whittle it down to just one: “The docteurs du spin hatched a plan. ‘From this day forward, on our side of the Channel we will call Trifle la Verrine. Heh heh heh. We will convince the world the the Verrine is our invention! With a sexy name like Verrine, no one will realize that she is simply English Trifle in a little black Chanel dress.’” Read more…
…Every nation has some dishes you prefer and you dislike. And it is the way you prepare the dishes that makes the difference Brigitte in Singapore makes fish and chips her way. “I don’t know if there is an English proverb for this, in Germany I would say this was a kind of ‘What the peasant doesn’t know he won’t eat’.” Read more…
…puddings!!!!!!!!!!!! and custard! Bron Marshall in New Zealand goes all out with a mouthwatering feast of Roast Beef with “all the trimmings! and Plum Jam Roly-Poly Pudding. “Every other weekend without fail, he and his family would drive several hours from Dinas Powys near Cardiff in Wales to a small village near Colchester in Essex, to his Grandparents home where his Grandmother would have a Grand Roast and Yorkshire pudding waiting to be served when they arrived and it was all cooked on an old coal range no less, with no ‘recipe’. It’s not a surprise then he has fond memories and a bit of a soft spot for anything like his Grandma used to make, including a nice roast followed by a nice pudding with custard!” Read more…
…the Queen has been eating it her whole life, and she never laughs I bumped into my friend Catherine from Food Musings at the market where she was buying the ingredients for her Shepherd’s Pie. Here is her version of the story. “We walked on towards the market and he appeared to be lost in thought. A few minutes later, he announced, ‘I’m going to make Shepherd’s Pie.’ You could have swapped the spaghetti noodle for a saffron thread. Mr. FM does not cook much. He is great with coffee and toast, as well as a sandwich” Read more…
…Keith Richards eats it. Meanwhile over at Cerebellum Blues, Jeff, more commonly know as Mr Food Musings in food blogging circles, has an entirely oppsite view of how the Shepherd’s Pie came to be. “I fed the pie to our fire breathing beast of a stove, while Ms Food Musings stood back and commented that her daiquiri had run dry. “In a moment,” I shouted, over the roar of the gaseous fireball before me. Outside, the sun had begun to set over the treacherous waters bordering our bit of high ground, and as the pie attained a Img_3737 touch of golden brown in the maw of the beast, I ventured into the wine grotto to choose a bit of grog” Read more…
…because nobody does biscuits (cookies) better Clare of Rainy Days and Sundays in LA likes English biscuits so for this challenge she made a nice box of Shrewsbury biscuits to give as a bribe gift. “If you ever need to bribe me for any reason, just present me with a tube of chocolate-covered digestive biscuits and you can have whatever you want.” Read more…
……beans on toast is comfort food of the simplest (and therefore highest) degree Californian Cookiecrumb is Mad and she Eats English food from time to time. Baked beans on toast.
“Anyway. I’m not English. I have no excuse and no excuses.
I don’t even have any English food traditions. I will make a roast beef for Christmas, but Tiny Tim might cringe. I’ve done a few Yorkshire puddings that pleased me, but the Queen might disagree. I’m competent with shortbread, and I’ve stewed up oatmeal… Oh, wait. I do love Lyle’s Golden Syrup. Ummm. What else. I drink tea?” Read more…
…Who can turn down a true afternoon tea? My inverse - a Californian transplanted to the UK - the Culinary Cowgirl celebrates the art of Afternoon Tea. “Some of my earliest foodie memories are of afternoon tea. As a little girl, I was told/read stories about life in England and it’s colonies. At the time they were such far off places that sounded too beautiful or too exotic to be real. And in these stories, the people always enjoyed afternoon tea.” Read more…
…the desserts alone! And English breakfast, AND everything that goes with a proper tea. Deinan from Helsinki in Finland blogs at the beautifully titled Cloudberry Quark where she can be found making Cottage Pie. “Not to mention trifles, and fools, and crumbles. (I’ve even tried to make my own clotted cream, with, erm, interesting results.) Oh, and custards. Homemade custard is so good… In fact, I think I’ve solved my what about Sunday’s dessert problem, or rather, replaced it with its opposite: how to choose from all of those” Read more…
…that close to France who taught who? A Humble Housewife, in Ireland, celebrates with a Sticky Sausage, Bacon and Apple Bake and and one of my favourites, a Victoria Sandwich. “…a classic Victoria Sandwich probably the quintessential British cake. And it’s named for Queen Victoria now… not posh spice… it’s a really simple cake to make and the recipe is one you can never forget since all the measurements are the same! I made this yesterday and half of it was gone before dinner with the rest dying a quick death following dinner!” Read more…
…it has evolved beyond the days when French Presidents could scoff and smirk Anna from Morsels and Musings in Sydney, Australia has made a chocolate bread butter pudding for this event. “Some of the best restaurants in the world reside in the UK, which says something about a well developed English palate. The mass influx of migrants from spice-rich regions means British folk have moved beyond “steak and three veg