Indian curry. Yes, yes, a recent survey conducted among UK residents showed that curry is the British choice of curry most often.

A powerful stream of emigrants from the countries of South Asia rushed to Great Britain, dragging with them not only numerous members of their families, but also elements of their traditional culture and way of life. In addition to curry, modern Englishmen also do not shy away from snacking on overseas dishes of rice and pasta.

Features of national English cuisine

But what food is considered traditionally English? In principle, English cuisine is based on dishes from beef, lamb, pork, Chicken And fish, with the addition of flour, butter and eggs. As side dishes usually served with main courses potato And vegetables. It cannot be said that traditional English cuisine is particularly sophisticated - as a rule, English dishes are simple and unpretentious. Unlike neighboring France, food in Great Britain is not intended to provide taste and aesthetic pleasure, but rather performs a purely utilitarian function - to satiate the stomach.


In the photo: traditional English sandwiches.

The most typical dishes of British cuisine are:

All kinds of sandwiches(as a rule, these are sandwiches made from two triangular slices of bread with a filling sandwiched between them, generously flavored with mayonnaise);

Famous all over the world " fish and chips» (breaded fish fillet with a side dish of French fries, seasoned with malt vinegar);

Different kinds filled pies, such as Cornish pasty - a layer pie filled with pieces of meat, potatoes and carrots;

Baked in the oven meat(roast dinners);

- Yorkshire pudding;

Among the English desserts we can highlight trifle– layered sponge dough with custard, fruit juice or jelly and whipped cream.

Traditional English dishes

Bubble and squeak


In the photo: English dish Bubble and squeak.

Some traditionally English dishes have rather strange names, for example, " Bubble and squeak", which translated means "gurgling and squeaking." This dish is the quintessence of English frugality: it is prepared from the remains of the traditional Sunday lunch (Sunday roast). For Sunday lunch in English houses, "roast" is traditionally served - a large piece of meat baked in the oven (see below) Lunch is complemented by baked potato slices and boiled vegetables (cabbage, carrots, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green peas), as well as Yorkshire pudding and the traditional thick gravy for meat, known as " Gravy". The zealous English do not throw away everything that is left from Sunday lunch, but chop it into small pieces on Monday, pour it with egg and fry it in a frying pan - it is this simple recipe that is used to create the traditional English dish bubble and squeak.


In the photo: traditional English dish Toad in the hole.

Where did such an unusual name come from? There are 2 versions of its appearance: the first says that bubble and squeak owes its name to the inevitable gurgling and squeaking that accompanies the process of frying in a frying pan. But there is another, much more original version: the fact is that the obligatory ingredient of bubble and squeak is cabbage, as a result of which, during the digestion process, the stomach inevitably first gurgles, and then gases are formed, causing sounds similar to a squeak. So, be prepared to “gurgle and squeak” if you decide to try this dish :)

Toad in the hole

What do you think of such an intriguing title as “Toad in the hole”? There is still debate about the origin of this name, but most Anglophiles believe that this dish got its name due to its unusual appearance, reminiscent of a toad sticking its head out of a hole. Similar to bubble and squeak, earlier this dish was made from leftover baked meat, but later it began to be prepared from sausages baked in oil. The same gravy sauce (often with the addition of onions), various vegetables and mashed potatoes are usually served as a side dish for toad in the hole.

Sunday roast


In the photo: traditional English Sunday lunch Sunday roast.

On Sunday afternoon, English families gather for the traditional Sunday Roast. It usually consists of meat (beef, lamb, pork or chicken) baked in the oven for at least two hours, and is accompanied by two types of vegetables and potatoes, as well as Yorkshire pudding (read more about pudding below).

Spicy horseradish is served with beef, sweet apple sauce with pork, and mint sauce with lamb. The meat is topped with brown gravy sauce. Gravy is made from the meat juices from roasted meat, but not always: these days, the British often simplify their lives and prepare gravy from a packaged mixture.

Yorkshire pudding


In the photo: a traditional English dish Yorkshire pudding.

Unlike sweet puddings, which are classified as desserts, Yorkshire pudding is considered a snack or even a main dish. It is made from flour, eggs and milk and is typically a large, flat dough ball baked in the oven and filled with gravy sauce and vegetables.

Although Yorkshire pudding is usually served as a starter, uneaten puddings can be served at the end of the meal, along with jam or ice cream, as a dessert (further proof of the thriftiness of the British).

Pies


In the photo: traditional English dish Shepherd's Pie.

Of the English pies, I would like to especially mention the famous “ Shepherd's Pie"(Shepherds" Pie) and " cottage pie"(Cottage Pie), which are essentially casseroles of meat, vegetables and mashed potatoes, the only difference from each other is that Shepherds" Pie is made from minced lamb, and Cottage Pie is made from beef.

Children's favorite English food

Most of all, English children like to eat fish fingers (small pieces of breaded fish fillets), pizza, French fries and baked beans on toast.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner in the UK

Like most people on the planet, the British eat three times a day:

Breakfast (Breakfast) among the British usually happens from 7 to 9 o'clock in the morning, after which it follows

Dinner (Lunch) - usually from 12 to 1.30 pm and

Dinner (Dinner, or less commonly - Supper) - the main meal. The traditional dinner time is between 6.30 and 8 pm.

However, some English people call the second meal "dinner" rather than "lunch", and dinner - "Tea". Therefore, if an Englishman invites you to “tea”, keep in mind that we are talking about a full dinner, and not at all about tea, as one might think. In the latter case, dinner is usually served between 5.30 and 6.30 pm.

What do the British usually eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?

English breakfast


Photo: traditional English breakfast.

Most people assume that a traditional English breakfast consists of eggs, bacon, sausages, fried bread, mushrooms, baked beans and a cup of tea. However, today the situation has changed radically: a modern Englishman is likely to eat a bowl of cereal or toast for breakfast, washed down with orange juice or a cup of coffee. Cereals are especially loved by English children, who expect the usual cereal bowl for breakfast - a plate of flakes made from corn, wheat or oatmeal with milk.

The British eat “porridge” (porridge), which is well known to our ears from Conan Doyle’s stories, as a rule, only in the cold season.

The traditional English breakfast, consisting of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, baked beans and mushrooms, is now rarely prepared by the British, but it is still served in most hotels and guest houses in the UK, meeting the wishes of tourists.

English lunch

When going to school or work, most children and adults in England take a packed lunch with them. The average English lunch consists of a sandwich, a bag of potato chips (crisps), some fruit and a drink. Usually lunch is packed in a plastic container or thermos bag.

In some parts of the UK the sandwich may also be called a "butty" or "sarnie". As a rule, the filling of sandwiches is generously seasoned with mayonnaise. The filling can be canned tuna, ham, chicken, shrimp, pickled cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, onions and other ingredients.

English dinner

A traditional English dinner will include a piece of meat and two types of vegetables, or vegetables and potatoes, topped with brown gravy sauce. However, as noted at the beginning of the article, more and more often the traditional English dinner is giving way to the cuisine of other peoples of the world.

However, the British still eat a lot of vegetables and root vegetables, especially those grown in the UK itself, such as potatoes, carrots, green peas, cabbage and onions.

Takeaways in the UK


In the photo: a traditional English dish of fish and chips to take away.

Take away food has recently become increasingly popular in the UK. Many Indian, Italian, Chinese and Greek restaurants in the UK offer take away ready meals, not to mention McDonald's, Burger King, Subway and other fast food establishments.

You can even take away the traditional English dish of fish and chips. Sometimes, in addition to the obligatory fish and French fries, green pea puree is added to this dish. The fish usually used is fillet of cod, haddock, burbot or flounder. Historically, fish and chips were sprinkled with salt, vinegar and wrapped in newspaper. It was assumed that the person would take pieces from the newspaper packaging directly with his hands. Now, in order not to shock foreigners, fish and chips began to be wrapped in more hygienic paper and supplied with a neat wooden fork.

The phrase “typical English food” means little to most people, but Traditional English Food is usually associated with the famous “porridge, sir!”

Tourists often limit themselves to eating in establishments focused on the culinary traditions of other countries, and quickly come to the conclusion about the simplicity and insufficient variety of local cuisine. However, a more curious traveler who wonders what food is worth trying in England will certainly discover many famous and delicious national dishes.

Some of them may seem simple at first glance, but are quite unusual upon closer acquaintance. An interesting highlight of modern England is the combination of conservative traditions with vibrant Indian culture, which is reflected in cooking.

Fish and Chips

Fish and chips, or fish and chips, are the most popular and famous English dish today.

In the country, this typical food can be tasted literally everywhere: from pubs to expensive restaurants. It is even called an unofficial national dish.

Fish and Chips is the first fast food to be delivered to your home in England. This happened in 1935.

The famous dish is nothing more than fish and potatoes deep-fried in lard or vegetable oils. The peculiarity of cooking is to use a special batter prepared with the addition of.

The traditional recipe includes cod, but now the British often replace it with haddock, pollock, halibut, and flounder. In some restaurants, you can even try an unusual version of fish and chips, cooked to order, if you first select your favorite type of fish from the offered assortment.

Steak and kidney pudding

The first mentions of this famous national dish date back to the 19th century. It was at that time that various variations of a fairly traditional pudding for England began to appear. It was not then associated with, but was a typical English hearty meal for ordinary people.

Famous in England, Steak and kidney pudding is made from chopped beef chop and pieces of sheep or pork kidneys. The lard-based dough is mixed with meat ingredients, onions and a small amount of bone broth. The dish is steamed for about 4 hours. Place mashed potatoes, vegetables and the pudding itself on a plate. The food is served hot.

This simple and yet popular dish allows you to get an idea of ​​the culinary preferences of ordinary Englishmen who lived a couple of centuries ago.

Leicestershire pork pie

The famous Leicestershire pork pie is a traditional English food originating from the Leicestershire town of Melton Mowbray.

The dish is officially recognized as the culinary heritage of the region and is prepared according to a strictly defined recipe. There is even a special organization in the country, Melton Mowbray Pork Pie Association, which controls the production and distribution of this pie.

Before it became one of the national dishes of England, Melton Mowbray pork pie was a typical food in the diet of ordinary workers. An unusual pie came to the table of the nobility in the 18th century, after the nobles got hungry during a hunt and did not disdain to try the servants’ food. Its richness and taste were appreciated, and with minor changes, the recipe for this famous pie has survived to this day.

The typical filling for Melton Mowbray pork is finely minced pork, which is then wrapped in a water-kneaded dough. The traditional pie is baked without using special molds and therefore turns out somewhat irregular and unsightly in appearance. Outwardly, it resembles an onion, expanded downward.

Interestingly, to prepare this famous dish, the British take only the freshest and most natural pork meat, grown without adding antibiotics or artificial ingredients to the feed.

“Toad in the hole/ Sausage Toad”

Despite the unusual name, frogs are not part of this typical English food. It is not known for certain why they began to call it that way in the country. Some even suggest that the curious name is associated with the type of sausages that peek out a little from the depressions in the dough.

The first mentions of this now popular dish of English cuisine date back to the mid-18th century. Back then, Toad in the hole was not filled with sausages, but with meat, including even whole plucked pigeons. One of these unusual recipes was called “Pigeons in a Mink.”

Today, Toad in the hole is made by taking pork sausages and baking them in a Yorkshire pudding batter. The dish turns out fluffy, light and very tasty! It is served at the table with vegetables and onion sauce. Any British housewife can prepare such typical English food in her kitchen.

Kedgeree

Kedgeree can be classified as one of those unusual English dishes whose history is firmly connected with the traditions of Indian national cuisine. It is believed that in England it was based on kitchari - stewed rice with the addition of spices and vegetables fried in oil.

The unusualness of this dish, known to every Englishman, lies in the way that conservative British cuisine has modified the dish of a distant and alien culture “to suit itself,” so that today it has become familiar and familiar.

All that remains of the original kitchari in Kedgeree is rice, vegetables and spices. The British diversified the popular dish by adding pieces of boiled fish (usually haddock), parsley, hard-boiled eggs, cream and raisins.

There is still no generally accepted national recipe for Kedgeree, so in England it can be tried with various types of fish (tuna, salmon) and vegetables. A typical kedgeree is most often served hot, usually with breakfast or lunch.

Oxtail soup

As the name suggests, this traditional English food is made from some very unusual offal. The famous oxtail soup is believed to have been invented in the 17th century in the East End of London by people from Flanders. They used ingredients that they could afford financially to prepare food.

Cuisines from different nations of the world offer to try their variations of Oxtail soup. It is prepared in Germany and other countries.

The process of preparing the popular soup usually begins a day before serving. The chopped tails are fried, then added to vegetable broth and boiled for 3 hours. Then the pan is placed in the refrigerator overnight to remove the frozen layer of fat in the morning. The next day, just before eating, the soup is heated. Sometimes flour mixed with hot broth is added to thicken it. There are variations of the recipe with sherry or wine.

Oxtail soup is a true classic of traditional English national cuisine. It's quite rich and filling and definitely worth a try. Today the dish is so popular in England that it is produced in cans and sold in almost every store.

Chicken tikka masala

“Chicken tikka masala” is perhaps the most popular dish in modern England, which can be considered a treasure of national cuisine.

In 2001, British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook described Chicken tikka masala as the “true British national dish” that best exemplifies the nation's characteristics.

There is still debate about the true origin of this famous and popular food. Some claim that it originated in India, others believe that it was first tried in Great Britain. Be that as it may, today this dish is extremely famous and popular not only among the British themselves, but also among residents of other countries.

Chicken tikka masala consists of small pieces of chicken that are dipped in a masala sauce consisting of tomatoes, cream, curry and other spices before serving. Before this, chicken meat is marinated in spices and yogurt, and then baked in a tandoor, a special roasting oven.

Food is served only hot. In some, instead of the typical Chicken tikka masala, you can try unusual variations of this famous dish, prepared with lamb, fish or even paneer (Indian cheese).

Sunday roast

For the British, the Sunday roast is more than just a typical and well-known Sunday meal. This is a tradition that has been honored in the country since the 18th century, when people were devout, went to church services and gathered after them for a family dinner.

Sunday roast is a famous English dish, which is served in combination with several components at once. The main component is baked meat, most often chicken or lamb, but beef, pork, duck and turkey are also popular.

The meat is served with baked potatoes or mashed potatoes and other boiled, baked or stewed vegetables (carrots, Brussels sprouts or cauliflower, green beans, peas). Often the dish is complemented with baked parsnips, rutabaga or turnip puree.

But the most important ingredient of the traditional Sunday roast, without which there is no point in trying the food, is gravy sauce or, more simply put, gravy. The basis for it is the juice that is released during baking. Frying or finely chopped vegetables are also added to the sauce.

Depending on the chosen meat, the set of other components of the dish also varies. Thus, it is customary to serve lamb with sauce and redcurrant jelly, with beef - Yorkshire pudding and mustard, and with chicken - sausages, cranberry and bread sauce.

Roast cabbage and potatoes (Bubble and squeak)

The literal translation of “Bubble and squeak” is quite funny and can cause confusion. The unusual name of the British national dish is explained by the fact that during the cooking of cabbage, the water gurgles (bubbles) and “squeaking” sounds are made.

Bubble and squeak is a variation on a hearty Saturday breakfast. The main ingredient of this famous English food is fried or boiled potatoes, which are wrapped in cold, boiled cabbage leaves and then fried in a shallow dish.

Other typical ingredients may include cold meats, as well as green peas, Brussels sprouts, carrots and other vegetables left over from a traditional English roast.

The unusual dish is seasoned with salt and pepper so that the result is quite spicy. However, these Englishmen have amazing ideas about it!

Trifle

It is difficult to imagine traditional English cuisine without trifle, a world-famous dessert. It was first mentioned in cookbooks in the 16th century! Since that time, the recipe for this well-known and now popular sweet has been changed and supplemented more than once.

Trifle was originally a cream made with sugar, ginger and rose water. Then the British began to add eggs, dough, jelly or fruit juice to these ingredients. In its modern version, the famous dessert is prepared in layers from sponge cake (often soaked), custard, whipped cream, jelly, fruits and berries (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries). Traditional English trifle is served in portioned bowls or in a medium-sized dessert bowl. It is impossible to refuse it!

Their own variations of the popular dish exist in and in the Southern states of the United States. In England, trifle is a traditional Christmas treat.

What else do the British like to eat?

If you set out to try all the most popular and typical dishes of English cuisine, then you will very soon realize how enormous a task this is!

So, we definitely need to pay tribute to such famous national dishes as:

  • Cornish pasty- a pie filled with meat, vegetables or fruits;
  • Bread and butter pudding– a typical dish of buttered bread baked with egg and sour cream filling;
  • Spotted Dick- pudding with raisins and dried fruits;
  • Black Pudding– sausage made from coagulated pork blood, lard and oatmeal with seasonings;
  • Lancashire Hotpot– lamb baked with blood sausage and potatoes;
  • Shepherd's pie– potato casserole with minced lamb;
  • Laverbred– jelly-like paste made from Welsh red seaweed.

And this is not the entire list of unusual and tasty dishes that the British came up with. In short, there really is something to try!

To understand the peculiarities of English cuisine, it’s enough to remember the good old jokes: “Barrymore, what are we having for breakfast today? - Oatmeal, sir. - What about lunch? - Oatmeal, sir. - And for dinner? - Cutlets... - Hurray! - From oatmeal, sir...

Healthy eating and wholesome foods are something that the British really value in their culture. But, even despite the consumption of exceptionally high-quality products, food in England is considered heavy and not too refined.

Traditions of English cuisine

The main products are considered to be fish, meat, potatoes, vegetables and cereals. Almost all types of meat are consumed: beef, veal, lamb, pork. In this case, sauce, potatoes and/or vegetable salad must be served as a side dish. Among the fish, cod, scallop and salmon are popular, as well as seafood such as squid, lobster and others. The British prefer to serve vegetables baked, and porridge is always offered with a large selection of gravies and sauces. The most common drinks are beer, ale, gin, rum, port, and mulled wine.

Kitchen features

An interesting fact is that the formation of traditional English dishes was greatly influenced by other countries. For example, many holiday poultry dishes are prepared according to Indian recipes, and sauces are prepared according to French ones, and so on.

The diet here is different from the usual. For example, the British always have their first breakfast very early - at 7-8 o'clock and can consist of just a cup of coffee or tea and porridge or pudding. Second breakfast or lunch is more dense, usually between 12.00-13.00 pm. It may include meat dishes, vegetables, salad and tea. The famous English “fife-o-clock” involves tea drinking, which can last from 17 to 18, and tea is accompanied by cakes, the famous triangular sandwiches or cookies. Dinner starts quite late - at 19.00-20.00 in the evening, and that is when puree soups, broths, meat, vegetables, salads and wine are served.

Dessert

No English dessert is complete without sweet tea with milk. Very popular are fruit salads with whipped cream, ice cream with nuts and fruits, and dried fruit compotes. The British also know a million recipes for sweet puddings, casseroles with cottage cheese and semolina, dates, almonds and raisins. They also enjoy baking vegetable pies, for example, sweet carrot cake is very popular. However, to the slight disappointment of all cake lovers, confectioners in England make them too sweet and often add too much tasteless mastic. So if you really want to enjoy a delicious dessert, find a French "patisserie" or a Turkish cafe.

I had to travel around the UK on all 3 types of visas: tourist, student and business visas. And, as you understand, we had to eat in various establishments: from 5-star hotels and the best restaurants to modest eateries. Of course, if you travel with enough money and go to good drinking establishments, then there is no problem: UK restaurants provide the best of world and English cuisine, and it is simply impossible to go hungry. But what if you are a tourist or a student?

A little about English cuisine

"Good, honest food..."

So, what to eat in England and what you should definitely try? You could say, “sugar-roasted nuts on Westminster Bridge” and leave it at that. Because at first glance, things are really sad with food in England.

My colleague was leaving on a six-month business trip from Great Britain to France, and an adult man, almost with tears of joy in his eyes, later told how lucky he was that England was at the beginning of the trip. If he had to go to Paris after Paris, he would not know what to eat at all. And I agree with him: unlike its eternal “friend-enemy” France, where food is prepared for pleasure, in England they believe that “food should be good and honest,” i.e. simple and satisfying. So simple that if you look into a cafe in the Tower, you will be quite “delighted” with liver sausages with boiled grated beets. And this is not a stylization of the kitchen of the times of Henry the Eighth. Sauces in English cuisine are minimal, because... It is believed that they should not drown out the taste of the dish. But at least a drop of mayonnaise would definitely not hurt me!

However, let's be honest: in damp, cool weather, food really needs to be hearty and satisfying, and you can't get by with just a croissant for breakfast.

All flags come to visit us

Current English cuisine is a mix of a variety of cultures. Since various nationalities flocked to the city, and the former colonies rightfully went to the capital, it will not be difficult to find a restaurant serving Thai, Greek or Iranian cuisine. For example, on Queensway there is such a variety of these restaurants that you will only have to choose what you want to eat: Turkish falafel, Indian curry or Chinese noodles, spending 6-8 EUR (5-7 GBP) for dinner. By the way, some things, like chicken curry, are now considered a traditional English dish and not at all an Indian dish.


In London there is a whole area called China Town, adjacent to Soho, where you can eat deliciously and quite cheaply. The entrance to the area is marked with red lanterns and pillars with a dragon. In the year of Prince William's wedding, a huge banner was hung there with congratulations to the prince and wife and their photographs. There will be Peking duck hanging in the windows, and you will have to sit cramped at small tables - there is not enough space and even food is served by elevator from the ground floor. Soho itself is full of Italian and Spanish cafes where you can eat tasty and hearty meals. At the Camden Lock market you can easily find Brazilian cochinas, meat pies.


The British and cooking

And yet national English cuisine exists. These are all types of meat: beef, lamb, pork, chicken, fish and potatoes with vegetables on the side. You can try typically English dishes in national cafes and pubs. The British are still praised for their daily eating routine: breakfast, lunch, dinner. However, they are the second most obese people in the world. This is due to fast food and processed foods. Of course, the world-famous Jamie Oliver program talks about the secrets of the cuisine of Foggy Albion and advocates healthy eating, but the population honestly watches all the programs, but does not cook. And if she cooks, then like Bridget Jones at her birthday - from a recipe book with square eyes, and in the end it will end with scrambled eggs.


Of course, this is greatly facilitated by the grocery store system. The fact is that the system of semi-finished and finished products is very common here. Firstly, in big cities there are many cafes like the Pret a Manger chain, where for 1 pound (1.16 EUR) you will be given two boiled peeled eggs in a box and three spinach leaves on top. More cookies from the shelf, smoothies, and we had a snack. Secondly, in any department store you will be first greeted by shelves with food “Heat me up and in 2 minutes dinner is ready”, and shelves with raw steaks and vegetables will be somewhere in the depths and away from your attention.


When I went to cook in the university dorm (there was one well-equipped kitchen with 2 useless ovens on the 1st floor with 8 separate rooms), the local boys looked at me like I was a deity and tenderly asked: “Do you know how to cook?!” Unless the halo was shining on me at that moment! True, to find a normal chicken for baking, I had to try pretty hard and go deep inside the huge food halls, but the respect of the English graduate students who tasted the result was worth it.


The British shop in Tesco supermarkets (similar to Auchan), in the more expensive Sainsbury's, in the prestigious food halls of Marks & Spencer and Selfridges, usually located on the -1st floor. Everyone stops by Tesco, and Tesco Express is even located right opposite Big Ben and Parliament. More there are a bunch of small shops run by people from Turkey, Greece, India and even Russia, where you can buy water, yoghurts, bread, vegetables and other foodstuffs.

Breakfast

Traditional breakfast

So, english traditional breakfast- this is an omelet or any fried egg, fried bacon, sausages, baked tomatoes and champignons, beans in tomato sauce, coffee and juice. And no one cooks it like this on a weekday! The hostess can only bother with a formal breakfast on the weekend. Agree, at home before work you also don’t cook porridge or make a full breakfast.

A typical English breakfast consists of toast with butter and jam and coffee or a glass of juice. And most often from a box of cereal and milk. Many students who lived in families complained that breakfast was just like that or even a can of canned food. However, the milk is worth praising here. It's really very tasty. I used to not understand the complaints of my English friends abroad that there was no good milk there, until I tried the local milk, even if it came from plastic bottles. It's really delicious!


Breakfast in the hotel

But if you settled in hotel, then breakfast will be exactly traditional, as I described above: scrambled eggs, bacon, tomatoes, champignons. The only thing: when booking a hotel and choosing food, you may have 2 options for breakfast - continental and English breakfast. Don't skimp on a few pounds and always choose English. Because the continental (French) breakfast consists only of cold dishes: cheese, ham, yoghurt and toast with jam. Well, and coffee and juice. Experience shows that breakfast is a really important thing, and even more so before a long day of work or travel. You never know where and how you'll have a bite to eat next, so I'm all for a hearty and hearty English breakfast.


Oatmeal, sir!

“Where is the oatmeal?” you ask. The traditional "porridge" seems to be a thing of the past. Rumor has it that it is prepared during the cold season, however, I have never encountered it either in a hotel, or in a cafe, or in any other place. The only oatmeal I ate in the UK was the one I brought with me in bags. However, this is convenient, because... Every English hotel room always has a kettle, tea bags, creamer sugar and sometimes a small cookie. Tea is such a sacred thing for an Englishman that you are usually provided with all the necessary tea drinking supplies in your room free of charge. When I had little time to eat between events, I would simply pop into my room, make a mug of oatmeal, and run on.


Breakfast in a cafe

If you are used to having breakfast in a public place and coffee and a croissant will completely satisfy you, then there are plenty of establishments like Costa Coffee and Nero Caffe. These are chain coffee shops like our Shokoladnitsa and Coffee House and there is also nothing special there except coffee, hot chocolate and pastries for 3-6 EUR (2.5-5 GBP). But the food is delicious and these establishments can be found at every step from Soho to Heathrow Airport.

Interestingly, Nero Caffe has recently introduced a code for the toilets. Those. To get into the amenities, you need to buy something in the cafe and receive a receipt with a code. This practice exists in other countries: for example, in Italian and Swedish McDonald's. But this tourism problem can be easily solved. You can safely visit McDonald's (English Macs are still free in this regard), Burger King or a large department store. And if you come across a pub along the way, but you are not going to eat, then you can simply leave a small tip.

Lunch

The second meal in England is lunch. Basically, this is our lunch. True, since everyone is at work and school at this time, they make do with what they take with them or buy at the nearest take-out restaurant. Usually it's sushi, sandwiches, some fruit and a drink. The sandwiches are triangular sandwiches with cheese, ham or tuna, lettuce, a slice of tomato and a layer of mayonnaise. It’s customary to take all this boxed food with you and go in small groups to the nearest park or, at worst, a square, where everyone sits right on the grass and eats their lunch.

On weekends, of course, there is a tradition of getting the whole family together for a roast. Sunday Roast. A family dinner with meat baked in the oven usually begins 2-3 hours after the church service. They also serve baked potatoes and vegetables. The next day, zealous Englishmen collect the remains of the Sunday feast, pour it with an egg and get something like a casserole called “Bubble & Squeak” (bubbles and squeak). Sometimes they even serve this in a pub, but I didn’t dare try this “dish.”


So, for us, lunch time is still the time for a full meal. Therefore, after polite snacks with friends on the grass, I usually rushed to eat normally. You can dine in European style at the Italian Bella Italia or the French Cafe Rouge. These are chain cafes spread across England and offer traditional lunches for a fixed price. Those. You can choose a salad or soup, one of the 2 offered main courses, a drink and a sweet. For such a lunch you will have to pay 15-19 EUR (13-17 GBP).

For real English food you should go to Pub. Fish&chips, steaks, beer and dessert are traditionally served here.

On the menu of any pub you can find:

  • Fish&chips- These are pieces of fish fried in batter and French fries. In a pub it will cost 11-17.5 EUR (10-15 GBP). To be honest, just the smell of this dish didn’t make me feel very good, so I didn’t try it. However, French fries are quite popular everywhere in England. My English friend in a Spanish hotel wandered thoughtfully past 3 types of meat, 2 types of fish and many other tasty things with a lone french fries on his plate and said that he didn’t know what to take or what to eat.

  • Sausage & mash– sausages and mashed potatoes. Another quick hit of British cuisine costing 11 EUR (10 GBP). Burgers are also very popular in pubs. Perhaps this is American influence. Steaks usually served with potatoes, baked tomatoes and a huge champignon fried to the coals for 14-17.5 EUR (12 -15 GBP). When ordering, it is best to ask for middle roast, i.e. medium rare, you can't go wrong. Because medium rare suggests undercooked pink meat with blood. In the Russian opinion, there is a problem with sauces in England; the locals believe that the sauce should not cover the taste of the dish. At best, they will serve ketchup.
  • For a side dish, you can also choose grilled vegetables or green pea puree. But peas in this form are typical for England and very unusual for us, who are accustomed to picking them from the bush or eating them canned. Lamb with mint sauce. In England, they generally love mint and put it in everything: from chocolate to meat. Those. They bake meat with mint, drink tea, eat delicious chocolates with mint (I recommend!) and make a sauce out of it that goes surprisingly well with lamb.

  • All kinds of pies with meat filling, such as the famous Cornish pie. By the way, it also comes in apple flavor and, in principle, you can buy it in a department store. Shepherd's Pie with lamb, Cottage Pie with beef are actually a full-fledged second course, baked in a dough crust, which is served with a side dish of the same potatoes and vegetables. Yorkshire pudding. In fact, we are accustomed to pudding as something sweet and milky, but in England this word refers to various products. For example, the famous Yorkshire pudding is an airy bread crust that can be filled with anything. A black pudding- generally blood sausage.

  • There shouldn’t be any problems with dessert: in the UK they love hearty pastries, and you can choose Trifle or Eton Mess, or just ice cream for 6-8 EUR (5-7 GBP). Trifle- This is a sponge cake with custard, fruit jelly and cream. Eton Mess or "Eton Mash" - a famous summer dessert made from meringue, cream and strawberries, served at picnics. It can be easily found in pubs as well. They say that once students took Pavlov's dessert with them to a picnic, but the dog sat down on the box of sweets. The amazing taste remained, but the appearance left much to be desired.

As you can see, English desserts are quite dense things. For coffee and more refined sweets, you will have to go to a French pastisserie or a Turkish cafe.

In general, it’s best to have a good meal in a pub before 5 o’clock. The British start work early and finish early. Perhaps this is due to the fact that business Europe and the East start much earlier. Be that as it may, at 5 pm the pubs begin to fill with local people wanting to have a drink or two after work and discuss the latest news.


It will immediately become noisy and possibly smoky. However, the bulk of the people stand on the street in front of the bar with glasses in their hands. The pub is generally such a place of English social life. If an Englishman invites you to a pub without friends, then this is regarded as a full-fledged date with very serious intentions. When a local ladies' man, a graduate student, got turned down by me a couple of times at a dance, he decided to win me over by going to the pub together. However, I didn’t have time, since I was already packing my bags for the morning flight and preferred a solitary evening walk along Regent Street, looking at shop windows and people walking around.

However, daily trips to the pub with a full meal still take a toll on your wallet. In this case, you can look into all sorts of fast food cafes:

  • McDonald's available all over London. I found the hamburger buns and Fanta tastier here than in Moscow. Often there are promotions for the 2nd free pie or drink. Toilets are free. If you look at High Kensington Street, you will find yourself in the Mac where Princess Diana took her sons, fortunately Kensington Palace is nearby. McDonald's on Oxford Street is always crowded, but open late.
  • Burger King also widely spread throughout the city. If you are standing at the ticket office for the London Eye, then look at the whole chain of fast food cafes adjacent to the ticket office. There will also be free amenities.
  • If you get tired of exploring Westminster Abbey, then take a look at the building opposite called Central Hall Westminster, it is also the Methodist Church. Downstairs they have an excellent cafe with reasonable prices, where for 6 EUR (5 GBP) you can get a plate of goulash (meat and potatoes) and a drink. Hearty and cheap for central London. A similar cafe exists under St Paul's Cathedral, if the proximity of gravestones does not bother you. However, for England this is practically the norm. For example, the small garden near the University of London hostel where I lived was used for jogging in the morning, lunch in the afternoon, and no one was bothered by the light gray gravestones scattered here and there on the lawn.

Tea

At 5 pm, while the bars are filled with ale lovers, another tradition is celebrated throughout the city - "5 o"clock"The tradition of drinking tea at 5 pm arose a long time ago from a rather large gap between lunch and dinner. The once royal trick of eating without going through the palace ceremony has turned into a whole ritual. In fact, this is our usual afternoon tea. Only, I dare say, it turns out much better denser than kefir with a cookie and can pass for a full meal. For the British, this is another social outlet where it is customary to dress discreetly, but not in jeans. They say that the five o’clock tea is mainly enjoyed by older ladies. any decent hotel serves tea every day, which means that this tradition is still alive and in demand. In famous places it is better to book a table in advance.


The types of tea that are poured are not very strong, and for a snack on the menu they serve a cucumber sandwich, scones with jam and cream, cheesecake or apple pie with creme anglaise. Creme anglaise is a French blancmange, a Spanish crema catalana, or, simply put, a cream made from cream. Sweets can be served in a wide variety of ways, but usually in sufficient quantities to fill you up. The restaurant in the famous Fortnum&Mason department store serves a table for two from 93 EUR (80 GBP). It will cost half as much for one person, but there may not be a table, because... they are usually booked in advance.

The best hotels in London always serve "5 o" clock" for guests and just outside guests. However, a five-hour tea in the historical walls will cost a decent amount:

  • Hotel Savoy – from 58 EUR (50 GBP),
  • Claridge's – from 30 EUR (26 GBP),
  • Goring – from 50 EUR (43 GBP).

Good hotels are wonderful because you can freely visit restaurants and cafes on the ground floor. In the aristocratic area of ​​South Kensington, any, even the most modest cafe, from midday puts up a black board at the door with information about what time they serve tea and how much it will cost it will cost you. In general, reading menus at the door and looking at prices is considered quite normal in the UK. However, if your friend invites you home for tea in England, then most likely it will be a full dinner, since that is now what they call dinner.

Borough Market

In London there is such a place as Borough Market, a gloomy market under iron arches in the Shard skyscraper area. It was located literally under the subway tracks and the wall of a church in the not very prosperous area of ​​Southwark. But in the 13th century they didn’t even dream of a metro, and the market already existed. Now many gourmets from London and beyond flock here.

Opening hours:

  • Wednesday, Thursday 10:00–17:00,
  • Friday 10:00–18:00
  • Saturday 8:00–17:00,

But trade may end earlier, so it is advisable to come here early in the morning. The easiest way to get there is by underground, the nearest station is London Bridge, address: Southwark street, 8.


The fact is that at this market you can taste and buy real farm products, and find exactly the traditional food that is prepared throughout England, Scotland and Wales according to the old recipes of grandmothers and great-grandmothers. England is famous for its cheeses, in no way inferior to France. It is almost impossible to find farm cheese in stores due to ministerial delays, but Borough Market has all the colors of English cheese making.

Here you can find a variety of smoked meats, traditional meat and sweet pies, Scotch Egg, homemade pates, jams, Scottish heather honey and Cornish honey ice cream. You have to come here hungry and with cash. In addition to what you can try at the tasting, among the hundreds of stalls there are those that sell ready-made food. Moreover, this is not only an English meat pie, but also Chinese noodles, an American burger, and Turkish falafel. By the way, in the middle of the market there is an excellent shop of Turkish Turkish delight of various tastes. I couldn’t resist my favorite sweet, but large pieces weigh heavily and, taking a little, you can pay 17-23 EUR (15-20 GBP).


They either eat on the go, or go down to the small courtyard of the Southwark Cathedral church adjacent to the market, where they sit on stone slabs and devour what they have purchased. By the way, once in the late 18th century the church encroached on the territory of the market, but the residents of the area chipped in and bought the land under it. The market has its own administration, which sets its own requirements for products that are an order of magnitude higher than usual market ones.

There are departments for fresh vegetables and fruit, fresh meat and fish, where you can buy wild Scottish salmon or Welsh domestic duck. You can also try Irish oysters - and it will all be very fresh. There are also products from the continent on the market: grapes from Provence, olive oil from Greece, Parma ham and Parmesan. The market is designed primarily for Londoners themselves. Here you can taste both ale and homemade cider - those drinks that are allowed to be sold on tap in such places.

By the way, about drinks

So, we have already talked about pubs, and about markets, and about the famous five-o-clock, but we have not yet really talked about the drinks that accompany these meals here and which are definitely worth trying:

  • Tea. Thanks to its colonial past, Great Britain became a tea empire and a leader in this matter. Breakfest Strong, Queen Ann, Lady Grey…. The names alone can make your mouth water. The most famous combination of tea and milk is probably worth trying at home. To do this, you need to choose the appropriate variety and brew the leaves in a teapot. You can read how and where to choose tea and jams for it.
  • Beer. England's brewers are famous for their product far beyond the borders of the kingdom. These are serious guys: when cocoa suddenly became popular in the 18th century, the brewers' association simply demanded that the death penalty be introduced for drinking hot chocolate. If you go into any pub, you will see at least 15 taps, maybe more. Accordingly, the range of beer varieties is always so wide that if you ask for the lightest beer, they will give you something 0.1% more similar to non-alcoholic. I did this once in a London pub and they brought me something completely light, but it only made me relax later. It is served here in pints (0.56 l) and half pints.

  • Name " ale"makes me think of something Irish and so traditional. In fact, it’s still the same beer, only more bitter. While regular lager is brewed with bottom fermentation at a low temperature, ale is matured in a barrel at high temperatures, and maturation occurs until it is completely drunk. I wasn't very impressed. However, they say that this is a common impression of those who drink lager.
  • Cider. Apple fizz, 4.5% ABV, is my clear favorite. Strength from 1 to 8 vol. %. The sugar content varies from dry to sweet. Here you will find a bunch of varieties: raspberry, pear, wild berry flavored. Perhaps the ideal drink for those who do not like strong alcohol.
  • As for strong alcohol, you yourself understand that Scottish whiskey considered one of the best and sold everywhere in London. However, being a fan of cider, I cannot adequately evaluate it, but I can recommend having a bottle in stock, especially if you come here in winter and early spring - a sip of whiskey will perfectly save your wet feet from a cold.

  • Wines of England. It may seem strange to hear this, but Great Britain has its own vineyards and good wines, mostly white. They have been making wine here since the time of the Roman conquests; in the Middle Ages, monks, as usual, were responsible for it, and according to reviews they received very good samples. Then, through a royal marriage, the French province of Bordeaux passed to England and winemaking slowed down. In 1586, the headmaster of Westminster School, William Camden, wrote that it was not the bad climate and French competition that ruined winemaking, but the laziness of the local inhabitants. Modern vineyards are located mainly in Wales and south-east England. However, there are many small private vineyards in the western part of the country. In principle, the mild winter probably helps the vine to take root on the island, but, to be honest, I haven’t had a chance to try English wine, and with the abundance of pubs, it’s not easy to get to noble wine.

Finally

Of course, English cuisine has earned a reputation for being simple and crude, and at first you may think that there is really nothing to eat on the island. However, you quickly realize that the weather conditions actually call for good, unpretentious food, and the joy from simple pleasures like Cornish apple pie can be no less than from bouches and profiteroles. After a week, you simply get involved in the local diet and begin to be surprised at “these picky eaters from the mainland” and the myths about oatmeal.


So feel free to come to other English cities! You won’t go hungry, and your list of new preferences may include some very unexpected dishes like Scotch eggs and black pudding.

Anything to add?

British cuisine - national and traditional dishes

UK cuisine looks quite simple. The fact is that in the United Kingdom they focus on the quality of products, rather than on the complexity of recipes. This makes it possible to enjoy the excellent, natural taste of dishes. The sauces and seasonings of traditional British cooking are also relatively simple and are used to enhance the natural flavor of the food rather than alter it.

During the heyday of Great Britain as a colonial power, British cuisine was heavily influenced by the cooking of “overseas” countries, primarily India. For example, the Anglo-Indian chicken dish - tikka masala - is considered a real British “national dish”. British cuisine has been stigmatized as “unimaginative and stodgy” and has gained international recognition only as a complete breakfast and traditional Christmas dinner. This reputation was especially strengthened during the First and Second World Wars, when the government introduced food rationing in Great Britain.

British cuisine has a number of national and regional variants, such as English cuisine, Scottish cuisine, Welsh cuisine, Gibraltar cuisine and Anglo-Indian cuisine, each of which has developed its own regional or local dishes, many of which are named after the places of origin of the products, such as like Cheshire cheese, Yorkshire pudding and Welsh cheese toast.

Each historical region of this country is replete with a large number of interesting and tasty dishes. Residents of Great Britain have well-established traditions regarding food intake - breakfast at 7-8 o'clock in the morning, second breakfast (lunch) at 13-14, light lunch or just tea at 17 o'clock, and a full and satisfying dinner at 19-00. Moreover, most restaurants and cafes adhere to the same meal schedule.

Morning in the United Kingdom it begins with a traditional English breakfast, which includes fried or scrambled eggs, bacon and/or sausages, beans in tomato sauce, bread, mushrooms and tomatoes. All this is served on one plate. Also for breakfast, the British prefer pates, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, soft-boiled eggs, and cereal. Drinks include coffee or strong black tea with milk.

Dinner in the UK it is a sandwich with fillings such as tuna with corn and mayonnaise, ham and cheese, chicken with gravy or egg with mayonnaise.

Famous British tradition of drinking tea at 5 pm(five o'clock tea), which is served with raisin buns like Easter pies, as well as jam and butter cream, is observed by few people today.

On dinner The British choose vegetable puree soups (tomato is traditional), which are complemented with a piece of bread and butter. The most beloved main dish in the United Kingdom is steak made from the freshest sirloin of beef in varying degrees of doneness, ranging from rare to well-done. By the way, in the UK they cook almost without sauces. And they are not needed at all for dishes such as steaks: properly cooked meat has juice and a natural taste. Steaks are usually served with vegetables or potatoes.

What popular British dishes can you recommend to Russians? Next we will offer you some interesting recipes.

From England with love: five dishes of British national cuisine

British national cuisine, without exaggeration, is one of the most conservative in the world. At the same time, it is much more diverse and interesting than we are used to thinking about it. So what do the ceremonious English eat, besides porridge, roast beef and rice pudding?

English scone crunch

Golden scones with bacon and cheddar are a favorite British recipe that your loved ones will love too. Blend 50 g of frozen butter in a blender to form crumbs. Add 2 eggs, 60 ml of milk and cream, beat the ingredients into a homogeneous mass. Gradually add 2 cups of sifted flour with 2 tsp. baking powder. Knead the dough, add 375 g of grated cheddar cheese, 8 slices of chopped bacon, and a bunch of chopped green onions. Roll out the dough into a layer of 15 × 30 cm, cut into 8 squares, and each of them diagonally. Brush the resulting triangles with egg yolk, place on a baking sheet and place in an oven preheated to 220°C for 15–20 minutes. This appetizer is best served immediately, while the cheese is still hot and chewy. It can be eaten plain or served with any dish instead of bread.

Entertaining meat metamorphoses

Meatloaf, or meat loaf, is usually prepared by the British for the holidays. However, this dish of British cuisine is quite suitable for an everyday menu. Pass 400 g of pork and 300 g of beef through a meat grinder, add 2 cloves of garlic. Fry the onion and 100 g of champignons in oil until golden brown, add a pinch of dried basil. Soak 2 slices of white bread in milk and knead well. Combine minced meat, fried onions and mushrooms, bread and milk mass in a deep bowl and break 2 eggs here. Salt and pepper to taste. Knead the minced meat and place it in the form of a loaf on a baking sheet with parchment paper. We wrap strips of bacon on top, carefully tucking the ends under the “loaf”. Sprinkle it with dried rosemary and put it in the oven. Bake the meatloaf for the first 15 minutes at 200°C. Then reduce to 180 °C and cook it for another 60 minutes. Seductive aromas will attract all household members to the kitchen like a magnet.

Shepherd's Purse Pie

Shepherd's pie is a traditional British dish that the British have eaten for centuries. And during this time the recipe has hardly changed. Although it looks more like a potato casserole than a pie. Boil 1 kg of peeled potatoes and prepare mashed potatoes with the addition of 2 eggs, 50 g of butter, 200 g of grated cheese, a pinch of salt and pepper. Separately, we fry 2 onions and 2 carrots. Then add 500 g of minced lamb to it and simmer until done. Pour a can of green peas into the meat, add salt and spices to taste, mix well. Grease a baking dish and add half of the mashed potatoes. Next, distribute the fried minced meat evenly. Using a pastry bag, spread the remaining puree in patterns. Bake the shepherd's pie in the oven for 30–40 minutes at 200°C. This recipe will come in handy when you want to please your family with something tasty and unusual.

Fish with a British accent

The British have a favorable attitude towards fish. One of the most popular recipes in British cuisine is fish and chips, or fish and chips. First, let's prepare the batter. Mix a glass of kefir with a glass of flour and 2 eggs so that there are no lumps. Cover it with a towel and leave for 30 minutes. Cut 500 g cod fillet into portions. Dip each one in flour and then dip into batter. Place the fish pieces in a hot frying pan with oil, fry them on both sides for 5-7 minutes and place them on a paper towel. Peel 500 g of potatoes and cut them into slices. Potatoes can be fried or baked at your discretion. It is customary to serve fish and chips on a fresh lettuce leaf, or with lemon. This dish may not be one of the healthiest, but sometimes it doesn’t hurt to pamper your loved ones with it.

Cheese soup with chicken

Soups in England are also readily eaten, especially if it is cheese soup with chicken. Boil 400 g of chicken fillet in salted water in advance, cool and cut into small cubes. Sauté 100 g of leeks in a frying pan, add chicken and fry until golden brown. Bring the chicken broth to a boil, pour 150 g of long grain rice into it, drop in a bunch of parsley tied with threads and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Then add the chicken fillet with onions, and remove the bunch of parsley. Place 300 g of smoked sausage cheese, grated, into a pan and mix smoothly. If your home gourmets have no prejudices about blue cheese, feel free to add that too. When the cheese has melted, remove the soup from the heat. Residents of Foggy Albion, like no one else, know how to deliciously warm up in the cold. And their recipe can be adopted!

Time to drink tea: the Five o'clock Tea tradition

What is tea drinking in English? This is the usual tea with milk, a tea set made of fine porcelain, small cakes, white starched tablecloths, cozy armchairs and leisurely conversation. This is “Five o’clock Tea”…

How is the English tea ceremony performed?

The English tea ceremony has always had several important details that were strictly observed:

  • Dishes from a single service - tea pairs, a tea kettle, a jug for boiling water, a milk jug, dessert plates, forks, knives and teaspoons, a strainer with a stand, a sugar bowl (with refined sugar), tongs, as well as a woolen case for the teapot (tea- cozy).
  • A tea table, which could be located in the living room by the fireplace or in the garden, if the weather permitted;
  • Classic tablecloths, white or blue, without patterns.

Each guest chose a type of tea, after which brewing began. The teapot was rinsed with hot water, and tea leaves were poured in the amount of 1 spoon for each guest. The brew was infused for about five minutes, after which it was immediately poured into cups, and boiling water was added to the kettle. After the second brewing, the teapot was covered with a cover. The British drink exclusively hot tea.

According to English tea etiquette, there should be several types of tea on the table, usually from 8 to 10. While brewing is taking place, snacks are served, not least of which is the invention of John Sandwich. This is a sandwich that consists of two pieces of bread, and inside there is ham, chocolate or jam. This sandwich is easy to reheat.

It is not customary to drink tea with lemon in England; it is called “tea in Russian”, but many people drink tea with milk. Milk or cream is poured into cups while the tea is brewing, 2-3 spoons. Milk should be heated, but not boiled. Tea is poured from above. An hourglass is sometimes used to keep track of time.

It is impossible to imagine a tea party without conversation. Home tea drinking was considered a social event, so much attention was paid to the rules of its organization. In England in the 19th century, special attention was paid to receiving guests. A good housewife had to master all the subtleties of tea etiquette. Organizing a tea party, from sending out invitations to conducting a conversation, was considered the responsibility of the hostess of the house. As before, as now, she must greet guests in such a way that they feel at home and feel the importance and welcome of their visit for the owners.

We hope that British national cuisine has opened up for you from an unexpected side, and that your home collection of recipes has been replenished with interesting new items. Bon appetit and bright culinary experiences!

Sources

    https://sites.google.com/a/soe.uspi.ru/tradicii-i-obycai-velikobritanii/home/cajnaa-ceremonia-velikobritanii