Start your day off with...
1. FULL-ENGLISH BREAKFAST
Start your
day the British way, with a full-English breakfast. Britain’s trademark brekkie
is packed full of delicious goodies including, eggs (fried or poached), bacon,
sausages, mushrooms, fried tomatoes, black pudding, baked beans and toast. This
hearty breakfast is perfect for when you’re hung-over, but rubbish if you’re on
a diet or want to eat healthily. It is acceptable in most British cafes and
restaurants to “mix and match” the exact food you get on your plate, which is
great if you love baked beans but can’t stand mushrooms. Enjoy your
full-English breakfast with a splash of tomato ketchup or brown sauce on your
food, and wash it down with a glass of orange juice with the bits in or a cup
of English tea.
Where to try it:
This dish
is best enjoyed every once in a while, so make sure you have the best
full-English breakfast…
Caravan, King’s Cross. Think: a
proper breakfast with options of sourdough toast, boar sausages and tomato
compote.
Munch this at lunch...
2. CORNISH PASTIES
The Cornish
pasty is the King of the pastry world in Britain. This tasty delight originates
from Cornwall in the South West of England, and is filled to the brim with
sliced or diced potato, swede, onion and diced or minced beef. The fillings are
enclosed in pastry, moulded into a “D” shape and crimped on the edges. You can
eat them when they are cool if you want to save your pasty for later, but they
are best-enjoyed when they are piping hot and fresh from the shop. This pasty
is comfort food at its best, perfect for keeping you going throughout the
afternoon.
Where to try it:
Grab a delicious
Cornish pasty on the go from:
West Cornwall Pasty Company, various branches across
London. With its crispy pastry and flavoursome beef, you will be
visiting this shop time and time again for a traditional Cornish pasty.
3. BUBBLE AND SQUEAK
This
unusually named dish dates as far back as the mid-eighteenth century, but it is
a surprisingly modern and popular dish in Britain. Bubble and squeak is the
Nation’s favourite leftover dish, best enjoyed for brunch or lunch the day
after your Sunday Roast, (see below). It is so simple to make, as it just
consists of frying leftover vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, swede with
mashed or fried potato. A few people are quite creative with their bubble and
squeak and like to add in extras such as bacon, and serve it up with cold
leftover meat. The weird name is said to have some from the bubbling and squeaking
noise the food makes when it is being fried. Despite having the unusual name
however, this dish is a little boring, but in any case it tastes good and is an
excellent hangover food.
Where to try it:
This dish
is best enjoyed at home using the leftovers after a big roast, but if you want
to try it in a restaurant, go to:
Roast, Borough Market. Get excited
for a good fry up served with bubble and squeak cooked in beef drippings.
Fill up at dinner with...
4. FISH AND CHIPS
A true
seaside classic, fish and chips are Britain’s favourite take-away food. This tasty
dish consists of fish (usually cod, haddock or plaice), which is deep fried in
batter and served with chunky chips and mushy peas. Fish and chips are not
normally home-cooked, but bought in a “chippy”, (fish and chip shop) to eat
on-the-go or to take away. It is also often sold in many traditional pubs
across England, and is usually served up on grease-proof paper with a newspaper
design on, as original fish and chip shops used to put the meal in an old
paper. Fish and chips are best enjoyed with a dash of malt vinegar, ketchup and
a sunny-seaside afternoon- delicious
Where to try it:
Golden Union Fish Bar, Soho. This
50s-style diner is decorated like a traditional British fish and chip shop and
has the authentic food to match.
Prefer to
take-away? Try Fish & Chips, Soho. Their
fish and chips are cooked to perfection, and are served in the traditional
paper.
5. SUNDAY ROAST WITH YORKSHIRE PUDDING
Sundays in
Britain are not complete without feasting on a traditional roast at lunchtime
or dinner. Families in Britain usually put a lot of effort into the Sunday
roast, as everyone sits down at the table together to tuck into roasted meat
(usually chicken, beef, pork or lamb), vegetables, roast potatoes, Yorkshire
puddings and plenty of gravy! The Yorkshire puddings are usually the best part
of the dinner, as this tasty food made up of flour, eggs and milk, is perfect
for mopping up the juices of the meat and left-over gravy. A traditional way to
enjoy a Yorkshire pudding is to make a large, flat one, which you put the meal
inside.
Where to try it:
Get your
family and friends together on Sunday and head to:
Duke of Wellington, Marylebone. This pub and restaurant serves proper Sunday lunches with real ale.
Duke of Wellington, Marylebone. This pub and restaurant serves proper Sunday lunches with real ale.
6. TOAD IN THE HOLE
This
all-time British classic consists of hearty sausages sticking out of Yorkshire
pudding batter, usually served with vegetables and onion gravy. Don’t worry,
you won’t find a toad amongst your Yorkshire pudding – the unusual name is said
to come from the fact that the dish resembles a toad sticking its head out of a
hole, (we don’t get it either). This dish may seem strange to look at, but it
tastes great: comforting and filling, it makes a fantastic dinner during
winter, and also goes down well on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
Where to try it:
Hush, Holborn. A relaxed restaurant with a modern
twist, Hush serves a really delicious toad in the hole.
7. STEAK AND KIDNEY PIE
The
steak and kidney pie is the most flavoursome and popular pie in Britain, just
taste one bite of it and you will be hooked. This glorious dish is comfort food
at its best, and is made up of succulent beef, seasoned kidneys, a sprinkling
of mushrooms, thick gravy, which is all topped with a crispy pastry lid. This
classic pub dish is usually served with chunky chips and vegetables, and is
washed down with a good pint of ale. If you are looking for a traditional
British dish to fill you up, then the steak and kidney pie will not disappoint!
Where to try it:
The Windmill, Mayfair. Being “pie
specialists” and boasting their own “pie club”, it’s no surprise that this pub
serves an incredible, award-winning steak and kidney pie.
8. LANCASHIRE HOTPOT
The
Lancashire hotpot is full of tasty goodness is one of the most popular dishes
in the North of England. The hotpot, originates from the days of heavy
industrialisation in Lancashire, and is now a very popular dish, which is
typically served in pubs. This comforting casserole-style dish consists of a
generous portion of lamb or mutton, topped with sliced potatoes and left to
bake in the oven all day in a large heavy pot.
Where to try it:
To properly
taste this dish, you should go up North, but if you can only stay in London,
then go to:
The Strand Carvery, Strand. This
restaurant serves up fantastic meat dishes, and the Lancashire hotpot should
not be missed.
Satisfy your sweet-tooth...
9. VICTORIA SPONGE CAKE
Consisting
of fluffy and light sponge, sweet raspberry jam and rich vanilla cream, the
Victoria sponge cake is absolute pudding heaven. Named after Queen Victoria,
who was known to enjoy a slice of cake with her tea, this cake is perfect if
you are looking for a sweet treat to enjoy in the afternoon. Reach for a slice
which has golden brown sponge and a light dusting of icing sugar to taste a
true traditional Victoria sponge cake.
Where to try it:
10. BAKEWELL TART
This tasty
cherry-flavoured tart is a traditional British cake native to the town of
Bakewell in Derbyshire. The tart consists of short-crust pastry covered in jam
and topped with a sponge-style filling, which is enriched with ground almonds,
(this is called Frangipane). Be sure to sink your teeth into this beauty with a
cup of English tea in the afternoon – perfect!
Where to try it:
Lily Vanilli, Columbia Road. Based in a
tranquil courtyard just behind the Columbia Road Flower Market, this cute
bakery sells the best Bakewell tarts.
We hope this article made you hungry...Can you think of any other traditional British foods? Start a foodie discussion with us on our Facebook page or on our Twitter!
Written by Alissa Johnson
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