Just for fun: Food culture in England

1. Name 3 best well-known English street foods according to you.

Salted beef bagel (Usually open 24 hours in Brick Lane area)
Kebab
Cheese Toastie

2. Which are some unusual dishes that you have discovered ?

Black pudding, jellied eels and spotted dick

3. What makes up the typical breakfast in England?

Bacon, eggs, toast, sausages, and baked beans

4. Name 3 of your favourite festive dishes.

Sunday roasts, chocolate log cake/yule log, beef wellington

5. According to you, which essential ingredient defines English cuisine?

Beef gravy

I dont mean any offence, but I have lived in the UK over 20 years now, and it's my personal opinion that the english have a knack for ruining so many things such as donuts, which are horrible compared to american ones. The quality of food in most restaurants compared to the states is pretty dire. We recently went to Frankie and Benny's and I ordered a pasta dish and the sauce was just awful. At least they don't always load sandwiches with butter anymore. Anyway, I digress. To answer the questions:

Best street foods known to me:  soft serve ice cream and pasties when you go to Devon (I can't think of three sorry)

Unusual dishes: I won't try things like black pudding. But I do like Indian food. So I'd say various curries. I don't think there are many unusual dishes here. I think most english don't like too unusual. and the smell and sight of baked beans makes me gag.

3 favourite festive dishes. Yes, yule log, italian honey balls (from my family), and the odd bit of turkey.

What one thing defines english cuisine?  Salad Creme (also cannot stand it)

Hi Diksha,

I'm going to twist a little beat your questions in order to fit them better with my answers (yeah #thuglife  )....

1. Name 3 best well-known English street foods according to you.
I love Caribbean food which is part of the British culture too (as Asian food). So, when I go for street foods (not so often), I like to ask for ackee and saltfish, or jerk chicken, and also jollof rice and plantain (Nigeria).

2. Which are some unusual dishes that you have discovered ?
Not happens to me yet.

3. What makes up the typical breakfast in England?
For me, absolutely no breakfast is possible without Marmite and toasted bread !
4. Name 3 of your favourite festive dishes.


5. According to you, which essential ingredient defines English cuisine?
I have no clue. I'm looking forward to read the others about this one.

Diksha wrote:

Hello everyone,

We all know English food tastes great. Do you consider yourself a foodie? Share with us your unique food experience as an expat.

1. Name 3 best well-known English street foods according to you.
2. Which are some unusual dishes that you have discovered ?
3. What makes up the typical breakfast in England?
4. Name 3 of your favourite festive dishes.
5. According to you, which essential ingredient defines English cuisine?

Thanks for participating,
Diksha

Hmmm.  Not sure I agree that all English food tastes great; what I've discovered is that most of the stuff I find that tastes good is not healthy to eat; for example (and answering the questions):

1.  English street food - fish and chips, everything else is a result of immigration to the UK where these guys created their own fast food because the UK stuff is not to their taste.  Traditional street food before Immigration was generally fish-based either fried (as in Fish and Chips), or cold (as in cockles, mussels, oysters, eels etc).

2.  Unusual - has to be Tripe - the lining of a cows stomach.  They boil it - disgusting.

3.  Typical breakfast - as others have said Egg, sausage, bacon etc - but nowadays, it tastes like crap,  they have mucked around with the ingredients so much that I just don't enjoy it any more; nowadays I eat Yoghurt for breakfast - not very British.

4.  Festive - turkey, I don't eat it at any other time.

5.  English ingredients - has to be English Mustard and/or Horseradish sauce; if you've never tried it, or think it's the same as French or German mustard, then try a little tiny bit, then come back and tell me the same.

Cynic wrote:

Diksha wrote:

Hello everyone,

We all know English food tastes great. Do you consider yourself a foodie? Share with us your unique food experience as an expat.

1. Name 3 best well-known English street foods according to you.
2. Which are some unusual dishes that you have discovered ?
3. What makes up the typical breakfast in England?
4. Name 3 of your favourite festive dishes.
5. According to you, which essential ingredient defines English cuisine?

Thanks for participating,
Diksha

Hmmm.  Not sure I agree that all English food tastes great; what I've discovered is that most of the stuff I find that tastes good is not healthy to eat; for example (and answering the questions):

1.  English street food - fish and chips, everything else is a result of immigration to the UK where these guys created their own fast food because the UK stuff is not to their taste.  Traditional street food before Immigration was generally fish-based either fried (as in Fish and Chips), or cold (as in cockles, mussels, oysters, eels etc).

Some say a Jewish immigrant from eastern Europe, Joseph Malin, was the first to serve fish with chips in his warehouse in London's Bow neighbourhood in 1860. Others credit a man called John Lees, who had a fish and chips hut in Lancashire in 1863.

1. Fish & chips, Donner kebab, Pasties (in Cornwall)
2. Same as post#2: Black pudding, jellied eels and spotted dick
3. Fried eggs, fried bread, fried mushrooms, fried tomatoes, baked beans, sausages, fried bacon, toast with marmalade, orange juice, tea of coffee
4. Mr. Kiplings battenberg cake, Dover Sole, Beef Wellington
5. It could be either gravy or tomato sauce