English Eats

Before the days of airfreight and exotic foreign produce, an Englishman's diet relied on an abundance of grazing land and the sea, and so consisted of meat, fish, dairy, root vegetables and wild fruits. It's these ingredients that have provided the basis for traditional meals that endure the passing of time and trends.

From region to region, county to county and even village to village, there is a treasure trove of traditional specialities. Some dishes such as the grand 'Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding' and the more humble 'Fish and Chips' transcend local borders, while other classics stay closer to home. It's easy to find Cornish pasties outside of Cornwall and Cream Teas outside of Devon but how often do you come across Shropshire Fidget Pie or Singin' Hinnies? It's part of the charm and variety of English traditional cooking that local recipes still have a place in their rural birthplaces.

English cooks' creativity doesn't stop at the combination of ingredients. Some of the quirkiest food names come from native recipes and would raise a few eyebrows if you tried to find them anywhere outside these shores. 'Bubble and Squeak', 'Toad in the Hole', 'Spotted Dick', 'Bangers and Mash', 'Fool', 'Roly Poly' and 'Faggots' are just some of the dishes we may take for granted but haven't quite made it onto the international food scene.

Regional delights
The coastal towns of East Anglia, most notably the village of Cromer, are known for crabs. In summer months you will find them for sale at small roadside stalls or boiled in pots sitting outside front room windows. They are smaller than those caught in the West Country and therefore not profitable outside the area, though their flesh is dense and succulent. Further inland, Norfolk is famous for turkeys and boasts the largest turkey farm in Europe.

Head north and east to Lancashire, where hard-working folk and a bracing climate call for hearty, economical dishes. Lancashire Hotpot - a layered dish of lamb, onion and potato - has to be one of the best known, while Eccles and Chorley cakes are well-loved, home-grown pastries.

Southern counties are equally rich in local ingredients, where a rambling coastline, lush, green pastureland and mild climate provide a fertile environment for delicious food. There are as many recipes for Dorset Apple Cake as there are cooks who make it. Another product making a comeback today is Dorset Blue Vinny cheese, a firm white cheese with blue veins made from partly skimmed cow's milk. Early cheese makers were said to plunge old leather shoes or harnesses into the milk to encourage bacteria growth. Needless to say, today's methods employ more hygienic practices and this old variety is being rediscovered beyond county boundaries.

It's not just the countryside that has contributed to our food heritage, London is home to many of our national dishes. 'London Particular', a thick pea soup was used by Dickens to describe the fog that characterised the city in the 19th century. The East End was full of Pie and Mash houses and 'Jellied Eels' can still be bought throughout that part of the city. The wonderful Chelsea bun has its home in the borough of the same name and dishes like 'Steak and Kidney Pudding', 'Arnold Bennett Omelette' and 'Mixed Grill' were devised in the upmarket clubs and restaurants of the West End.

Feeling inspired? Cook up a three-course traditional English dinner:

Menu

Starter: Smoked Mackerel Pate

Main course: Steak and Kidney Pie

Dessert: Bakewell Tart