In defence of British food

What do you think of British food?  Have you ever been to Britain and tried it?  Have you heard something about it? 

Judging from my experience of talking to Japanese students, there is a strong chance that you are thinking, “British food is not so good.”  Japanese students often say that to me when I say that I come from the U.K.  You might have heard of fish and chips and think that that is the only famous food to come from Britain. 

I sometimes imagine a special class in Japanese schools, where the teacher talks about countries of the world and explains some points that the students should know. 

Teacher: “Iceland.  Population about 300,000.  Famous for whaling.  Next, the U.K.  The population is about 65,000,000.  It’s famous for the Queen and its food is not very good.  Next, Ireland...” 

So why do people believe that the food in Britain is not good?  Is there any justification?  Perhaps.  There are many recipes and traditional local dishes from the U.K.  But people are forgetting about them.  That is partly because Britain is very open to immigration and new forms of cooking from other countries.  You will find many nice Indian, Chinese and Italian restaurants in Britain.  It is partly because both men and women are expected to work and household tasks like cooking are not given as important a role in the U.K. as in countries like Japan: so knowledge of how to cook traditional dishes is not necessarily passed on from one generation to the next. 

But I always feel a little sorry for any of my students who say that they went to Britain and only tried fish and chips and didn’t like it so much.  Then you are not looking hard enough! 

Britain is an island and you can find delicious seafood restaurants.  You can find oysters which are much bigger and better value than those you can buy in Tokyo.  Mussels and other kinds of shellfish are widely available and delicious.  Pies and pastries are popular and very nice.  Try a steak and kidney pie, a pork pie or a Cornish pasty. 

Each local area has its own specialities.  My home country, Scotland, has delicious soups like Scotch broth, a kind of thick soup with meat, vegetables and oatmeal inside.  We have very clean rivers and quiet countryside spots and you can find very nice salmon, lamb, and haggis (a kind of black sausage). 

If you have a sweet tooth, Britain is a kind of Paradise.  We love desserts and have a great variety.  My favourite is rhubarb and custard. 

My mouth is watering just thinking about all the kinds of food from Britain that I am missing or cannot get in Japan.  The next time I go back, I will have proper bacon (they don’t make it the same in Japan).  I will have haggis, ‘neeps and ‘tatties (that’s a Scottish speciality of black sausage, mashed potato with butter and yellow turnips).  I will have some Scotch whisky with applewood smoked cheddar cheese.  And then maybe another Scotch whisky... 

It’s not that British food is no good.  It’s just that you have to look a little harder to find it.  And the challenge and adventure make the holiday more fun.  If you eat fish and chips every day and don’t like it so much then don’t complain to me about it!

 

Vocabulary:

Justification – A reason to believe that something is true./ An explanation.

To be passed on – To be given from one person to another.

To have a sweet tooth – Someone who has a sweet tooth likes desserts or other sweet food.

My mouth is watering – I can’t wait to eat.