MOST REPRESENTATIVE PRODUCTS OF BRITISH ISLANDS GASTRONOMY

A great deal of original products or very representative ones can be found in these islands. Here are some of them.

Among the vegetables, legumes, cereals and fruit there are:

The majority of legumes and vegetables used in cuisine are grown in the country, but they are not of English origin. This is the case of potatoes which are perhaps the most representative product overall of Ireland. Varieties are: Spud, Pratie and Murphy.

The green peas are used as puree for preparing the green peas pudding or soups.

Herbs and spices are very used in cuisine to prepare dishes as well as salads. Yarrow is a herb coming from the south of England. Its leave is used fresh or dried. Mustards are very used in these countries and the most typical one is the English mustard, usually employed to accompany fried meat, hamburgers and so on, which is very hot and the grain English mustard, made with mustard grains, vinegar, spices and black allspice. It usually accompanies soft meals.

Among the most used fruit without any doubt the most popular is the Golden apple and the Bramley, this last one is used to prepare the well known apple pie.

Oats is one of the most appreciated cereals, grown overall in Scotland to prepare whisky.

English Honey is a mixture of honeys coming from different flowers, it is used principally for breakfast.

Among the dairy products cheese is predominant, but it is to mention even the typical Clotted cream, a specialty from the south east of England.

The most appreciated fish are salmon and codfish. Salmon is used fresh or smoked, codfish is used salted. It is important to notice that fish used commonly as herring, eel, trout etc. are usually smoked. Very common is the use of oysters in the west of Ireland (Galway).

Among meat very popular is turkey, typical meal for Christmas. Veal and lamb are very usual in the daily diet as well as venison not only for its consumption, but even for the social event that sport means.

Very important is also the consumption of bacon and other products as the Cumberland, sausage, a very long pork sausage, the Black pudding, elaborated with pork blood, onion, spices, seasoning, oats flour and butter, and the well known York ham, typical English ham.

The wines are mostly imported from France, but even other wines coming from other European countries or Australia are used.

Waters, very important too, are served in bottles and some of the most known firms are the Irish: Ballygowan Spring Water and Tipperary Water.

Beer, great star of the Islands, is drunk in large quantities. Some of the most used are stout, for instance Guinness, beer of Irish malt well used in the cuisine. Other known firms are: Murphy Irish Stout and Beamish.

About whiskies, to mention the elaboration areas of this products. No doubt, apart its consumption as alcoholic drink, about its use in cuisine.

Scotchmen produce basically three kinds of whisky: Blended, Single Malt, Pure Malt. Four are the production areas: Highlands, Lowland, Islay Island and Campbeltown area. Irishmen, on the other hand, elaborate a different kind of whisky produced in the whole Irish Republic.

To be mentioned are the production and the consumption of some liqueurs elaborated partially with whisky. Some Irish examples are: Bailey’s, Sheridan’s, Carolans Irish Cream Liqueur, St. Brendan’s Cream Liqueur.

Vocabulary Notes

Ex. 1. Put questions to the text.

Ex. 2. Give your opinion of this text. What are the peculiarities of British Islands gastronomy?

Ex. 3. Retell the text.

Date: 2015-01-29; view: 1071