Is British cuisine really "dark cuisine"? In-depth analysis of the British diet, too different from imagination

Recently, major cities are vying for the "gourmet depression", and friends in the gourmet group also have a hot chat.

Shanghai friends say that Shanghai is barren and don’t know what to eat every day, and friends in Hangzhou are unbearable and backward, saying, "If Shanghai is still a food desert, then Hangzhou is directly a visitor from the center of the earth?", is the most excessive There are also friends from Suzhou who are also joining the battle...

The Suzhou hairy crabs at the time

But to talk about the real "food desert", we have to talk Let’s talk about the UK—this is a Western country that is known for its “dark food” and never misses “unpalatable food”. But is British cuisine really "dark"?

The term "dark cuisine" is derived from the cartoon "The Little Master of China", which refers to the way of cooking with weird materials and weird shapes.

1. What is the difference between British food and Chinese food?

Although we collectively refer to the dishes of Western countries as "Western food". But in fact, Western countries have different products and climate due to their geographical distribution. Under the influence of this, their food culture is very different, and their dishes and cooking skills have their own advantages.

And the western food we know now can be roughly divided into: French, British, Italian, Russian, American, Mediterranean and other different styles, British cuisine (also known as "British cuisine") It is one of the most popular in the world today.

British French fries

In terms of food content and style, China and the West are very different.

In China, We use cereals and their products as the main food, and non-staple foods are mainly vegetables , the position of meat on the table has to be one row down, and we don’t pay much attention to it during meals. Drinks, occasionally accompanied by wine or drinks. We use bowls to serve food, chopsticks to taste them, and occasionally a soup spoon.

But in the UK, people eat meat and milk as the main food , fresh vegetables are almost invisible, and a meal is often accompanied by wine, coffee or Milk tea. The most important food utensils in the UK are metal knives and forks, as well as various plates (for food) and cups (for soup and dessert).

is also the difference between Chinese and British food utensils and food, which caused the huge difference between the food system and the food sharing system.

British snack-eel jelly

In terms of cooking concepts, the difference between the West and ours is completely different.

Chinese food has various cooking methods. There are more than 10 commonly used cooking, frying, steaming and other methods. However, Chinese chefs pay attention to the collision and reconciliation of flavors. is a result of the accumulated kitchen work during cooking. "Hand feeling" , which also leads to a difference in taste of a dish produced by the same chef.

And although the British cooking method is not as complicated and changeable as China, it is not at all random.

In English kitchens, we can often see many exquisite instruments: thermometers in pots, kitchen scales accurate to the gram, countdown clocks... The whole process is strictly in accordance with "standards", so the dishes are The taste is thin but very stable.

In addition, I have to mention the unique "afternoon tea" culture in Britain.

We often say "three meals a day", but the British enjoy "four meals a day" very loosely, Namely: breakfast, lunch and dinner, and afternoon tea with "greedy".

British people often choose to drink afternoon tea between four and six in the afternoon. Since the British aristocracy accidentally discovered the ingenuity of "afternoon tea" in the 1840s, this culture has quickly become popular in the upper circles of the United Kingdom and soon swept the country.

But it’s called "tea", not just drinking tea, but more like an extra meal, using "tea" with desserts, fruits, sandwiches and other "refreshments" as a transition between long afternoon meals .

Then what caused such a “puzzling” food culture in the UK?

2. What caused the British food culture?

Today's British cuisine has a huge relationship with the global maritime trade of the medieval "empire that never sets".

In the seventeenth century, Britain began its era of maritime hegemony. On the one hand, it connects "isolated" ports around the world, allowing commodities from different countries to reach the world through waterways; on the other hand, with the British "fighting", its colonies spread all over the world.

This also allows food and raw materials from all over the world to enter the UK. The most important of is the white sugar that occupies an important seat in the British diet.

In the era of heavy labor, people lack resources but need a lot of energy supplies every day. So sweet and low-priced saccharin has become a kind of salvation for people-people are addicted to it and add it to various foods. has since established the British "sweet addiction" culture.

Then, the industrial revolution brought the fast food culture to Britain, and the first one was "canned food".

Although the French invented "canned food" in order to solve the food supply problem during the march, they avoided it in their daily lives. It was the British who took over, making it more complicated.

In 1813, Britain's first food canning company was established. Once this easy-to-storage ready-to-eat food was put on the market, it was loved by the British people who were plagued by rain and humidity all year round. And its varieties are becoming more and more diversified, meat, vegetables, fruits... Give the British a tin box, they can hold everything.

When the course of history came to the two world wars in the 20th century.

Long-term consumption of canned food has made the British almost lose the ability to cook. It was also at this time that the government discovered huge health problems in the nationals during the conscription process-insufficient height, poor spirits, bad teeth and other problems were exposed, causing the government a headache. began to pay attention to the national diet.

But in the era of war, the disaster is always unwilling to come in groups. Because many parts of the country were caught in war, Britain suspended food imports, but itself was also short of materials, so it had to implement a food ration system.

In the face of limited butter and sugar, the government has become the British "national nutritionist", so that everyone can receive equal and maximum access to healthy food-also Therefore, has shaped the style of British cuisine that is simple but pays attention to nutrition.

So is British cuisine today "dark cuisine" and what kinds of dishes are there?

3. "Four meals a day" in the UK

Let’s start with breakfast.

Breakfast in many countries is fast food rather than a breakfast, But the traditional British breakfast is a rich and formal meal , the variety is dazzling, comparable to what we say today The "Breakfast Capital".

British people usually eat breakfast between 7 and 9 in the morning. They often use cereals or oatmeal as "forward" , add cream, milk, and season with sugar or salt.

After enjoying this meal, the rich main course will be on stage. At this time, you may see simple bacon, eggs, sausage or bacon, or more complicated cod, smoked salmon, tomato baked beans, baked potato cakes, etc.

And after that, there are toasts coated with butter and various jams and some fruits, together with classic British black tea or coffee, A rich traditional English breakfast is finished .

In contrast, the British lunch is much simpler.

Many working Britons only have an hour or so for a meal break at noon. Therefore, many people do not want to go out for lunch, but bring their own sandwich or hamburger and make a cup of tea or coffee, which is economical and time-saving.

But every afternoon before dinner, the British will add an afternoon tea as a transition.

As a famous drink in the UK, afternoon tea often uses rich English black tea with milk and sugar cubes. Not only that, but also with refreshments placed on a three-tier shelf.

Generally speaking, all kinds of savory sandwiches are usually placed on the bottom layer of the shelf, the traditional English snacks are placed on the middle layer, and the top layer is a variety of cakes and fruits. Eat from bottom to top, taste from light to heavy, from salty to sweet, with rich and varied flavors.

British dinner often has to wait until eight o’clock. Although the meal is late, it is the most important part of British daily life.

At dinner, the British ended a busy day at work and finally got free. Everyone eats and talks, and a dinner usually takes several hours.

Traditional British dinner usually has four dishes: The first is soup, the second is fish, the third is meat, the fourth is a dessert pudding platter, and the last is beets and ice cream. .

British Wellington Beef Tenderloin

written at the end

Each country has its own food culture and habits.

They have gone through a long period of time, and they have changed with many factors such as geography, climate, humanities and war. People move from raw food to cooked food, from low production to high production, from poverty to rich... At each different stage, food also plays a different role.

Perhaps in our opinion, the British diet is simple and "unbearable", but they have come to us after constant revision and improvement. In addition to taste, perhaps we should also see more.

Reference:

1. Li Mingying, Social Customs and Food Culture (J). Journal of Jinzhou Normal University, 1997;

2. Bian Haoyu, On the Differences Between Chinese and Western Food Culture (J). Journal of Nanjing Forestry University (Humanities and Social Sciences Edition), 2004;

3. Lin Yutang, The Art of Life (M). Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 1998;