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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2015 14:30:06 GMT
Is cheddar a protected name? I suspect not, because even the French have been abusing the name by selling those orange processed slices and calling them cheddar.
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Post by onlyMark on Aug 27, 2015 16:04:53 GMT
The name 'Cheddar' isn't protected. But if you call your cheese, e.g. West Country farmhouse Cheddar Cheese, or Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar, then you'd have a problem. Cheddar itself, though originating in Cheddar, doesn't now have to be.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2015 17:39:54 GMT
Actually, camembert was not protected either, so it can be made anywhere in the world and called camembert.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 17, 2016 23:13:59 GMT
I am finding to my greedy joy that all the unkind things said about food in England are wrong, wrong, wrong! I've only had two meals out so far. One was the much-vaunted English breakfast which upheld the negative stereotype, but the other, breaded cod with fat fries and a teensy bit of smashed minted peas was lovely. I've also had takeaway from Wasabi: good! Today I went to the Portobello market and, after I sniffed and swooned and dithered at length, I got some wonderful things from a gorgeous olive stand, including marinated fresh anchovies. At another stand I scored okra (from India) and picture-perfect organic British asparagus. There is lovely bread to be had all over the place, too. Oh yeah ~ cheese! I already knew that England had stellar cheese, but being where I can get my hands on it easily is heaven.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2016 23:25:58 GMT
One of my favourite pub meals was fried plaice and peas, bixa. Ham and salad, or a good ploughman's lunch. The cheese is wonderful, so are the meats. Stay away from Pizza Hut, though!
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 17, 2016 23:38:17 GMT
Pizza Hut is in no danger from me any time, anywhere! I lied, incidentally -- my fried fish was haddock, not cod, Tonight for supper I had okra, salad, pasta dressed with harissa & a little stilton, and lamb chops. There is very nice salad stuff here right out of the supermarket. I love that things like whole grain mustard, good bread, and the really bitter marmalade are available even in dinky stores.
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 18, 2016 6:53:44 GMT
I do hope you have some good food there bixa, but it can be a bit of a knife edge in some places. I see you've had the posh version of mushy peas. Good start. Will you get chance to see any of England proper or are you staying in the big smoke? If you get chance to sample a bit of Cheshire cheese, or Wensleydale, or even Lancashire, they all tend to be a drier crumbly cheese, I'd be interested if they are to your taste. They are my favourites.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 18, 2016 10:09:02 GMT
Mark & Lizzy, I've known about British cheeses since back in the 70s, when the tiny local health food store carried a good selection. Of course they're almost impossible to get where I live now, so are mostly a fond distant memory. I guess I'll be in London the whole time. Even though day trips are so doable from here, I haven't even scratched the surface of London yet. It's time for me to win the lottery so I can come here often and stay longer. That would be dictated by weather, though. So far, my word for summer here is "winter". Mark, yes -- the dry crumbly cheeses are fabulous. I saw a very big and complete cheese shop in Portobello yesterday, but resisted going in since I need to polish off this bunch before buying more cheese. I have made a healthy dent in it so far ~
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 18, 2016 10:20:42 GMT
It's a good start for sure. Have a good time and I hope you eat well.
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Post by lagatta on Jun 18, 2016 23:03:32 GMT
That looks lovely, bixa!
Actually there is some very good "Ontario cheddar" made in a tiny cheese factory in a village in Eastern Ontario where I have family. And while there are producers here in Québec who make excellent camembert-type cheeses, the good small producers tend to use their own names and not "camembert" as that evokes a generic round of indifferent semi-soft cheese with a white rind.
The fish & chips place closest to me uses haddock as well. The owners are people from Nova Scotia on the east coast of Canada.
Bixa, did you have a hard time finding a decent and affordable place to stay in London? Many have said that is a problem. Or perhaps you know people... Sadly, I was only in London for very few days, working at a conference. I do hope to return.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2016 1:39:03 GMT
I adore English cheese !!!!!! GO FOR IT!!!!!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2016 5:19:15 GMT
Here are the current food favourites in Great Britain: 1. Fish and chips 2. Roast dinner with Yorkshire pudding 3. Full English breakfast 4. Bacon butties 5. Apple crumble 6. Strawberries and cream 7. Bangers and mash 8. Cream tea 9. Shepherd's pie 10. Crumpets Unfortunately, this article restricted the replies to British origin foods only and not to what people are actually eating (curry, hamburgers, pizza...).
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Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2016 5:31:31 GMT
I went through the old pages of this thread. Unfortunately many of the photos have disappeared over the years, but Onlymark has definitely done the best job of regularly presenting worthwhile British foods, so I would certainly take him as the authority here.
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 19, 2016 7:19:00 GMT
I think the ones early on that have disappeared are those with a link directly to a website, that must now be defunct.
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Post by mossie on Jun 19, 2016 7:40:59 GMT
Kerouac, I would have put crumpet top of the list.
Sorry non PC remark.
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Post by lagatta on Jun 19, 2016 15:21:12 GMT
As in a "thinking man's crumpet"?
Balti has South Asian origins, but it was invented in Birmingham.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 19, 2016 19:46:29 GMT
Thanks for all the great input, everyone!
I just finished an enormous cauldron of curry laksa, something I've wanted to try ever since learning about it on anyport. I had it at a restaurant that I've also been wanting to try which is very close to where I'm staying. It was sublime ~ garlicky, perfectly chilified, lots of interesting stuff in it, and with the most wonderful texture from the coconut milk. This was at the Hare and Tortoise, which is a chain of five restaurants (Bloomsbury, Ealing, Kensington, Putney, Blackfriars).
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 20, 2016 22:03:22 GMT
On the way back from my sightseeing excursion today I went into the food section of Marks and Spencer & bought anything that looked appealing. I shouldn't need to shop again before I leave. It was this store. Thanks to Lucien Dogaroiu, whoever he may be for the photo taken just this month. One of the things I got, something that I've always had to make myself if I wanted any, was lemon curd, which surely we'll be allowed to eat by the ladle full in heaven. I put some on a previously purchased item that is new to me: Sainsbury Rough Oatcakes. WHY aren't these universally available? They are wonderful. The nice guy at the prepared foods section offered guidance and did not steer me wrong. One of his suggestions was truly stellar: roasted sweet potato slices in a buttermilk and sour cream dressing -- garlicky and good.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2016 4:14:41 GMT
Marks & Spencer Food has expanded throughout Paris over the last year, taking advantage of lots of locations of French chains that were obliged to dispose of some of their shops due to anti-monopoly rules.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2016 5:39:28 GMT
Bixa, one of the things you may want to seriously consider procuring while there are some jars of either or both of goose or duck fat. My friend brought me some back and oh my goodness.!!! They come in small glass jars, sealed tightly, and after opening keep well refrigerated. You will genuflect the next time you see me if you follow my advice.
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 21, 2016 5:53:02 GMT
Ah yes, lemon curd. A guilty pleasure for an adult and a necessity for a kid.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2016 6:17:38 GMT
Ah yes, lemon curd. A guilty pleasure for an adult and a necessity for a kid. Having a lemon grove,I make batches and batches of it for holiday gifts. And, the folks that I let harvest from the grove, grace me with jars of it along with some other condiments. Yes, I devour it by the spoonful but try and reserve some to eat with scones.
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Post by whatagain on Jun 21, 2016 8:31:37 GMT
Fish and chips is good. But frankly we cannot call this 'cuisine'. So looking on the list, I'll stay convinced that good cuisines are from Italy, Spain, France and such. Maybe with the Brexit we will not be subjected to liking British food ? oops
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 21, 2016 10:25:03 GMT
It's a personal thing, is it not? Italy has too much pasta, and often poor quality nowadays, Spain varies but usually with olive oil being so cheap food can be drenched in it whether fried or not, plus frying in olive oil is not as good as in other oils, also generally not known for a good variation in vegetables and veg dishes, France relies too much on sauces (and FFS 'jus'. I wish this has never been passed on to restaurants as they all seem to think it is de riguer to serve it) trying to overcome bland food or overpowering tasty food, plus they are snobbish about it. Far too snobbish and resting for far too long on their laurels and past glories. Overly complicated and afraid to let ingredients stand for themselves. French cuisine is lauded as the best in the world. Sorry, not so now at all. Indian and many Asian foods/kitchens are better.
See? Different person, different viewpoint.
'Cuisine' - "Cuisine is a type of food that is cooked in a specific way based on a culture's ingredients, region, and traditions.// or, "a style or method of cooking, especially as characteristic of a particular country, region, or establishment." So, with the plethora of regional dishes, cheeses, seasonal ingredients, deserts, stews, and so on, yes, we can call this that French word, 'cuisine'.
Top fifty best restaurants in the world? In there are four in Italy, seven in Spain, yet only three in France (and for balance, just three in the UK). You have the same amount as listed in just Lima, Peru for gawds sake. The whole country of France and Lima is equal. French food has come and gone. Long live French food. It has been buried so deep by better kitchens that archaeologists are queuing up to excavate the remains of a once powerful and influential civilisation.
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Post by lagatta on Jun 21, 2016 15:00:24 GMT
Remember that Peru, like Mexico, was home to an ancient pre-contact civilisation.
There is a lot of French food I like very much; not fussy dishes.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2016 16:30:02 GMT
Whatagain, this thread has ten pages of discussion on the topic. Some of the recent comments have been hashed over (in some and over...). It's a lot to read I know but it may shed some more light on what both you and Mark and others are saying. There's also some very humourous banter that I think you might enjoy.
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 21, 2016 17:09:31 GMT
lagatta, I do like French food, and there is quite a lot that is above par. French fries for one. Though they have to be home made style, thick cut and cooked in lard. Served in newspaper. With salt and vinegar. And beer battered fish. Generally British food has a bad reputation. It used to be deserved I admit. I've eaten over the years some appalling stuff I wouldn't give to my dog. But thirty years or so ago things began to move on. Just as French food generally is in decline compared to other countries, UK food is generally getting far better. In my opinion. Proper Mexican food, the stuff Bixa and Don C show, now that is in the same position. Many just think of clichéd stuff that is poor quality, but it is far more than that. So much so that I'd spend a lot of time there trying it out like a shot. Anyway, I'll keep quiet for a bit in the hope bixa slips a few more posts in when she can.
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Post by lagatta on Jun 21, 2016 18:10:56 GMT
French fries (frites) are actually Belgian. While I love fish and chips, I do prefer the Belgian style (think they are done in suet?) to either the big British chips or the little julienne frites common in parts of France.
Unfortunately I was only in London once, for a short working trip. Sadly I haven't been anywhere else in England, or to any of the Celtic nations.
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Post by onlyMark on Jun 21, 2016 19:09:11 GMT
Then why aren't french fries called Belgian fries? Better than being called 'freedom fries' though.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2016 19:54:36 GMT
The French have absolutely never called them French, so you will have to ask the English about the name.
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