Living abroad, I've often been asked to name typical British dishes, and honestly, it hasn’t been easy to come up with a definitive answer. Sure, we have our own traditional dishes like fish and chips, roast dinner, and shepherd’s pie. But the question is, how often do we actually eat them?
Take fish and chips, for example. This dish consists of battered fish served with chips (fries), often accompanied by mushy peas—a thick paste made by mashing peas. While it’s true that many Brits love this dish, it’s not something we eat regularly, like every week. It’s also not a meal we typically prepare at home. Instead, it’s more associated with seaside trips, where it’s bought from a takeaway shop and enjoyed as part of the experience.
Another popular dish is the roast dinner, made with roasted meat—commonly chicken or beef—served alongside roasted vegetables and gravy, a savoury meat sauce. It’s a meal often reserved for Sundays, sometimes marking a special family gathering. People might cook it at home or enjoy it in a traditional pub. A more elaborate version of this dish also takes centre stage during Christmas celebrations.
That said, while we have these iconic dishes, they’re not part of our everyday menu. On a typical day, many British people opt for meals like rice or pasta dishes, heavily influenced by cuisines from around the world. This is reflected in the wide variety of international foods available in our supermarkets and the diverse range of restaurants lining our high streets. In fact, there’s a common joke in Britain that our national dish is now chicken tikka masala, a dish inspired by Indian flavours.
In summary, we do have our traditional dishes, but unlike some other countries, we often lean towards recipes inspired by global cuisines in our daily lives. So, if you’re ever invited to a British home for dinner, don’t be surprised if a traditional dish isn’t on the menu!
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