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[esldude]

Hahn but sandy, what is a typical 7 day forecast for Sidney in the summer? What are average temperatures without air conditioning. You see UK is a country you can live in year round - too hot depresses (at least me) just as much if not more than too cold!

 

 

I am afraid you wouldn't like my climate too much.

 

Saw temps of 96 degrees F today (36 C) along with 81% humidity. The Real Feel index was 115 F (46 C). It sure was hot anyway.

 

As for no air conditioner, "are you crazy?". The AC lowers temp and humidity and is seemingly essential though I grew up without it. You do get those big thunderstorms every couple or three days. Cools things down, though the humidity goes up. At least the lightning is pretty especially at night. You do get rainbows if it is daylight after the storm.

[Audio_ELF]

Delightful, Eloise, but hardly typical.

...well its typical that some days will be like that, others will be wet, others cold, others snowing (when it gets to winter)...

 

The typical factor of British weather is that its unpredictable ... and who wants boring consistency?

[Audio_ELF]

Delightful, Eloise, but hardly typical.

You might appreciate this ... Weather woes: 20 signs you're on a British holiday | Travel | The Guardian

[Jud]

You might appreciate this ... Weather woes: 20 signs you're on a British holiday | Travel | The Guardian

 

Ah, but if there's anything that was more British than the weather, it was food. Here we have readers swapping their best "raw recipes" (it's called "cooking" for a reason, people): Recipe swap: raw | Life and style | The Guardian

 

Head of the list is "Raw Beetroot Coconut Fudge." Yummies!

 

I said above "was more British," because fortunately everyone came to their senses and now eats Indian.

[Audio_ELF]

Ah, but if there's anything that was more British than the weather, it was food. Here we have readers swapping their best "raw recipes" (it's called "cooking" for a reason, people): Recipe swap: raw | Life and style | The Guardian

 

Head of the list is "Raw Beetroot Coconut Fudge." Yummies!

 

I said above "was more British," because fortunately everyone came to their senses and now eats Indian.

Actually proper British cooking is world class precisely because we embrace other cultures. The Indian and Chinese that we eat a lot of is not a modern import and have been part of culinary culture since victorian times if not before.

 

The "bad" British cooking tends to be a result of (a) the War and (b) the import of american fast food culture.

 

In fact raw food "fads" are another American import!! (At least according to Wikipedia) Sylvester Graham an American Presbyterian minister promoted raw food diet in the 1830, and then it was picked up by Maximilian Bircher-Benner, the Swiss inventor of Muesli in the late 19th Century and then in the 1930s Weston Price an American dentist noted the link between bad teeth and the removal of raw foods from diets.

[Jud]

Actually proper British cooking is world class precisely because we embrace other cultures. The Indian and Chinese that we eat a lot of is not a modern import and have been part of culinary culture since victorian times if not before.

 

The "bad" British cooking tends to be a result of (a) the War and (b) the import of american fast food culture.

 

In fact raw food "fads" are another American import!! (At least according to Wikipedia) Sylvester Graham an American Presbyterian minister promoted raw food diet in the 1830, and then it was picked up by Maximilian Bircher-Benner, the Swiss inventor of Muesli in the late 19th Century and then in the 1930s Weston Price an American dentist noted the link between bad teeth and the removal of raw foods from diets.

 

Would you be a dear and tell the Canadians? (Not Allan and his friends in Vancouver, which by the way is probably my favorite city in the world, but the folks in the heartland.) What I ate there (Calgary and Edmonton) for the better part of 5 years (1989-94) as "British" had no least whiff of the exotic about it, unless you consider white sauce exotic.

[Allan F]

Actually proper British cooking is world class precisely because we embrace other cultures. The Indian and Chinese that we eat a lot of is not a modern import and have been part of culinary culture since victorian times if not before.

 

The "bad" British cooking tends to be a result of (a) the War and (b) the import of American fast food culture.

 

I agree that the foreign food in England is very good. However, I beg to differ regarding "basic" British cuisine, for which the word "bland" would be more than a compliment. Given that the war has been over for 70 years, don't you think that no longer qualifies as an excuse?

[church_mouse]

I agree that the foreign food in England is very good. However, I beg to differ regarding "basic" British cuisine, for which the word "bland" would be more than a compliment. Given that the war has been over for 70 years, don't you think that no longer qualifies as an excuse?

Bad British cooking is bland; good British cooking can be very tasty. The black treacle bacon and Tamworth sausages in my fridge will attest to that later today. A cold, wet winter evening calls out for steak and kidney pudding followed by syrup sponge and proper custard!

 

Sent from my YOGA Tablet 2-830F using Tapatalk

[Audio_ELF]

I agree that the foreign food in England is very good. However, I beg to differ regarding "basic" British cuisine, for which the word "bland" would be more than a compliment. Given that the war has been over for 70 years, don't you think that no longer qualifies as an excuse?

It all depends what you consider bland? If you mean, not overly spiced the you are correct, but that doesn't mean it's not well cooked, etc.

 

At the end of the day, there is a big difference between British Cuisine, and what people in Britain eat day to day.

[sbgk]

I agree that the foreign food in England is very good. However, I beg to differ regarding "basic" British cuisine, for which the word "bland" would be more than a compliment. Given that the war has been over for 70 years, don't you think that no longer qualifies as an excuse?

 

think it's hard to find places in England that cook for the love of the food rather than profit. Also, many restaurants and food shops are franchises or part of big companies so the family run places are few and far between compared to other countries. I guess England doesn't have a food culture, most seeing it as fuel rather than an experience to share and enhance life. Think the rich are allowed to eat well, the poor not so much. The English drink to socialise, so food is secondary.

[Audio_ELF]

think it's hard to find places in England that cook for the love of the food rather than profit. Also, many restaurants and food shops are franchises or part of big companies so the family run places are few and far between compared to other countries. I guess England doesn't have a food culture, most seeing it as fuel rather than an experience to share and enhance life. Think the rich are allowed to eat well, the poor not so much. The English drink to socialise, so food is secondary.

There are a lot of franchises / chains, but there are a LOT of small places run for the love not profits, it's very difficult to run a restaurant at a profit if you're not part of a chain these days. It just takes a bit of thought and effort.

 

As for food culture, there are many regional "everyday" dishes which hold up well compared with (for example) French rural food. Think Lancashire Hotpots, Irish Stews, etc.

 

The thing I will accept is that Brits tend to overcook meat.

[Norton]

think it's hard to find places in England that cook for the love of the food rather than profit. Also, many restaurants and food shops are franchises or part of big companies so the family run places are few and far between compared to other countries. I guess England doesn't have a food culture, most seeing it as fuel rather than an experience to share and enhance life. Think the rich are allowed to eat well, the poor not so much. The English drink to socialise, so food is secondary.

 

There' s always been a bit of stereotype about English cooking. If it was ever true, it's out of date now.

 

The small farming south western town ( pop then c. 30k) I grew up in now has three independently owned restaurants each of which is very much on a par with the better restaurants I know from holidays in France - short seasonal menus featuring very local produce. There's a big food culture in England now.

 

I have to say my visits to N America haven't always suggested a gastronomic paradise...and you can certainly get bad food ( and worse service) in France..

[Jud]

There' s always been a bit of stereotype about English cooking. If it was ever true, it's out of date now.

 

The small farming south western town ( pop then c. 30k) I grew up in now has three independently owned restaurants each of which is very much on a par with the better restaurants I know from holidays in France - short seasonal menus featuring very local produce. There's a big food culture in England now.

 

I have to say my visits to N America haven't always suggested a gastronomic paradise...and you can certainly get bad food ( and worse service) in France..

 

Allan's answer suggests a similar experience of "British" cooking as I found in Western Canada (though it was 20+ years ago). To give you an idea of the local tastes, there was an informal poll at the firm I worked with asking what food people would miss if they they weren't in Canada, and Kraft Dinner (macaroni and cheese in a box) won going away.

 

A lot of the USA has tended to be similar, not about mac and cheese specifically, but about staying with the "safe" (in other words, reliably bad) choice. But that feels to me as if it's slowly changing.