by Rosemary Redfern

Created on: July 28, 2010

There are a number of reasons why England is not known for its cooking. Eating is a necessity but also a sensual pleasure, something to be savored, discussed and mulled over.  This means a recognition of the sensual over the mere need to refuel. As the English are a stoic nation, the admission of a physical delight in food is considered over the top. The puritanical streak in many English means the food has to look good and be ‘nicely’ presented but taste is not the main feature.  Ignorance about food is also rife. How to balance a meal, what goes together with what is a lost art to many.

England produces some of the best food in the world.  The beef, the cheeses, local specialities like pork pies and bakewell tarts when well made are unsurpassable. To buy them best is expensive.  The problem is commerce has got in the way.  As most families are pushed financially they try to buy cheaply.  The result is fruit and vegetables, picked before they are ripe to sell in supermarkets, which never really develop their flavor. Food is sold out of season having been shipped from all over the world.  The English have lost the art of eating seasonable produce, produced locally.  It is a pseudo sophistication.

Cooking is seen by many English as a chore. Manufacturers take advantage of this and offer ready made dishes which appear to be tasty, but when you look at the list of ingredients, where little is fresh and most are chemically flavored, it is hard to see how these can be nutritious. Children brought up on this kind of diet are unable to develop a palate which is discriminating. My grandmother was born in 1884 and she was the family cook.  Her cupboards were scented with spices and she used herbs grown in the garden regularly.  She made the old fashioned, winter dishes which satisfied the palate and gave sustenance to deal with the weather.  This seasonal, flavorsome food has got lost somehow. 

The weather is a factor in English food. A climate which is damp and often cold requires food which gives comfort. Dainty ‘amuse bouches’, those small mouthfuls with which the French start a meal are just that, something to amuse the mouth but which do not offer sustenance.  

The proliferation of cooking programs suggests the English are becoming more interested in food but are not yet sure how to go about planning and preparing an elegant, tasty meal. 

England is not known for its cooking because so many English are prepared to put up with second rate offerings, are unaware of the subtleties of food and are too puritanical to risk the sensual effects of delicious food. 

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