Stelios and Annie a young Greek couple from a small village in Northern Crete, arrived at Heathrow last Saturday week. They were staying for a week with my daughter and her husband who had befriended them while holidaying on the island of Crete. It was the first time they had ventured beyond Greece, so everything was exciting to them. My wife and I entertained them on one of the days while my daughter and her husband went to work. They were fascinated by our custom and food which they insisted had to be British (or English). My wife cooked a large 'Cottage' pie which Stelios eagerly began to devour. "This is so good" he said. "And what is that"? he said pointing to the gravy boat. "Err thats gravy" said my wife. "Grav, Grav, I will try some" he said pouring some on his Cottage pie. "And that"? he said pointing to the H.P. sauce. "Thats sauce" I said. "Try a little on your pie". He poured a little on his pie and tasted the sauce and smiled. "Thats very good" He then poured H.P. sauce and gravy over his Cottage pie and gleefully devoured the lot. I could fill a whole page with the wonderful day we spent with Stelios and Annie who are now back with their family in a small village in Northern Greece.
I started reading this as a rhyme and kept going back to see if it was meant to be or I wasn't reading it properly (until half way through obviously)
Old skool dinners (which I think of as dinners I used to have as a kid/teenager in the 1970s and 1980s) and which I still regularly make:
Gammon/ham, egg, chips, peas. I make a ham ever Xmas and Easter. So this is usually leftovers but will often order for a pub lunch too. I like it with red and brown sauces and mustard too. Chilli con carne. Slow cooked Spag bol Shepherds pie/cottage pie with cheesey mash, peas, carrots, extra gravy Egg, chips, beans Lancashire hot pot. Must be lamb cutlets. Potatoes should be crispy at the top Bangers and mash. Lots of onion gravy Chicken stew. Mianly made in over with chicken layered on top of the veg to get a crispy skin
I don't know how to do pastry otherwise I would make pies regularly.
Old skool dinners (which I think of as dinners I used to have as a kid/teenager in the 1970s and 1980s) and which I still regularly make:
Gammon/ham, egg, chips, peas. I make a ham ever Xmas and Easter. So this is usually leftovers but will often order for a pub lunch too. I like it with red and brown sauces and mustard too. Chilli con carne. Slow cooked Spag bol Shepherds pie/cottage pie with cheesey mash, peas, carrots, extra gravy Egg, chips, beans Lancashire hot pot. Must be lamb cutlets. Potatoes should be crispy at the top Bangers and mash. Lots of onion gravy Chicken stew. Mianly made in over with chicken layered on top of the veg to get a crispy skin
I don't know how to do pastry otherwise I would make pies regularly.
the quality of ready made pastry you can get at the supermarket these days is good enough that you don't need to make it yourself.
I'm a massive fan of Shepherds Pie as it appears are many on here. But do you really make Shepherds Pie? Or are you actually serving Cottage Pie? Shepherds pie is made with lamb, usually minced and Cottage Pie with beef and again usually minced. I must admit I use minced beef but still call it Shepherd's Pie. I have used minced lamb but really find it too fatty for such a dish.
I normally buy a massive leg of lamb for Sunday and then use the leftovers for a real Cottage Pie - works great!
Stuffed Braised Hearts Steak and Kidney Pudding Bacon and Onion Pudding Liver and Bacon Boiled Bacon and Pease Pudding Tripe and Onions Jellied eels Spotted Dick Treacle Sponge Baked Apple
Stuffed Braised Hearts Steak and Kidney Pudding Bacon and Onion Pudding Liver and Bacon Boiled Bacon and Pease Pudding Tripe and Onions Jellied eels Spotted Dick Treacle Sponge Baked Apple
Lovely - but a bit of a cholesterol time bomb ticking away in that lot!
Indeed a few of these regional dishes are worth a try, e.g haggis, or scouse
Pan haggerty. think it’s a northern dish with layers of potatoes, cheese and onions. Used to have it with layers of streaky bacon as well but not sure if that is traditional.
Chilli and rice with or wothout meat baked potato, chicken breast coated in bread crumbs and fried in butter, with peas Rib of beef, Yorkshires, stuffing, veg (like to do mashed parsnip and carrot with butter) lentil not-shepherds pie is surprisingly good spag Bol Polpettini meatballs as per a very old Jamie Oliver recipe with mozzarella in the bake and Parmesan on the top
Real Old Skool bring out every once in a while:
Sausage hotpot. My mums recipe seemed to involve cooking some sausages to get some colour to the outside the. Putting in a big dish in a he oven layers of thinly sliced potatoes, baked beans, sausages and I think she used to add a tin of oxtail soup. Have t had that for 20 years must ask her.
Roast Chicken, Roast Spuds, Peas / Sweetcorn / Carrots, Paxo stuffing (not the posh fresh stuff) and lashings of Bisto gravy (but the dark roast beef one, not the chicken one)
Indeed a few of these regional dishes are worth a try, e.g haggis, or scouse
Pan haggerty. think it’s a northern dish with layers of potatoes, cheese and onions. Used to have it with layers of streaky bacon as well but not sure if that is traditional.
Stuffed Braised Hearts Steak and Kidney Pudding Bacon and Onion Pudding Liver and Bacon Boiled Bacon and Pease Pudding Tripe and Onions Jellied eels Spotted Dick Treacle Sponge Baked Apple
Lovely - but a bit of a cholesterol time bomb ticking away in that lot!
Well, that’s what I was brought up on. I’m coming up to 60 so it hasn’t done me too much harm The difference between the 60’s and 70’s and now is we used to walk everywhere back then so all that tasty food would be burnt off
Comments
Cheese,Chips and Gravy (no i am not northern)
Failing that hash browns cheese and gravy
Wedges cheese and gravy
Something quick and easy so i can go and play football.
Edit- OOPS i thought you meant literally School dinners my bad
Telling the dinner ladies you were a Vegan " well fuck off to the DRs and get out of the line"
Loved school dinners
Gammon/ham, egg, chips, peas. I make a ham ever Xmas and Easter. So this is usually leftovers but will often order for a pub lunch too. I like it with red and brown sauces and mustard too.
Chilli con carne. Slow cooked
Spag bol
Shepherds pie/cottage pie with cheesey mash, peas, carrots, extra gravy
Egg, chips, beans
Lancashire hot pot. Must be lamb cutlets. Potatoes should be crispy at the top
Bangers and mash. Lots of onion gravy
Chicken stew. Mianly made in over with chicken layered on top of the veg to get a crispy skin
I don't know how to do pastry otherwise I would make pies regularly.
Steak and Kidney Pudding
Bacon and Onion Pudding
Liver and Bacon
Boiled Bacon and Pease Pudding
Tripe and Onions
Jellied eels
Spotted Dick
Treacle Sponge
Baked Apple
think it’s a northern dish with layers of potatoes, cheese and onions. Used to have it with layers of streaky bacon as well but not sure if that is traditional.
Chilli and rice with or wothout meat
baked potato, chicken breast coated in bread crumbs and fried in butter, with peas
Rib of beef, Yorkshires, stuffing, veg (like to do mashed parsnip and carrot with butter)
lentil not-shepherds pie is surprisingly good
spag Bol
Polpettini meatballs as per a very old Jamie Oliver recipe with mozzarella in the bake and Parmesan on the top
Real Old Skool bring out every once in a while:
Sausage hotpot. My mums recipe seemed to involve cooking some sausages to get some colour to the outside the. Putting in a big dish in a he oven layers of thinly sliced potatoes, baked beans, sausages and I think she used to add a tin of oxtail soup. Have t had that for 20 years must ask her.
I some times have it as a grown up, but it tastes different without Robert Robertson or Michael Rodd in the background
spam fritters
Treacle sponge and custard
chocolate sponge with mint custard
frankfurters
School meal treats I remember from Addey and Stanhope from 1970-1976