Why does British food have such a bad reputation?
6/18/202635 min
Is British cooking a crime against food? Or is this a foreign plot to do down Britain? Ben Henderson and Alice Loxton investigate the history behind Britain’s culinary reputation. They explore how British aristocrats turned towards French food from the 1600s, while Britain’s peasant cuisine was crushed by the industrial revolution and land enclosures. Finally, they examine the enduring legacy of World War Two rationing. Subscribe to the podcast on BBC Sounds and on Here For The History’s YouTube channel. Key Sources: English Food: A People’s History - Diane Purkiss Much Ado About Cooking - Sam Bilton Cooking & Dining in the Victorian Country House - Peter Brears Beef and Liberty - Ben Rogers The English Table: Our Food Through the Ages - Jill Norman
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsBen Henderson· Host0:05
So I was on the train the other day from London up to Manchester, where I live, and I'd packed this absolutely glorious sandwich. It was beef and, you know, it had some mustard in there and the horseradish. I took it out of the foil packaging. I was like, oh, I can feel the smell.
Alice Loxton· Host0:18
This is an elite train picnic.
Ben Henderson· Host0:20
Oh, it was absolutely fantastic. And I can't take credit for actually making it. It was my dad. But I was absolutely enjoying myself tucking in. You know, the crumbs are flying all over the person opposite me. And it really got me thinking, you know, British food is a bit underrated, I feel. It doesn't really get the credit it deserves. But then I started doing some research on my phone, and then I came across this absolutely disgraceful meme that I've seen a few times before actually. I'll read it out to you. So it says, heaven is where the police are British, the chefs Italian, the mechanics German, the lovers French, and it's all organized by the Swiss. Hell is where the police are German, the mechanics French, the lovers Swiss, it's all organized by the Italians, and the chefs are British.
Alice Loxton· Host1:02
No, that's outrageous. That is outrageous. But I think you're right that many people do have this perception that British food is terrible. And we do see it all the time. I mean, there's that quote from 2005 from the former French president, Jacques Chirac. And he said, you can't trust people who cook as badly as that, in reference to the British. He said, after Finland, it's the country