British/Scottish recipes

[david'sgirl 134]

In July I married the love of my life and he just happens to be Scottish. There are a lot of differences between food there and here. I would like to find some good recipes so that I can prepare at least some things the way he is used to having them. Some of it I'm figuring as we go. I think we tend toward sweet here rather than savory. So when I prepare porridge (oatmeal here) I would use two parts water,one part oats and pinch of salt which is fine but then I "ruin it" by adding brown sugar,cinnamon and raisins or banana. So I make his unsweetened. Same with French toast. We end to dust it with powdered sugar and maple syrup not brown sauce. I'm trying to learn though. If you have a great recipe or a link to one and would not mind sharing let me know. Thanks!

[Leenie 15]

There doesn't seem to be that much literature on the web about this topic, unfortunately! Here's a few links I found on Google. You may have already found them, though!

http://britishfood.about.com/od/introtobri...ritish-Recipes/

http://www.britainexpress.com/articles/Food/

One thing that I intend to do is ask my fiance's mom if she can compile some of her recipes for dishes I know he really loves so we can cook them when he gets here. You might also try reaching out to your husband's family!

[david'sgirl 134]

There doesn't seem to be that much literature on the web about this topic, unfortunately! Here's a few links I found on Google. You may have already found them, though!

http://britishfood.about.com/od/introtobri...ritish-Recipes/

http://www.britainexpress.com/articles/Food/

One thing that I intend to do is ask my fiance's mom if she can compile some of her recipes for dishes I know he really loves so we can cook them when he gets here. You might also try reaching out to your husband's family!

I've found multiple online sources. I was kinda wondering if anyone in the UK had any good recipes and might be willing to share.

I did find some by Jamie Oiliver. I had never heard of him but I saw him as a guest on a show here.

My mum in law has promised to share some of her recipes.. Thanks for your help

Edited November 14, 2009 by david'sgirl

[*Snowdrop* 604]

Try this website - Delia Smith is a traditional UK television cook who has been around for years and is often a big favourite with my mother's generation. She recently put all 1400 of her best recipes online for free.

http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes

It really depends what sort of food your husband likes but what I miss over here is...

Traditional Sunday roast dinner - beef, lamb, pork or chicken but with roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, at least four different vegetables, gravy etc

Shepherd's pie

Stews

Fruit crumbles

You can find good suggestions for all of those on Delia's website

[david'sgirl 134]

Try this website - Delia Smith is a traditional UK television cook who has been around for years and is often a big favourite with my mother's generation. She recently put all 1400 of her best recipes online for free.

http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes

It really depends what sort of food your husband likes but what I miss over here is...

Traditional Sunday roast dinner - beef, lamb, pork or chicken but with roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, at least four different vegetables, gravy etc

Shepherd's pie

Stews

Fruit crumbles

You can find good suggestions for all of those on Delia's website

He makes the best Shepherd's pie so I won;t attempt to make one but there are some good ones there.

My nana used to make the best Sunday roast dinners. Families just dont seem to do that anymore except for holidays but we used to go almost every week after church. In Scotland I had a meal out with roast beef and yorkshire pudding and it was amazing but I've never tried to make one so I might try her recipe. My husband makes really good roast beef and gravy but he used storebought puddigs and it tasted different. I'll see how I do. I'm planning a special Christmas meal and would like to not mess it up.lol

I also liked a chicken and leek stew but haven't found a decent recipe yet.

I'm looking for a recipe for rhubarb crisp and custard.

I'm also trying to figur what kind of oatmeal here would come out like the porridge he is used to eating. I used Quaker Old fashioned which is whole oats and he looked at it and asked what it was so clearly it isnt cut the same.

Most things I make will do just fine but I'd like to be able to make some stuff like home so he doesnt get too home sick.

[Chaz and Riggs 0]

I'm also trying to figur what kind of oatmeal here would come out like the porridge he is used to eating. I used Quaker Old fashioned which is whole oats and he looked at it and asked what it was so clearly it isnt cut the same.

Most things I make will do just fine but I'd like to be able to make some stuff like home so he doesnt get too home sick.

Look for "Steel Cut Oats"... that's probably what he's talking about. It looks a bit like cut up brown rice. You have to cook it alot longer, but it is really really yummy.

In July I married the love of my life and he just happens to be Scottish. There are a lot of differences between food there and here. I would like to find some good recipes so that I can prepare at least some things the way he is used to having them. Some of it I'm figuring as we go. I think we tend toward sweet here rather than savory. So when I prepare porridge (oatmeal here) I would use two parts water,one part oats and pinch of salt which is fine but then I "ruin it" by adding brown sugar,cinnamon and raisins or banana. So I make his unsweetened. Same with French toast. We end to dust it with powdered sugar and maple syrup not brown sauce. I'm trying to learn though. If you have a great recipe or a link to one and would not mind sharing let me know. Thanks!

Brown sauce on French Toast?!?!?! That's just wrong.

Brown sauce on French Toast?!?!?! That's just wrong.

French Toast is my all time favourite breakfast food... light on syrup, but Brown Sauce???!!! I know Riggs puts brown sauce on regular toast, but to mar the pristine surface of fresh French Toast is a mortal sin.

Poor french toast...

[Gemmie 142]

I had the same "#######" reaction when I saw Quaker Oats here. I just wanted plain ones that I could add milk too, but everything was covered in seasonings/toppings that were way too much.

I SO wish there was more of a roast diner culture here in the US. It seems that they only do it for an extra special occasion, and even then, it's not the same. I don't know how to tell my MIL that because she tries. If I ever decide to make one, she'll probably be surprised. Here, there's a lack of roast potatoes (always mash), there is more emphasis on stuffing than veggies, and the gravy is always way too thin and flavoured. And this is with every roast I've seen, including in a restaurant. I want my roasties, beef, yorkshire pudding, stuffing, peas, runner-beans, broccoili and thick beef gravy!

Sometimes I see Shepherd's Pie on the menu and want to order it so bad, but don't want to be one of those annoying natives that complain that it's not cooked right.

I'm not trying to completely slag off American food, I like most of it. I just miss the authentic British food.

Edited November 18, 2009 by Gemmie

[amykathleen2005 441]

I can do some nice mini Yorkshire pudds

[david'sgirl 134]

I'm also trying to figur what kind of oatmeal here would come out like the porridge he is used to eating. I used Quaker Old fashioned which is whole oats and he looked at it and asked what it was so clearly it isnt cut the same.

Most things I make will do just fine but I'd like to be able to make some stuff like home so he doesnt get too home sick.

Look for "Steel Cut Oats"... that's probably what he's talking about. It looks a bit like cut up brown rice. You have to cook it alot longer, but it is really really yummy.

In July I married the love of my life and he just happens to be Scottish. There are a lot of differences between food there and here. I would like to find some good recipes so that I can prepare at least some things the way he is used to having them. Some of it I'm figuring as we go. I think we tend toward sweet here rather than savory. So when I prepare porridge (oatmeal here) I would use two parts water,one part oats and pinch of salt which is fine but then I "ruin it" by adding brown sugar,cinnamon and raisins or banana. So I make his unsweetened. Same with French toast. We end to dust it with powdered sugar and maple syrup not brown sauce. I'm trying to learn though. If you have a great recipe or a link to one and would not mind sharing let me know. Thanks!

Brown sauce on French Toast?!?!?! That's just wrong.

Brown sauce on French Toast?!?!?! That's just wrong.

French Toast is my all time favourite breakfast food... light on syrup, but Brown Sauce???!!! I know Riggs puts brown sauce on regular toast, but to mar the pristine surface of fresh French Toast is a mortal sin.

Poor french toast...

Thanks for the tips.

I've never tried the brown sauce on french toast but he swears it's better than sex.lol

[david'sgirl 134]

I had the same "#######" reaction when I saw Quaker Oats here. I just wanted plain ones that I could add milk too, but everything was covered in seasonings/toppings that were way too much.

I SO wish there was more of a roast diner culture here in the US. It seems that they only do it for an extra special occasion, and even then, it's not the same. I don't know how to tell my MIL that because she tries. If I ever decide to make one, she'll probably be surprised. Here, there's a lack of roast potatoes (always mash), there is more emphasis on stuffing than veggies, and the gravy is always way too thin and flavoured. And this is with every roast I've seen, including in a restaurant. I want my roasties, beef, yorkshire pudding, stuffing, peas, runner-beans, broccoili and thick beef gravy!

Sometimes I see Shepherd's Pie on the menu and want to order it so bad, but don't want to be one of those annoying natives that complain that it's not cooked right.

I'm not trying to completely slag off American food, I like most of it. I just miss the authentic British food.

I dont mind. Before I went to UK people warned me how I would have bad food and warm beer. Um no. The food ws good and Guiness was cold. My husband is better than me at some meals. He hade a meal like you described when I came over last xmas. It was so good but so much! How can any pack away roast beef,yorkshire pudding,mashed tatties and roasted potaties and peas and carrots and gravy and then want dessert? It was sooo good. He makes wicked good Shepherds pie but I've yet to have anything even close in a restaurant.

[CaMic 0]

In July I married the love of my life and he just happens to be Scottish. There are a lot of differences between food there and here. I would like to find some good recipes so that I can prepare at least some things the way he is used to having them. Some of it I'm figuring as we go. I think we tend toward sweet here rather than savory. So when I prepare porridge (oatmeal here) I would use two parts water,one part oats and pinch of salt which is fine but then I "ruin it" by adding brown sugar,cinnamon and raisins or banana. So I make his unsweetened. Same with French toast. We end to dust it with powdered sugar and maple syrup not brown sauce. I'm trying to learn though. If you have a great recipe or a link to one and would not mind sharing let me know. Thanks!

hehehehe, I make do with A1 Steak Sauce on my french toast when I'm over there, people look at me like I'm crazy. I tried to find red lentils a couple of times to make lentil soup (not strictly British but very popular here) but couldnt find them in walmart or the smaller stores and the lentils I did manage to find just dint work as well. I made trifle once and ended up having to eat the whole thing myself (over 3 days that is, lol). Stovies are a big favourite of mine but not from the online recipes, I haven't found one that's like the stovies I remember from being a kid so I do my own thing with them, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Most things I cook I tend to make up as I go along or do from memory but I may have to invest in a scottish cookbook before I leave here for good.

[rebeccajo 14]

My husband has been here for four years now. Some things you learn to do without, some you can't do without, and some you find substitutes. It can get really expensive ordering Brit products online.

He can't do without HP Sauce or Branston Pickle. We do order those as we can't find them locally. (We had three big plastic bottles of HP in our suitcases when we came back from holiday last April).

Oatmeal - porridge- whatever you wanna call it.... we look for McCann's Irish Oatmeal on grocer's shelves. They market both the steel cut oats and the more 'vanilla' version. You make it (of course) with milk not water. It passes muster with the husband.

And if you're suffering for a decent cuppa, my husband can make do with Tetley's British Blend. Our Wal-Mart used to carry it but they've stopped; we get it at Kroger's now. We use an extra bag in the pot compared to full-fledged teas we order online or get from back home. So far as tea in the US goes, I've come to believe that if you can find a decent substitute then you are still only halfway home. You need a decent teapot (I imported an authentic Brown Betty) and you need to warm the interior of the pot by swirling and then dumping a bit of the boiled water BEFORE you put the bags in for steeping.

Edited December 15, 2009 by rebeccajo

[catrocks 0]

I tried to find red lentils a couple of times to make lentil soup (not strictly British but very popular here) but couldnt find them in walmart or the smaller stores and the lentils I did manage to find just dint work as well.

The other lentils are just not the same as the red ones. I have found 2 places that sell them - our local Indian supermarket, and a huge world market place which sells food from all different countries.

If you have an Indian store or an international supermarket in your area I'd look there

[david'sgirl 134]

My husband has been here for four years now. Some things you learn to do without, some you can't do without, and some you find substitutes. It can get really expensive ordering Brit products online.

He can't do without HP Sauce or Branston Pickle. We do order those as we can't find them locally. (We had three big plastic bottles of HP in our suitcases when we came back from holiday last April).

Oatmeal - porridge- whatever you wanna call it.... we look for McCann's Irish Oatmeal on grocer's shelves. They market both the steel cut oats and the more 'vanilla' version. You make it (of course) with milk not water. It passes muster with the husband.

And if you're suffering for a decent cuppa, my husband can make do with Tetley's British Blend. Our Wal-Mart used to carry it but they've stopped; we get it at Kroger's now. We use an extra bag in the pot compared to full-fledged teas we order online or get from back home. So far as tea in the US goes, I've come to believe that if you can find a decent substitute then you are still only halfway home. You need a decent teapot (I imported an authentic Brown Betty) and you need to warm the interior of the pot by swirling and then dumping a bit of the boiled water BEFORE you put the bags in for steeping.

I found Branston pickle in Stop n Shop but it is $4.99 for a jar!! The HP fruity is all over but he wants brown sauce which I cant locate. I'm wondering if it is the same as Heinz 57 sauce. I've found the oatmeal/porridge is a different texture but taste is pretty much the same although he would rather it with salt and I do it that way but I also like it with brown sugar,raisins and milk. Guess its all in what you grew up having as a kid. The biggest difference he comments on is our bread is too sweet. Have you found any brands here that are similar to home? I asked my mother in law for recipes thinking there must be some secret family ones but nope she just sent me the same links online.lol

hehehehe, I make do with A1 Steak Sauce on my french toast when I'm over there, people look at me like I'm crazy. I tried to find red lentils a couple of times to make lentil soup (not strictly British but very popular here) but couldnt find them in walmart or the smaller stores and the lentils I did manage to find just dint work as well. I made trifle once and ended up having to eat the whole thing myself (over 3 days that is, lol). Stovies are a big favourite of mine but not from the online recipes, I haven't found one that's like the stovies I remember from being a kid so I do my own thing with them, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Most things I cook I tend to make up as I go along or do from memory but I may have to invest in a scottish cookbook before I leave here for good.

What is Stovies? It actually sounds familiar.

[rebeccajo 14]

Is Heinz 57 the same as HP?

Nope.

Sorry.

Regarding bread - we're as 'broke' as anybody, but we don't buy our bread off the shelf of the bread aisle. We pay a little extra for breads from the deli section of our local grocery. My husband is always experimenting and we really have no trouble finding things he likes. You might try french loaves, italian loves or other 'crusty' things.

Potatoes - after I had decent Irish potatoes, I was looking for a better American alternative. Try golden potatoes - they are flour-y like many varieties in the UK and Ireland.

I'm not sure I'm the best person to give advice about these things because my husband is really not particular. He knew when he came here he was going to have to adapt and he's made the necessary concessions regarding food. He's never been a big complainer over US bread. Or chocolate. Or many of the other things I read that British long for. NOW, that's not to say that he doesn't miss things. He gets REALLY happy when we are in an area where we can pick up British products. He stuffed himself with bacon and sausage when we visited home last spring. And like I said, we brought HP sauce home in the luggage.

After four years, we've ended up with a blend of products or items in our house that are 'similar'. We never have a full meal that is strictly irish or british. Wes 'laid down the gauntlet' when he decided to move here - he stated he couldn't live without HP or Branston, and so we make sure we have those. Everything else - he's flexible on.

I say let your husband do some cooking and watch what he does. Watch how he seasons things. And when you cook, ask him what he likes and doesn't like about the meal and BE HONESTLY PREPARED to hear him and be willing to modify what you can. There are some things you can do easily to remind him of the foods he loves and other things you can't. They live here now and even though we love 'em, we can't baby 'em too much.