Category Archives: Food
You Say Pasty, I Say Pasty
These pasties are not edible.
A couple of days ago, I blogged about Cornish pasties and their protected status. In my haste, I realize that I completely neglected to call attention to the fact that pasties (pronounced pas tees in the UK) and pasties (pronounced pey stees in the US) have the same spelling but are entirely different animals. And you wouldn’t really want to confuse the two. Or eat one while wearing the other.
I have had no luck, to date, figuring out where pasties got their name, assuming that the meat pie version came first. Did the nipple cover industry one day decide that their product needed a snappier name? Maybe something resembling a popular quick lunch food that was popular with miners?! Your guess is as good as mine.
Pasties Need Protection!
The Cornish Pasty is now protected. BTW, who does this look like to you?
When Americans like food, they eat it. When the Brits like food, they give it “protected status.” Yep, like an endangered species.
Last week, the Cornish pasty (think pie crust stuffed with filling and rolled up like a calzone and baked) joined other British delicacies like Jersey Royale potatoes and Cornish clotted cream and acquired “Protected Food Name Status” by the European Union (EU). Read more about it and view a map of the UK’s protected foods.
What’s it all mean?
Well, now the Cornish pasty will get the respect it deserves: If it’s not made in Cornwall, it can’t be called a Cornish pasty. Pasty, yes. Cornish, no.
It makes me feel a little bit sorry for the food on our shores, so sweet and vulnerable.
The incredible, edible egg
Just your typical egg aisle at the supermarket. Photo credit: Richard Appleyard
I live by the two-hour rule. Refrigerated food can live outside its natural habitat for two hours max. TWO HOURS MAX. It’s a guiding principle in my life.
And so you can imagine my horror the first time I wandered into a Tesco Supermarket and stumbled upon the egg aisle. The unrefrigerated egg aisle with stacks and stacks of egg cartons sitting quite happily in a non-chilled state. Gah.
Apparently, Brits aren’t bothered by this. They buy their eggs, bring them home and put them in the fridge. Why the rush? Why not leave them on the counter for a few days? This I’ve never understood. When asked, I’ve usually gotten the ho-hum, nonchalant response: “Well, eggs need to be refrigerated.” If there is an urgency to put them in a fridge when you’re home, why not the urgency at the supermarket? Not quite sure.
Does anyone know why this is? Or can anyone hasten a guess? It might just be one of those chicken-or-the-egg mysteries …
BRITRISH.COM 