Gordon Ramsay's Great British Pub Food
Review of Cookery Book with Traditional Recipes from Britain
Oct 18, 2009
The words ‘great British pub’ conjure up images of real ales, traditional Sunday lunch, good company and a cosy fire in winter. Although hundreds of traditional pubs have disappeared over the past few years, generally replaced by soulless bars, it is still possible to find good pubs in Britain with plenty of character. They're more popular than ever, now that old-fashioned British dishes are being rediscovered.
Gastropubs
It was beer, rather than food, that used to characterise pub life. However, the rise of the gastropub – where the focus is on the food rather than the drink, has changed all that. In fact, these days a pub can be one of the best places to enjoy some of the traditional British dishes that have all but disappeared from restaurant menus.
Gordon Ramsay's Pub Food
Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has set up a number of gastropubs in London, serving classic British dishes with a modern twist. The emphasis is said to be on simple, but tasty food. And so that people can try making these old-fashioned favourites for themselves, he has also brought out a cookbook. Called Gordon Ramsay’s Great British Pub Food, by Gordon Ramsay and Mark Sargeant (pub. Harper Collins £20), it has over 120 recipes based on the dishes served in Ramsay's pubs.
Recipe for Mulligatawny Soup
It seems unlikely that you would bother to make some of the dishes at home – like Scotch eggs, which are eggs coated with herby sausagemeat, then fried – but the majority of the recipes would make ideal family food. For a light, easy lunch there is Welsh rabbit, a delicious type of cheese on toast, while some of the filling soups would make an easy supper. There’s even a recipe for mulligatawny, a spicy British soup that dates back to the colonial era and is flavoured with curry powder, grated ginger and coconut milk.
Toad-in-the-hole and Cottage Pie with Guinness
If you’re in need of some comfort food or just a warming meal on a cold day, then Great British Pub Food has plenty of recipes to tempt you. There’s cottage pie, which is minced meat with a mashed potato topping, here given a modern twist with a bottle of Guinness in with the mince. Then there are recipes for Cornish pasties, steak and kidney pie -a real pub favourite, and toad-in-the-hole - sausages cooked in Yorkshire pudding. Along with these are recipes for lesser known dishes like braised beef cheeks, rabbit hotpot with perry (that’s pear cider) and smoked ham hock with pease pudding. Pease pudding is made from dried split green peas.
Traditional Treacle Tart
Traditional British cooking isn’t noted for its low calorie desserts, and Gordon Ramsay’s book has plenty of indulgent puddings for you to make. There’s traditional treacle tart, which is actually made with golden syrup; Queen of puddings, made with breadcrumbs, jam and topped with meringue; and a classic sherry trifle, which is laced with sherry and topped with double cream. All you need afterwards is another traditional British favourite – a long country walk to work it off.
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