The English Breakfast

If England has some kind of representative dish that is very good, its filling and especially helpful in a morning hangover, that plate would be the English Breakfast.


An English breakfast is a cooked hot meal which, for many English speakers around the world, represents the best breakfast in the world. There are many variations on the English breakfast, most of them are named for the regions they borrow from; a Scottish Breakfast, for example, carries traditional Scottish foods besides the original components of the English breakfast.
English breakfast can also be called a fry up, because almost everything is fried: tomatoes, onions, sausages...Two classic components of the English breakfast are bacon and eggs, but the food doesn't stop there.


A fry up may also include: hash browns, toast, sausage, black pudding, beans, grilled tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms, porridge, and kippers. It is also common to see an assortment of condiments, like jams and ketchup, and in some places, fresh fruit can be offered as well, for those who find the traditional components of the English breakfast too heavy.

Classically, a fry up is accompanied with many cups of strong black tea or coffee, and orange juice is also not uncommon, especially among more health-conscious consumers, who may try to temper the massive artery-clogging impact of the traditional English breakfast.


The invention of the English breakfast appears to be very recent. It seems to have emerged in the mid-1800s, and it was especially popular among the wealthy aristocracy, although farmers may have eaten similar meals before this point. In rich homes, the components of breakfast were often spread out on a buffet and people served themselves whatever they wanted, and the English breakfast was a display of wealth as much as it was an array of food, given the expense of meat.
Many English speaking nations offer some version of the English breakfast, with a focus on regional specialties. You may also hear the English breakfast called an “all day” breakfast, referring to the fact that it could fuel someone´s batteries for a day, and to the fact that many people like to eat an English breakfast over a period of several hours, rather than trying to eating it all in at once.


This plate, along with the Hot Irish, has been a good companion during my time serving at the Irish Pub I worked at, serving sometimes as energy reconstituent, sometimes as painkiller for hangovers. It was the one and only English dish I liked, besides the Chicken Curry, but I guess that is just a Hindu dish that the English have embraced as theirs to fill up the lack of variety and quality of their gastronomy. And I am not the only one who thinks this...

“To eat well in England you should have breakfast three times a day.”
W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965)

Transgenic Food

The earlier post I posted talked about how massive food production can harm this society´s health and economy. This one will talk about how it can improve it.

The staples submitted to genetics engineering (GMO´s) are those produced from a genetically modified organism to produce the desired characteristics using molecular genetic techniques such as gene cloning and protein engineering.

GM food is developed and commercialized because of its advantages for the farmers and the consumers of such food. They are cheaper and more resistant to crop plagues by insects of viruses.

Some of the staples that are genetically modified are corn, soy and pumpkin. Animals have been modified also, such as pigs, fish, sheep and even rats for laboratory investigation.

European Corn BorE

The resistance towards insects is achieved by introducing in the plants a gen that produces the toxin of the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis (BT). This toxine is actually used as a conventional pesticide in agriculture and it is harmless for humans. It has been proven that GM crops that produce this toxin requires less amounts of pesticides where the risk of plague is higher. Here in Spain, the corn used in our fields is the Corn BT, genetically modified to resist the plague of the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis, which destroys corn crops by burrowing into the stem, causing the plant to fall.

The viral resistance is obtained by the introduction of a gen of the virus that may cause infection to the plant, acting as a vaccine. This reduces the risk of crop extermination and guarantees their performance.

The theoretic discussions have involved a large number of possible risks, but the most important and possible problems are an allergic reaction, gen transference and outcrossing:

-Allergenicity. In order to prevent this to happen, the crops have never been genetically modified with genes that come from staples that cause allergic reactions in humans. Research has proven no risk in the GMO´s that are commercialized.

-Gen transferring. Experts were worried that the genes added to the crop could possibly transfer to the human cells or to the bacteria in our intestines, provoking a threat to human health. This can cause our cells or the bacteria to be inmune towards some antibiotics. Even though the possiblity is low, the use of genes that provoke that immunity is avoided.

-Outcrossing. This consists of the displacement of these genes in normal crops or in wild plants. This could have an indirect effect in the toxicity and security of the food.

There risks are there, but there is a possibility that future GMO´s for crops that will be more resistant towards droughts and have a igher nutritional value. Fish species could also be modified to increase their production and even their weight and size. Animals and plants could also be modified to produce a protein that are indispensable for medicines and vaccines.

There is a huge debate whether this is morally right or not, if it can harm humankind and/or destroy our environment, but for now, the GMO´s are proving their efficiency. Maybe someday this leads us to finish with the hunger in the world.

The Corruption of Food

There is a incompatibility between a system based on private ownership monopolies and the production of sustainable, healthy food.
Eating habits have changed more in the last 50 years than in the previous 10,000.This tells us how mass food production has impacted on consumption. The quality of the food has decreased consistently due to the bulking processes of the raw material, creating health problems to the consumers in the long run, just for more profit. Some of the facts and figures are chilling.

Such is the monopolisation of the meat industry, that the top five US meatpacking companies in the 1970s owned 20 percent of the local market. Today, these same companies own 80 percent, with regulatory agencies virtually controlled by these giant companies. In 1972, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) worked in approximately 50,000 food safety inspections a year. These stats had dropped to only 9,164 in 2006 for obvious reasons: it´s not profitable to have all of the food quality controlled.

Corn production is heavily subsidised in the US: about 30 percent of the main country is used for corn cultivation purposes. Corn is included in countless foods items, specially in fast foods, which makes it much cheaper than fresh products.

Corn is nowadays a major element for beef cattle, but this has increased E.coli infections in the U.S., and this type of E.coli can evolve in the animals into E.coli 757, with deadly results. In example, this led to the death of a two-year-old girl who had eaten E.coli 757 contaminated beef. The company that sold the infected meat did not withdraw it from supermarkets until 16 days after the child’s death. They have yet to apologize to the child’s family.

Moreover, fast food is filled with calories from refined sugar and fats (especially, the artery-clogging saturated fats, which are reheated to high temperatures for frying purposes).
It is also high in sodium, coming from common salt and other additives. Furthermore, fast food is low in dietary fiber and vital micro-nutrients such as vitamins and minerals.

The Consequences

Eating fast food and being physically inactive only adds to the problem of obesity. Not many people know that obesity is a major risk factor for a large number of deadly diseases like hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, and even many types of cancers.

Recent scientific studies have proved that high-calorie foods rich in fats, refined sugar and salt can reconfigure hormones in the human body in such a way that they make you crave for such foods and always leave you asking for more.

In other words, fast food is somewhat addictive; you turn dependent on it, consuming it in an uncontrolled way even though you know that it is unhealthy. The more you consume, the more difficult it is for you include healthy foods in your diet.

Why do they let this happen?

One word explains it all: PROFIT. Only McDonald´s, the biggest fast food company, profits around 22 billion dollars a year, enough to bribe every government in the world so the food quality is not checked that often. These companies feed us with food that damages our system in the long run, but gives us enough time to be a good client for many years. What can we do about it? Eat healthy.

Food idioms

Food idioms!

"An idiom is a word, phrase, or expression that cannot be taken literally because the meaning is figurative. Idioms are a form of expression peculiar to a language"

The English language has many idioms that mentions food. How can food add a bit of spice to the English language and where do they come from? This is what we are going to try to find out in this article.m of expression peculiar to a language".

Take a physiological necessity essential to human survival: eating. Mix it for several centuries to the only way of communication that humans have: language. Sprinkle the whole with a few grams of customs, locals particularities, infliuent

ial personalities... you will finaly get a nice array of food expressions!

For example, have you ever heard of the expression "to go cold turkey"?

It is usually said when you want to quit something, it can be alcohol or cigarettes as well as chocolate or soda, without weaning yourself off it. It is said that tje original idea was that a person withdrawing from using drugs would find his or her skin turning hard to the touch and translucent to look at, with goose pimples all over - like the skin of a plucked turkey. It ha salso been suggested that the phrase is a comparison between eating a no-prep meal of cold turkey and stopping heavy drugs use without preparation...

Also, have you ever "buttered someone up"?? This idiom is used when trying to persuade someone to do something for someone else. It's easy to assume that the idea behind this phrase has to do with the smoothly way of how butter can be spread on bread. But that is not it. It is said that it comes from an ancient Indian custom of "throwing butterballs of ghee (clarified butter comonly used in Indian cooking) at the statues of the gods to seek favor".

You could also hear "to have a bun in the oven". It refers to a woman who is pregnant. The origin of this term are unclear but is has been used since the early mid 20th century to compare pregnancy and baking. TThe bun aka the baby, has to be cooked for a specific lenght of time in the oven, or the mother's womb.

But the most basic ingredients of food expressions are fruits and vegetables. For example you can hear:

"to go bananas": go crazy, mad or wild with excitment, anger, frustration or any strong emotion. No one really knows where this expression comes from but it is said that it might have been originated in the 60's when rumors spread across universities campuses that roasted banana peels had psychedelic propertis and that ingesting them could lead to hallucinations similar to LSD or magic mushrooms...

"to be like two peas in a pod": to say that two people are like two peas in a pod means that they are very similar in appearance. The phrase, which is sometimes given as "like as two peas", is quite old and versions of it date from the 16th century.

"to be as cool as a cucumber": when someone is as cool as

a cucumber it means they are not anxious, but relaxed and non-emotional. This expression was first recorded in John

Gay'sPoems, New song on new similies, in 1732. "I...as cool as a cucumber could see The rest of womankind"

"a hot potato" is a problem or topic so controversial an sensitive that it is hard to deal with. This term dates back from the mid 1800's.

Why did all these food idioms emerged in English language throughout all these years? Probably because all these expressions using food are instantly very recognisable by everyone. I think that the key to a good expression is that it needs to be very easy to picture for everybody. Food is good for this reason because it is an experience that we all share and that we can all understand. Maybe in the future we will start to hear expressions about more recent culinary imports!?

Bread, bread, bread

F r e n c h b r e a d

"Bread: a common food made from flour, water, and usually yeast (a substance that makes the bread grow larger). Bread is usually sold in a large piece called loaf or made into smaller pieces called rolls. You usually cut bread into slices to eat it."

Bread is one of the most emblematic symbol of France. In French gastronomic culture, it is always present. To buy bread is something completely normal and common in France since 9 out of 10 Frenchmen buy fresh bread everyday.

At the end of the 19th, the French consumed around 600 grams of bread per day, which represents something like 3 baguettes per day and per person (!). It was indeed the basic food for people, they would eat it accompanied with a fruit or with a piece of cheese and it would serve as a whole meal. Nowadays the French only consume 140 grams per day. However the drop in the consumption of bread does not change the fact that bread has been at the heart of the French culture since many centuries, in constant creation and innovation. It is a constant element in the Frenchman's everyday life that is associated with the idea of pleasure, quality and balance.

Only 3% of the French consider bread as a "fattening food". 50% of them think that it is "something essential to a balance diet" and the rest think that it is "a pleasant garnish for meals". The older you get, the more you consider bread as something essential and not only something that we eat by pleasure or by weakness for good food.

It is even considered an art! In 2004, the designer Jean-Paul Gaultier even created dresses made out of bread, brioche or Viennese Pastry!

In France there are more than 37000 bakeries... and at least as many ways to make bread! It even exists a national event called "Bread Festival", to celebrate, promote and share the bakers know-how to everyone for one whole week.

What does bread provide for us?

A normal ration (about 200gr/day) will provide 25% of the recommended daily energetic requirements, without making you fat and its sating effect will help avoid misplaced nibbling.

Bread contains 55% of glucids, that is to say "carbs" that will release energy throughout the day, contrarily to fast sugars. It also contains fibers, which will help you regularize the transit of your bowels, slow down the digestion and help lower cholesterol. Depending on the bread you eat, it will provide minerals, vegetal proteins and vitamins.

To conclude, there is only one thing left to say: "Eat bread!"

ENGLICIOUS

Cooking is an unique activity to humans, and some scientists believe that it plays an important role in human evolution. Most anthropologists believe that some important facts as agriculture and commerce in some areas could be conditioned by the gastronomy itself, and some new inventions as pottery could be developed in order to satisfy some culinary needs.

So, cooking is surely a reflection of culture and, because of that it is so important. But lately, a huge problem has appeared, obesity. The problem of childhood obesity has grown considerably in recent years. So, because of that, the UK government seeks to introduce compulsory cooking lessons for teenagers at schools. And this could be a great idea. Furthermore, it is a solution to the main problem in Spain, English.

Some experts believe that cooking is the perfect method to learn a foreign language and it could be a way to educate children to improve their eating habits. Cooking is a good way to learn English because:

1. Recipes follow pretty much the same format and the instructions are short, logical and sequential, so it is easy to understand and memorize for a child.

2. Children will be using all five senses: touch, sight, taste, smell and hearing. This enhances the experience and they will remember it better. Instead of studying words in a language students are creating an experience in the language.

3. They become familiar with some verbs normally used in cooking fields (such as roasting, baking, boiling, frying…) and they can learn how the metric system works.

Otherwise, cooking in a foreign language is especially helpful in fostering self-esteem, because to be succeeding in a cooking experience could help a child to be more self-confident.

But that’s not all, part of learning a language is experiencing another culture, and food is a big part of any culture. Students need to learn the tastes, smells and names of native foods. It will improve their social abilities. So they will have fun too.

Cooking at school would be a perfect opportunity to teach children a new language in a new better way, besides they could learn how to eat healthy food and they could discover a tasty new world, full of flavors.