United Kingdom: So, You Say You Want A Revolution?

A revolution is happening in Britain — a culinary revolution, that is. It is spawning a radical change in the way the Brits — and the whole world — are thinking about British food. No longer is British fare categorized only as hearty, bland, heavy, or unimaginative. Modern British fare is a combination of age-old techniques, timeless recipes, and quality ingredients with a flair of the here and now mixed in for good measure.

The refining of palates is a global phenomenon, and now consumers can help satisfy their desire for great-tasting food by investigating the wealth of products available from the United Kingdom. Food exports from the UK benefit particularly well because many of the exported food products are complements or rather elements of recipes and meals — sauces, spices, condiments, and so on.

"Britain hasn't really exported a cuisine like the Italians or the French have," points out Steve Dawson, president of Food from Britain North America. "Instead, we export a variety of products which serve well as a complement to a recipe." This asset is what is helping strengthen foods from the UK in the culinary world. You know British products are on the culinary map when The Wall Street Journal mentions a restaurant which serves an appetizer of sea urchin sprinkled with crushed Altoids.

Further helping to stimulate this culinary revolution are the quirky television personalities who have been gracing the airways not only in Britain, but in the U.S. as well. The Two Fat Ladies paved the way for flamboyant TV chef Ainsley Harriott, who travels the world helping revolutionize outdoor cooking. Wherever he travels, he brings a bit of British flair with him.

This revolution has instilled a sense of pride in the manufacture of authentic products. From dairy products to meat and smoked fish, fruit jams, chutneys, shortbread and soup, authentic products are being sought by consumers who demand products which define Britain's cuisine.

Cheese

This renewed sense of pride in all things British has provoked a resurgence in many traditional production methods. Cheese is one of the best examples. Stilton and Cheddar remain two of the most popular award-winning British cheeses, but there is an increasing range of top-quality cheeses both hard and soft, and made of cow's, sheep's, and goat's milk being produced throughout the country.

In just the last 15 years, there has been a renewed interest in cheesemaking, with many old recipes being revised and modernized to create new recipes. Not since the 17th century has Britain offered such a diversity of cheese.

Farmhouse cheeses made on small family-run farms utilize traditional cheesemaking methods. But besides the methods, it is the ingredients which can truly separate farmhouse cheeses from those that are mass produced. These cheeses are not uniform, often change with seasons, and rely on the craft of the cheesemaker to produce a truly great cheese.

Farmhouse Cheddars for example are made by hand from the milk of the herds on the farmers' land. The milk is not pasteurized before the cheese is made, which ultimately provides a fuller flavor than those that are commercially made. Beyond making traditional farmhouse cheeses via time-honored methods, the industry has broadened their products' appeal by adding flavors such as garlic, herbs, spices, dried fruit, nuts, and pickles to these favorites.

Beverages

The Dutch introduced tea to Britain in the mid-17th century and since then, the two have been inseparable. Thomas Twining was the man who helped popularize the beverage in Britain when he began serving it in his coffeehouses. Its popularity led to the emergence of a multitude of tea companies, including Twinings, within the country. Two blends are particularly popular in the UK: Earl Grey, a black tea flavored with the oil of the bergamot, and English Breakfast, a robust blend of teas from India and Sri Lanka that is perfect for morning consumption. In addition to these standby favorites, British tea companies are offering a growing selection of excellent blended and single-variety teas both loose and in tea bags. There is also a growing trend towards the production of organic teas, as well as herbal tisane blends. The increasing popularity of tea among Americans is increasing the demand for English teas.

Lightly carbonated herbal drinks from England are also making headway in the U.S. market. As consumers search for healthier, more tasteful versions of sugary soft drinks, these beverages made with a refreshing mix of juices are filling the void. Nontraditional flavors for the U.S. market include ones infused with the subtle flavor of nettle or elderflower fruit. A selection of nonalcoholic wines and champagne are available as well; most contain no preservatives or additives.



Condiments and Sauces

Jams, jellies, and marmalades — to the Brits, they each represent something different. Jams are made with fruit pulp cooked with sugar, while jellies are made from the juice of cooked fruit pulp. The British use jams as a sweet spread and jellies are often used as condiments and are frequently paired with meats.

Marmalade, a jam-like preserve made using the bitter Seville orange, is characterized by the peel which is an integral part of the preserve. The size of the peel ranges from small to thick, the cuts being a personal preference. This concept is the basis for other marmalades made from lemons, limes, and other citrus fruits. Variations of the traditional marmalade have appeared, including new flavor combinations such as orange-lemon-ginger. Once considered more of a luxury item than jam, marmalade is now a staple on nearly every breakfast table throughout England.

The English pantry is home to a variety of sauces and condiments, many of Indian heritage. The growing lines of Indian-inspired sauces and seasonings are all made with two things in mind — great taste and convenience. From curry, biryani, and tandoori pastes to Indian stir-fry sauces, pappadums, and chutney, these products provide everything necessary — with the exception of the meat or vegetables — to make a meal at home in just a few steps.

Baked Goods

The shortbread's origin stems from the biscuits or "short cakes" made throughout the country in the 16th century. However, in the UK, shortbread is regarded as a specialty of Scotland, the original version being a thick layer of rich, sweetened shortcrust pastry. Its quite distinctive texture is indicative of the quality of the simple ingredients — butter, sugar, and flour. A number of manufacturers export shortbread in a variety of types beyond the traditional style. Ginger, orange peel, and chocolate chips give traditional shortbread a bit of variety, as well as those made with organic ingredients.

Crackers are varied, but the most well known is probably the water cracker — a thin, hard biscuit with a flaky texture. Made primarily from soft wheat flour and water, these water "biscuits" are a descendent of ship's biscuits which were used when fresh bread was unattainable. A very popular carrier of cheese, these modern-day crackers have been spruced up with flavors all their own. Cracked pepper, cheese, and other flavors bring a whole new dimension to this category.

Seafood

Some of the UK's richest harvest comes from the sea and lochs which surround the country so it's no surprise that the Brits know how to prepare seafood. Haddock, oysters, or mackerel sardines served with slivers of red onion and fresh horseradish sauce make a good Ploughman's Lunch.

One of the most well-known specialties from Scotland is smoked salmon. Salmon lends itself to many different cures, the most popular being smoked. Scotland and Ireland are famous for their preparation of smoked wild salmon. At one time, Scotland's wild salmon was pickled and then sent to London as food for the poor. Today, Scottish wild salmon is considered a luxury. The popularity of salmon from these waters is due to the advances in technology and husbandry abilities of the fish farmers.

Confections

From inexpensive novelty candies to the finest chocolate, the range of confections available from the UK is enormous. A time-honored favorite of the Brits is the boiled sweet which is made by simply boiling sugar. Toffee, fudge, and pulled candies are considered boiled sweets and although the basic recipe for British toffee is quite straightforward — a syrup of sugar and butter, when made in the UK, it is considered among the best. Cooked to either soft or hard crack stage, it can be made even more tasty with the addition of flavorings such as mint, chocolate, nuts, or even whisky.



A Look at the Region of Anglia

The long expanse of rural fields and slightly changing landscape in East Anglia may fool the uninitiated visitor. At first glance, one might not think anything could survive on this flat, exposed landscape. But in this area comprised of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, and rural North Essex, the rich soil, warm sun, and dry winds are perfect for growing a multitude of agricultural products ranging from wheat and barley to soft fruits.

The countryside produces an extensive range of products each with its own distinctive characteristics, including traditional and smoked hams, poultry and game, rare breed meats, traditional baked bread, and hand-raised pies. Making their way to the U.S. are products such as puddings, ales, fruit juices, mustards, and award-winning wines. Located just northeast of London, the area has been quite successful in utilizing local raw ingredients to make a variety of products.

Take a short trip with us to East Anglia as we discover some of the traditional and innovative offerings from three of the area's specialty producers.

Mustard Mania

Mustard has grown in the fields of England since the Romans sowed the mustard plant in the area. Today, the fields of Anglia's countryside make a lasting impression when the bright yellow mustard seed flowers are in full bloom in June.

Mustard has always been important throughout Europe because it can be grown locally, making it one of the cheapest spices. The fundamentals of manufacturing mustard today are similar to those Jeremiah Colman used more than 170 years ago when he could be found mixing and sifting mustard flour while his family labeled the casks. The heritage of Colman's of Norwich, one of England's best-known brands of mustard, dates back to 1814 when Jeremiah Colman took over a mustard-manufacturing business located four miles south of Norwich on the Tas River. In 1823, Jeremiah and his adopted nephew James formed a partnership which helped solidify the company's place in British history.

In the early days, the mustard seed was ground much as black pepper is today. The invention of a grinding and sifting process made mustard flour a norm at the table; it was even a favorite condiment of King George I. The distinctive taste of English mustard is derived from the blending of brown and white mustard plants. The brown mustard imparts the flavors, the white, the heat.

At Colman's, this unique blend of strong, distinctive flavors is achieved by blending two parts brown mustard to one part white. The strength of the result is no stranger to the British; however for outsiders, it is an awakening.

The British use mustard flour for numerous uses. Combining it with wine, beer, citrus fruits, or olive oil makes a delicious baste for grilling. The flour adds flavor and bite to dressings and enhances white sauces for fish dishes, vegetable gratins, or souffles. Even the flavor of bacon is intensified when a little mustard powder is sprinkled on the bottom of the frying pan.

Once the mustard flour has been produced, it is mixed with various other ingredients to create a range of prepared mustards.

Jeremiah James Colman was a visionary not only in the production of mustard, but by realizing that a happy, healthy workforce would be more productive. He built and subsidized a school for employees' children, set up a kitchen to provide hot meals at affordable prices, and hired one of the first industrial nurses to assist the company doctor and to visit sick employees in their homes.



The Pub Scene

Nearly every small town in the UK boasts its own local ale which is served in the many pubs that dot the countryside. For years, townsfolk gathered at pubs to catch up on local gossip, enjoy locally brewed ale, and grab a quick bite to eat. Unfortunately, local pubs suffered as townspeople moved to bigger cities, leaving the small-town lifestyle behind. Only recently, with the renewed interest in small microbreweries, has the concept of the pub been revived.

The De La Pole Arms is located on a winding road just past the 14th-century Wingfield College in the area of Suffolk. In its heyday, this 16th-century country pub and restaurant served as a stopover for people traveling from London to Ipswich.

The location of De La Pole Arms became less significant as new forms of transportation and a better highway system connected the two cities. These days, the success of a pub is dependent upon the pub owners drawing customers in with much more than great-tasting ale. Good food is the key.

Meticulously restored in 1995 to look and feel like a classic English country inn, locals are now happy to have an English pub back on their doorstep. However, more than locals make their way to the De La Pole Arms as it is now a restaurant known for its fish dishes. In addition to a great array of victuals, the De La Pole Arms serves up an extensive range of ales from St. Peter's Brewery.

On a lonely road in the middle of Suffolk lies St. Peter's Hall. Built in the 11th century, it initially served as a monastic establishment. Surrounding the building, which has been extended through the ages, is a moat thought to have been dug in the 11th century as a defense against the Vikings. Today, the hall is the home of St. Peter's Brewery, which began brewing in June 1996. The brewery was built to the highest specifications, with stainless-steel brewing equipment clad in copper or Douglas fir. The layout of the brewery promotes efficiency during the production process. From the entry of the raw materials through milling to bottling and dispatch, the movement of the components is easy.

The beginning of the process begins 100 meters below the brewery with pure water from the brewery's own deep well. The water, with its balance of minerals and virtually no nitrates, is ideal for brewing. Filtered through a deep chalk layer before it reaches the surface, the water, once at the surface, is used by the head brewer to begin brewing sixteen different types of ales.

England produces many beers for both local consumption and for export. "If you enter a market which is saturated with styles and brands, you must have a point of difference," said George Wortley, director of St. Peter's Brewery. The points of difference for St. Peter's are the high quality of their classic English ales and the number of styles they make available — Suffolk malts and Kentish hops.

"It may drive the head brewer mad," laughed Wortley, "but to compete successfully in today's marketplace, a brewery must be innovative in their types of brews."

More varieties of beers are being brewed at St. Peter's than there are employees. The sixteen varieties of ales appealing to different tastes and palates are brewed and bottled by just fifteen employees. The company produces an array of traditional English ales, as well as Suffolk Gold, which is made using only Suffolk-grown ingredients. Their Millennium Ale is a recreation of a beer from 1000 A.D. containing juniper, dried fruits, and nettles but no hops. For the more adventurous, they offer a grapefruit beer — the first citrus-flavored beer in the UK — and a Lemon & Ginger Spiced Ale with a light citrus aroma and a delicate ginger aftertaste. For the growing organic market, they brew an Organic Ale made with Soil Association-certified light malted barley from Scotland and organic Target hops.

For the UK market, St. Peter's ales are distributed in cask form, a common practice for easing delivery to local breweries. To further make their product distinctive, St. Peter's bottles the ale in unique oval-shaped green bottles. They are copies of a 500-ml. one from the Philadelphia area dating to around 1770. The unique bottle was originally produced for Thomas Gerrard, an innkeeper with a tidewater inn on the Delaware River.

The Proof is in the Pudding

The history of plum pudding can be traced back to the 15th century. At that time, plum puddings weren't as associated with Christmas festivities as they are today. In its original form, plum putting, or plum pottage, was made using chopped beef or mutton, onions, root vegetables, and dried fruit. The mixture was thickened with bread crumbs and flavored with wine, herbs, and spices.

As different ingredients became more readily available, variations of the original recipe came into favor and eventually, the meat was replaced by suet. The pudding we know today was established in the 19th century and is usually made with suet, brown sugar, raisins, sultanas, currants, candied peel, bread crumbs, eggs, and spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, or allspice, and alcohol.

It is traditionally served with rum or brandy butter (hard sauce), topped with holly and brandy and then set afire, a tradition described in detail in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

Although recipes have evolved to become a bit lighter, the traditional shape remains spherical, the result of being tied up in a pudding cloth.

Cole's Traditional Foods has been making high-quality products since the time sixty years ago when Albert John Cole opened a bakery business in Great Chesterford in Essex. With his family's help, Cole made high-quality bread and confections available to the local community.

Albert Cole's great grandmother's recipe for Christmas Pudding was brought to the market in 1979, when the Cole family decided to add this traditional recipe to their bakery offerings. The puddings, which were produced in limited quantities, disappeared from store shelves as quickly as they appeared. As their reputation for puddings grew, so did the range of outlets where the puddings were sold. Currently, they are available throughout the world.

Still borrowing traditional recipes, some of which are more than 150 years old, Cole's Traditional utilizes modern technology to add some flair to the pudding recipes. Beyond the traditional Christmas Pudding made with Strong Suffolk Ale and pure orange and lemon juices is the Organic Christmas Pudding, a Champagne Pudding made with real champagne and champagne brandy; and the English Privilege Pudding made with whisky, Madeira, sherry, and Strong English Ale. Cole's also offers a variety of fruitcakes, brandy and rum butters, mincemeat, and other traditional English puddings, such as Spotted Dick, Treacle, and Clootie Dumpling.

The puddings do not contain artificial preservatives, colors, or flavorings, and all are suited for vegetarians. For those who don't want the alcohol, 100-percent grape juice is used for an alcohol-free pudding.

Revolution Solution

The past few years have definitely witnessed a culinary revolution in Britain. From big city London to the small towns dotting the quiet countryside, great food is now being served in pubs, country inns, restaurants, and homes. This revolution has helped renew interest in the manufacturing of authentic products which combine age-old recipes and techniques with new technology, flavors, and excitement. Revisit Britain for your customers and help them partake in their own "over there" culinary revolution.