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Any country's cuisine and its ingredients are shaped by its climate, history and geography, and English cuisine is no exception to this. Potatoes, bread and cheese are the three basic ingredients of any English cuisine.
Fish and chips with mashed peas tossed with some salt and vinegar is a signature English cuisine. The Sunday Roast features prominently in English cuisine. The dinner includes roast potatoes with a beef, lamb or a chicken roast. The dish is also garnished with assorted vegetables sprinkled with fresh ground black pepper, lending it a specific aroma and a tangy taste. The boiled vegetables are served with gravy. Traditional English Christmas dinners are elaborate and delicious. Turkey roast is a must for Christmas dinner. Goose of Dickens' is a favorite dish for Christmas. Steak and kidney pie with mashed potato is a full breakfast for an Englishman.
Baked beans are served as an accompaniment with many roasts. Among the assorted vegetables grilled tomatoes and fried mushrooms are a favorite. Black puddings and scrambled eggs are other variants preferred by the English people. English sausages have a distinctive taste and quality of their own. They are made of fresh meat and are strongly flavored. Pork pies, shepherd's pie and cottage pie are the mainstays of a typical English cuisine. The Britons also enjoy eating various types of fish. Crustaceans are also appreciated by large numbers of people in Britain.
The traditional English teatime snack includes assorted biscuits, sandwiches and butterfly cakes. Various types of cheese form an integral part of English recipes. Cheddar cheese is the common variety; other varieties are the tangy Cheshire, salty Caerphilly, Sage Derby, Red Leicester and the Creamy Double Gloucester. English cuisine has developed and improved over the years, and has been able to come out of its stodgy image of 'fish and chips'. The main dishes of England have queer names like Toad in the Hole and Bubble & Squeak.
Yorkshire pudding is one of the most famous English recipes of all times. It is an integral part of any celebration, be it Christmas, wedding or a housewarming party. For this pudding, sifted flour, milk, vegetable oils, and eggs and freshly ground black pepper are required. The oven has to be heated, and the pudding tin has to be greased with vegetable oil. The mixture is first placed in the bowl and then into the oven. Once it turns puffy the pudding is removed from the oven and served.
Modern English dishes have been influenced by international flavors. The contemporary English cuisine has incorporated many new ingredients, retaining the traditional flavor and the richness. Food from the Indian sub-continent has become very popular with the people in Britain. Other than that French, Spanish, German and other European cuisines also influence the cuisine of England.
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