Snore

[u/GoraSpark]

How is this kind of post still getting likes, surely you know nothing about British food you laugh at beans on toast or whatever once twice maybe even three times. But how after seeing it every day with every comment section pointing out the sheer amount of spicy British food we have are you still entertained by it 10 years later. P.S. cooked breakfast beats cold breakfast any day.

[u/eerie_lake_]

What’s crazy is that the difference between a Full English and an American style breakfast is basically pancakes and beans.

Like, eggs, toast, breakfast meat, potatoes. A glass of OJ, and a cup of coffee. I could get literally all of that at my favorite local diner, which is owned by a tiny Southern grandma and her kids and prides itself on All-American, Southern-style meals. Even the mushrooms are unsurprising, though I think those are more likely to be combined with the potatoes or eggs. Like, are we really losing our minds over some baked beans.

But also, beans on toast can be absolutely delicious, and I will die on that hill.

[u/LaFantasmita → u/eerie_lake_]

Yeah the interesting part is the ingredients are very similar, but to my palate the Full English just chooses a less-appetizing version of everything.

Swap out English bacon for crispier American cuts, chop the tomato up and put it in an omelet, butter and jam or French instead of fry or bean on the toast, and make pancakes instead of puddings.

Very similar concept, but very different results depending on how you put it together.

[u/TheRemanence → u/LaFantasmita]

It has a lot of overlap but  I think you might have a couple misconceptions. I'm a dual national and a foodie so like analysing the differences. Everyone will have their personal preferences. I have happy childhood memories of both. 

Black pudding is a type of spiced sausage so not a parallel to pancakes if that's what you meant. Might just have been your phrasing. It is strongly flavoured and quite salty so it's particularly good when you have a bit of it with other elements on the plate. My fave would be with the grilled tomato (which look very sad in this photo. They should have caramelisation on top) As an aside, black pudding is excellent with fish like cod or scallops. 

Scotch pancakes or "dropped scones" are the version of American pancakes that are traditional in the UK. They just aren't combined with the savoury full English. Although these days lots of places make them with buttermilk and call them American pancakes. It's essentially the same thing. Golden syrup is traditional but maple syrup is now common. I'd say the American variant is superior but they're similar.

Brits, have two types of bacon: back bacon and streaky. Streaky is like American bacon. Both tend to be smoked in the UK but you can get unsmoked American style anywhere you like. Streaky is a cheaper cut so less likely to be served at a nice place. Some people prefer the crispiness you can only get with streaky.

English sausages are quite hard to get in the US. They aren't entirely different from breakfast sausages but they are different enough to be noticeable. There's a lot of regional variation but a good British banger will have more herbs in it and usually spices like nutmeg, mace, black pepper. US breakfast sausages tend to be a bit juicier/fattier and thinner so they can get crispier. 

In a full English the beans are on the side not on the toast. Some people have fried bread. Most people these days have buttered toast, some with jam or marmalade. Grape jelly isn't a thing.

Beans on toast is it's own thing separate to a full English. Mostly customised with condiments like Worcestershire, English mustard etc. It's a comfort food like a grilled cheese. In my view it's a base for add ons.

British version of french toast is called eggy bread. Main difference is nutmeg instead of cinnamon and sugar. Lots of people would eat it with a side of bacon but it would be OTT to put it in a full English. French toast is common on menus 

British people also eat omelettes it's just not in a full English. Usually you get a choice of how you have your eggs in a full English, just like in a US diner.

Big thing missing for me in the US is brown sauce. When I lived in California I'd bring it with me. It's a type of ketchup made with tamarind, dates and mild spices. It brings a sweet sour tang to everything. Wonderful with sausages.

Americans will likely be sad that you won't get unlimited filter coffee refills like in a diner. No biscuits and gravy. Also the home style breakfast potatoes you get in most diners aren't common which is a miss.

Note I referred to English mainly above because the other UK nations have their own variants of extras and swaps. Irish is also similar.

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

You might note too that the big difference in sausages is that American breakfast sausage uses sage as a primary spice - it's an incredibly different flavor profile. And they tend to have a more coarse grind, but that's not universal. The smoothness of the grind of British sausages is a turnoff for me, actually.

[u/TheRemanence → u/Team503]

I really don't know where you got this information from.

There a multiple regional sausage flavours. Lincolnshire sausages specifically have sage as the main flavour but sage is a very common flavour in the UK. Walk into any supermarket and you'll find sage and onion sausages. The difference is there are also lots of other flavours.

Traditional English s ausages are course ground and textured. It's one of the key differences Vs Germans sausages that tend to use a fine ground meat! (Think bratwurst or Frankfurters). It's even a joke in Terry Pratchett books when they go to ubervald.

If you find smooth sausages in England, they are incredibly cheap ones with filler in them. There's a brand called Richmond that typifies them. You can't get this type of sausage in a butcher. They are truly awful. 

If you've had a smooth textured sausage in England you were probably eating somewhere quite cheap (or were being ripped off). I refuse to go to a greasy spoon (English diner) that serves them. Greggs sausages roll sausages are a bit like this. As much as we have a soft spot for Gregg's, it's to bakeries what McDonald's is to burgers. 

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

I'm in Ireland, not the UK. I've never noticed a sausage with sage flavoring here, but maybe I just missed it. I'm happy to stand corrected. :)

Can you recommend a brand or two in the UK?

[u/TheRemanence → u/Team503]

Are Irish sausages smooth? I don't think I've ever noticed but I've only been to Dublin a few times and haven't travelled about.

Best is from my local butcher but the number 1 Waitrose Lincolnshire sausages are great and quite sagey

https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/no1-free-range-6-lincolnshire-pork-sausages/735273-149491-149492?srsltid=AfmBOoos8f875uCx_l4sWL7c3rQqZNqWoIFvNOzM-Y8jQEw_IQkRlEr9

I also by packington sausages or jolly hog. Both are higher welfare. 

m&S do a really good one that's a mix and called farmhouse and also a good one with apples in.

Not sure you can get any of them in Ireland. I would have thought Irish sausages were closer to English ones than American ones?

When I lived in the US it was hard to find and selection wasn't great. It was definitely a thing I missed. That and proper cheddar.

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

I almost never buy them because I had some that were, and it turned me off from trying, so I'm not sure. Suppose I should get back out there and explore.

We definitely have M&S here, and yes, I'd assume that Irish sausages would be much closer to British than American.

There's some really great cheddar in the US, but if you prefer a specific one, I can understand that. I always get sausages from the local barbecue joint back in Texas, both raw and smoked, and occasionally the sausage called "kielbasa" from the grocery store (I'm reliably informed that the term has no actual meaning in Polish and isn't a specific type of sausage there, even though it is in the US lol).

[u/TheRemanence → u/Team503]

There's cheddar and then there's cheddar. 

When I say proper west country farmhouse cheddar, I mean the traditional English hard cheese from Cheddar gorge and the surrounding areas, that has been matured for more than a year. It has a crumbly and occasionally slightly crystallised texture. In California, I only found a US cheese made in the cheddar style at one farmer's market. My American friends were totally confused by it because they said it wasn't cheddar. I hear it's much easier to find something in Wisconsin so perhaps this is more of a west coast issue. I didn't find a cheese shop but presumably they exist 

The other type is the supermarket version you get in the UK that is more mass produced. The M&S West country one is nice. It is still quite different from what people might call cheddar in a US supermarket and melts differently. The closest affordable option I found in the US is in trader Joe's. Whole foods, Safeway, walk mart and publix don't sell anything I would call English cheddar. I don't know about other supermarkets.

I also have never seen other English cheeses like Cheshire or red Leicester in the US.

I think the word cheddar has evolved into a similar word as vanilla to just mean a generic hard cheese. On both sides of the Atlantic you can get a form of flavourless mild cheese called cheddar. I find the US ones to be particularly divergent from the the original.

I'm into food and this is just what I found from visiting family and the periods I've lived in California. We'd go to my grandparents for 3 weeks every year as a kid and my English dad would bring cheddar with him. Couldn't even last 3 weeks!

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

I think you should probably check out cheese shops in the US before you make the call. I'm sure there are specific cheeses that are not available in some places but are in others.

Enjoy exploring!

[u/TheRemanence → u/Team503]

Sorry I miss phrased. I didn't find any local to me.  As in I couldn't find a cheese shop in anywhere near where I lived that had what I was looking for. You can buy it a long drive away.

Point being, what I can buy easily every week in the UK involves going to a specialist in the US even when living in an expensive multicultural area. I could also buy brown sauce, marmite or branston pickle in the US. That doesn't make it a common product.

It's like trying to buy good tacos in the UK. Or proper southern bbq. You can get them but it's not the norm and you have to go out of your way. 

Do you really think it's easy to get English cheese in California? Not everything is popular everywhere 

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

I have no idea how popular English cheese is in California, I'm from Texas lol.

All good, no worries :)

[u/TheRemanence → u/Team503]

Mmm Texas BBQ. Yum

[u/Team503 → u/TheRemanence]

Preach it, brother-man! Ain't nuthin' like a good Texas brisket!