Monday 9 February 2009

Full English Sir? ...I'll Open A Tin.

I think I must have been living a very sheltered life, because there isn't too much that brings me and my trolley to a grinding halt in the supermarket. Yesterday while I was doing my rounds at the co-op I caught sight of a product (let's call it that shall we) in a tin that dismayed and amused me in equal measure.

One of the finest things anyone can eat for breakfast in my opinion is a well cooked English Breakfast, by this I mean locally produced sausage, bacon, with bubble & squeak from real mash and cabbage/greens with a good amount of 'crisping', mushrooms fried in butter as opposed to oil or any of those hydrogenated substances posing as 'healthy alternatives'...I'm not a big fan of this type of industrial chemistry at breakfast, fried, poached or scrambled egg, and grilled tomato (sprinkled with cracked pepper and sea salt). This list could justifiably be enhanced by the addition of 'Heinz' baked beans, although I'm not as enthusiastic about these with my fry-up as at teatime with toast, black pudding or indeed haggis if you find yourself further north.


Imagine my surprise to find the bold claim of 'All Day Breakfast' printed by messers Crosse and Blackwell on their can. I'm as indebted as anyone to Nicholas Appert and Peter Durand for the discovery of the canning process to preserve food but really do flinch at the idea of the institution that is the English Breakfast being bastardised in this way. I realise this rant is not in the least bit scientific as I didn't purchase one to sample (to be fair it could well be delicious, and I may now have to buy one and write a future post about it) also there are many factory made comestables that I have to confess to eating and enjoying from time to time but somehow with the 'All Day Breakfast' in a tin I sense a certain line has been crossed...and blackwell'd.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's breakfast Jim - but not as we know it.

Unknown said...
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Unknown said...

Honestly I've tried it. Living abroad, the temptation to transport a piece of english heritage was too great. In truth it was much better than the canned donor kebab (I wish I was joking). The sausages were the WORST ;)