Covering the evolutionary journey of the nation’s meals from the first mammoth morsels – literally – in the Bronze Age to the dawn of the microwave dinner and beyond, The English Table (Reaktion Books, rsp: £17.99) guides the reader through centuries of the “often overlooked” – and let’s face it, frequently derided – national cuisine.
Author Jill Norman – who has written and compiled countless recipe books – interrogates the topic from multiple angles: scientific, cultural and downright tragicomic. It’s an easy-reading cross between academic text and popular non-fiction, which resurfaces old ingredients and period cookery books to unveil untold food stories, such as the recipes created by and for the working classes, or those passed on by word of mouth alone during the time of the slave trade.
So why is English cuisine so roundly mocked? Perhaps George Orwell’s article ‘In Defence of English Cooking’ makes a fair point, Norman suggests, when the literary giant laments that tasting the best English foods is impossible for most visiting foreigners, since classics like the treacle tart and Devonshire cream could “seldom be found outside an English private home”.
Enriched with glossy photographs and actual recipes readers can attempt to recreate at home, it’s an ideal gift for any foodie or history buff.
Whether it’s used to make an elaborate Tudor feast, or a simple Victorian Christmas pudding, this book answers both how they came about and how to recreate them – and is enjoyably devoured.
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