British Tea Time, High and Low

One of the things that come to mind when we try to characterize the British is TEATIME.

Most of us imagine it as lots of aristocrats sipping tea from dainty cups among an array of expertly sliced cucumber sandwiches and scones. We are not far off the track because this widely popular hot drink has been an integral part of English life since the late 1700’s and teatime has become a well-known English tradition, both low and high.

Afternoon tea or low tea is a small meal around 4 p.m. that consists of tea, of course, and afternoon tea sandwiches, crustless specifically, freshly baked scones, crumpets and a selection of other pastries.

We can thank the upper classes for this afternoon tea tradition because it originated among them in the 18th century. They could afford meals in between meals and invited friends over for the treat, serving delicacies next to the drink itself, which eventually became a custom. The typical afternoon tea food can be sweet, savory and a combination of the two, but usually consists of snacks packed with calories.

High tea or “meat tea”, on the other hand, is an even more nourishing full meal served at around 6 p.m. It includes meat, bread, side dishes and dessert next to the tea. It originated among the working class who did not have time for snacks and a chat in the early afternoon when they were at work. So as soon as they finished working they had a hearty meal with tea, an early supper or dinner that was their main meal of the day. A traditional high tea menu would include cold cuts, shepherd’s pie, baked beans on toast and kidney pie, cakes, custards, sweets and pickles.

Devonshire Cream Tea is one of the most popular afternoon tea types and there is a special Devonshire cream tea menu, which consists of tea, scones, strawberry jam and rich clotted cream. They say this specific tea tradition is older than any other teatime custom. This tea menu combination was first served in the 11^th century by monks in gratitude to the workers who helped them rebuild their monastery.

There’s nothing more delicious, or quintessentially English, than a cream tea of scones, jam and cream. Here’s how to make the perfect English scone.

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 C.
2. Sieve into a bowl 900 g plain flour with 3 tsp baking powder.
3. Add 56 g of caster sugar and mix.
4. Break the butter into cubes, add rub into the dry ingredients.
5. Keep going until the mixture is the consistency of breadcrumbs.
6. Whisk 3 eggs together with 450 ml of milk. Gradually stir into the dry ingredients until it comes together as a soft dough.
7. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead lightly.
8. Use a floured rolling pin to roll out to about 2.5cm thick.
9. Cut out the scones and lay onto a baking sheet lined with grease proof paper.
10. Brush with the left-over egg wash and place in oven for 15 minutes.
11. Serve with jam and cream.

Az 5 Perc Angol magazin 2025. februári számában részletesen olvashatsz az angol teázási szokásokról!

How To Make Baked Potatoes

Baked Potatoes Recipe. A classic. So simple to make and so easy to vary. Baked potatoes are packed full of flavour and energy and can be filled with nearly anything that springs to mind. 

Devour our Baked Potatoes recipe. 

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 2 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Oven Temperature: 180° c  –  360° f

Step 1: You will need…

·       4 large potatoes
·       2 tbsp vegetable oil
·       sea salt
·       4 generous knobs butter, about 2 tablespoons each
·       1 bowl
·       1 fork
·       kitchen roll

Step 2: Preheat the oven

Set the oven to 180ºC (350ºF/ gas mark 4).

Step 3: Wash the potatoes

Place the bowl of potatoes in the sink and rinse them well under a cold running tap, 
turning occasionally to ensure they are thoroughly clean.

Step 4: Dry the potatoes

Put a piece of kitchen roll onto a flat working surface, place the potatoes on top and 
pat them dry with a second piece of kitchen roll.

Step 5: Pierce the potatoes

Take a fork and pierce each potato 8-10 times, all over. This releases the moisture
when cooking and stops them going soggy. Place them into a large bowl, pour over the oil and mix well with your hand.
Sprinkle over a generous amount of salt and mix well once more.

Step 6: Bake

Place the potatoes in the centre of the oven on a wire rack and bake for 1 hour
until they become crispy on the outside and fluffy and soft in the middle.

Step 7: VIDEOJUG TIP

Place a baking tray underneath, prelined with foil to catch any drippings and
to keep your oven nice and clean!

Step 8: Remove from the oven

Remove the potatoes when cooked and transfer them onto a large serving plate.

Step 9: Cut the potatoes

Make a long slit with a large knife across the potato but not completely to the edge.
Then make a slit downwards, to create a cross. Push the potato together to open it up and add a generous knob of butter.
Repeat with all four potatoes.

Step 10: Serve

Your potatoes can be served on their own or with a wide variety of toppings, like grated cheese or baked beans.

Tips from the world:
In the UK, the baked potato is also called a Jacket Potato and its toppings include cheese and beans, but also tuna mayonnaise, chili con carne, chicken and bacon.
In the US they use butter, chives, cheese and bacon bits. The French variant sometimes comes with a whole meat dish.
In Sweden they make baked potatoes with a seafood mix, called Skagenröra. The Trukish ‘kompir’ is the most colorful type of baked potato: the toppings
can include pickles, carrots, mushrooms, Russian salad, sausage slices, sweetcorn to name just a few. Feel free to experiment!

to vary – változatossá tenni valamit
flavour – íz
to spring to mind – eszedbe jutni 
to devour – falni
to rinse – öblíteni
tap – csap
occasionally – egyszer-egyszer/alkalmanként
to ensure – biztosítani valamit
kitchen roll – papírtörölköző
soggy – átázott/szotyogós
to pour – önteni
to sprinkle – szórni
generous – bő(kezű)
wire rack – sütőrács
crispy – ropogós
fluffy – levegős/lágy
to preline – előre kibélelni
foil – (alu)fólia
slit – (be)vágás
knob – darabka
topping – öntet
grated – reszelt

Serves: 4-6
Preparation time: 10 minutes plus chilling

Ingredients:

– 800 g fresh ripe strawberries
– Cointreau or Amaretto liquor to taste
– 1 tbsp icing sugar, sifted
– 200 g fresh cream for whipping
– 200 g thick Greek-style yoghurt
– 6 plain meringues

Directions:

1. Wash and dry the strawberries, then hull them. If they are large, cut in half or cut into thick slices. Place all, but 200g of strawberries in a bowl and sprinkle with 2 tbsp of liqueur. Dust with icing sugar and chill for an hour or two.
2. Whiz the remaining 200g of berries into a purée, adding a dash of liqueur to taste, and chill.
3. Whip the cream lightly, fold in the yoghurt, and chill. Roughly crush the meringues into bite-sized pieces.
4. When you are ready to serve, gently toss the cream, meringue and strawberries and pile the lot into a glass bowl. Drizzle with the strawberry purée. Toss once and then serve.

British people have their biggest meal in the middle of the day, and some have it in the evening. Most people today have a small mid-day meal, usually a sandwich and perhaps some crisps and some fruit.

They have three main meals a day:

Breakfast

They eat it between 7:00 and 9:00

Lunch

They eat it between 12:00 and 1:30 p.m.

Dinner

Sometimes it’s called supper. This is generally the main meal, they eat it anytime between 6:30 and 8:00 p.m.

On Sundays the main meal of the day is often eaten at midday instead of in the evening. This meal usually is a Roast Dinner consisting of a roast meat, Yorkshire pudding and two kinds of vegetables.

WHAT’S A TYPICAL ENGLISH BREAKFAST?

Most people think that a typical English breakfast consists of eggs, bacon, sausages, fried bread, mushrooms and baked beans. Even though not many people eat this for breakfast today, it is always served in hotels and guest houses around Britain.

Nowadays a typical English breakfast is more likely to be a bowl of cereals, a slice of toast, orange juice and a cup of coffee. Many people – especially children – in England eat a bowl of cereal. In the winter many people eat “porridge” or boiled oats.

WHAT IS A TYPICAL ENGLISH LUNCH?

Children at school and adults at work generally have a ‘packed lunch’.Packed lunch typically consists of a sandwich, a packet of crisps, a piece of fruit and a drink.

WHAT  IS A TYPICAL ENGLISH DINNER?

The evening meal is usually called ‘dinner’ or ‘supper’. A typical British meal for dinner is meat and two different kinds of vegetables. One of the two vegetables is almost always potatoes. They generally put hot brown gravy on the meat. This traditional meal is rarely eaten nowadays. A recent survey found that most people in Britain eat curry, rice or pasta for dinner.

THE SUNDAY ROAST DINNER

Sunday lunch time is a typical time to eat the traditional Sunday Roast. Traditionally it consists of roast meat, two different kinds of vegetables and potatoes with a Yorkshire pudding. Yorkshire pudding is a food made from flour, eggs, and milk, baked and eaten with meat in Britain.

meal – étkezés
mid-day – napközbeni
crisps – rágcsa, ropogtatnivaló, chips
at midday – délben
instead of – valami helyett
consisting of – áll valamiből
even though – habár, ennek ellenére
nowadays – manapság
a bowl of – egy tál …
porridge – zabkása
boiled oats – főtt zab
brown gravy – barna szósz
recent survey – közelmúltbeli felmérés