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The Names of British Foods

03/21/06 @ 08:30:00 am, by Kate Hopkins Email 4759 views • Categories: British

The following list comes from the wonderfully silly book Gastronaut, by Stefan Gates. In this book, he poses the theory that British Food is looked down upon, not because the food is bad, but rather because of the rather unfortunate names.

Consider the following (and points will be given to those who can describe each dish and/or food product).

  • Aberdeen Nips
  • Beef Cecils
  • Black Pudding
  • Bubble and Squeak
  • Clapshot
  • Cullen Skink
  • Dean's Cream
  • Fitless Cock
  • Flummery
  • Girdle Sponges
  • Hob Nobs
  • Huffkins
  • Hunter's Buns
  • Love in Disguise
  • Inky Pinky
  • Knickerbocker Glory
  • Marmite
  • Priddy Oggies
  • Scouse
  • Singing Hinnies
  • Slot
  • Spotted Dick
  • Toad-in-the-hole
  • Wet Nelly
  • Wow-Wow Sauce

Let it be known that I am a fan of some British foods (although, for the life of me I don't understand the desire for Heinz peas or Baked beans). I've eaten several of the above items, and have enjoyed all of them.

But the names? When comparing two dishes, one named Mousse au chocolat and one named Spotted Dick, which sounds more appetizing? Are there any theories as to why British foods are named the way they are?

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Permalink • 19 comments

Comments, Pingbacks:

Comment from: Louise [Visitor] · http://www.usingmainlyspoons.com/Blog/blog.html
Being English, I have to confess that many of these are very silly, but on the other hand, I only recognise 11 out of 25 on this list. Part of the problem might be that most of this is food from another age - Victorian or earlier - when names for many things looked different than they do today (although I'm not sure about the historic significance of Hob Nobs...)
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 08:50
Comment from: sam [Visitor]
Err - because we have a sense of humour?!
I started compiling a list of British desserts, including the spotted dick of course, (which is named after a dalmation btw, or at least as I understand it) for a little English food event we are having on St Georges Day, April 23rd, which is England's national day that no one ever celebrates.
I hope particpants will research and answer some of the questions you have posed.

What's for Pud - show me your spotted dick" read further details here
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 09:20
Comment from: Tara C [Member] Email · http://www.dementedkitty.com
Wait. Wow-wow sauce exists!?!? It wasn't a Pratchett invention?  *scuttle off to research*
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 10:48
Comment from: Wowrie [Visitor]
When our local grocery store added an international section, I took great delight in buying cans of Spotted Dick to give as gifts to friends. Now that I received a case of Jones Holiday Soda this Christmas, I may have to rethink my sense of humor.
I also was inspired by my discovery of Spotted Dick to make a Bread Pudding with Dried Cranberries and call it Red Spotted Dick.
Sometimews I wonder what the recipient of some canned goods drive would think to receive a can with such a label.
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 11:45
Comment from: Meredith [Visitor] · http://mooo42.blogspot.com
Delurking to say: Because I'm such an anglophile, I know that bubble and squeak has its name from what sounds it makes when being cooked (the potatoes bubble and the cabbage squeaks). Also, I thought clapshot was Irish... Most of those are mysteries to me despite my love for Eddie Izzard and fish and chips.
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 13:27
Comment from: wintermute [Visitor] · http://wmute.livejournal.com
Sam: Spotted dick wasn't named after a dalmation; it's simply a description of the dish. "Dick" is an old word for dough. Several of the names are similar; bubble-and-squeek bubbles and squeeks as you cook it; black pudding is a pudding (not in the desert sense) that is black.

Beef Cecil was named after someone called Cecil (OK, I'm guessing) and is therefore exactly as silly as peach Melba or Victoria sponge.

"Scouse" on the list above should really be "lobscouse", which is a little sillier.

And now I really want a knickerbocker glory. Anyone know where I can find one in the Cincinnati area? Or how, exactly, to make one?
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 13:29
Comment from: oddharmonic [Visitor] · http://oddharmonic.livejournal.com/
Wintermute, a quick Google search brought it up on the menu at Jack Quinn's Restaurant and Irish Pub in Covington, KY, phone 859-491-6699,

As for a recipe, I found one in the BBC's Lifestyle section: knickerbocker glory.
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 14:40
Comment from: wintermute [Visitor] · http://wmute.livejournal.com
Lime Coulis? Eton Mess? That's far fancier than any knickerbocker glory I ever had before...
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 16:24
Comment from: foodcrazee [Visitor] · http://foodcrazee.blogspot.com
ouch! thats diff...only recognize 5 from the list. Even Louise an English, recognize 11..its kinda tough then
PermalinkPermalink 03/21/06 @ 19:51
Comment from: Martin Little [Visitor] · http://martinlittle.com
OK, here's what I think I know:

- black pudding: like sausage, but made with blodd (also called blood pudding, I believe). Tasty.
- clapshot: a Scottish dish of potato and turnip, eaten with haggis
- Cullen Skink: a delicious fish and potato soup
- Hob Nobs: chocolate covered biscuits. Eaten with tea (liquid, not the meal)
- Knickerbocker Glory: ice-cream with multiple toppings
- Marmite:
PermalinkPermalink 03/22/06 @ 05:02
Comment from: Silverbrow [Visitor] · http://www.silverbrowonfood.com
As far as I'm aware most of the funny sounding names are derived from regional dialects (most notably Gaelic) and slang.

At the risk of sounding po-faced about this, I'm not sure why these are so amusing. Silly names for foods are legendary. Who'd think of naming a dish pot of fire, unless of course you're in a chilli restaurant, or unless you're in a bistrot and order pot au feu. Equally, marmite is a French word for a type of pot (as evidenced by the shape of Marmite jars and their logo - a marmite).

Having said all that, I'm not sure I'd want to order a Fitless Cock.
PermalinkPermalink 03/22/06 @ 08:40
Comment from: Silverbrow [Visitor] · http://www.silverbrowonfood.com
As far as I'm aware most of the funny sounding names are derived from regional dialects (most notably Gaelic) and slang.

At the risk of sounding po-faced about this, I'm not sure why these are so amusing. Silly names for foods are legendary. Who'd think of naming a dish pot of fire, unless of course you're in a chilli restaurant, or unless you're in a bistrot and order pot au feu. Equally, marmite is a French word for a type of pot (as evidenced by the shape of Marmite jars and their logo - a marmite).

Having said all that, I'm not sure I'd want to order a Fitless Cock.
PermalinkPermalink 03/22/06 @ 08:46
Comment from: Sheryl [Visitor]
hehe! The RSS feed on LiveJournal pulls out the bulleted list and makes it look like theres no break between items. Until I hit Bubble and Squeak (the first thing I recognized), I was beginning to think it was all one dish, and that those British certainly do have funny names for their food.
PermalinkPermalink 03/22/06 @ 10:16
Comment from: Alida [Visitor] · http://eatingaround.blogspot.com
They're amusing because they are silly names. Maybe a list should be done of American foods with odd names (though that alone could fill a page, given the wide variety based on region/history/culture of any given area).

PermalinkPermalink 03/22/06 @ 20:14
Comment from: C [Visitor]
Love in Disguise is a Tudor term for stuffed hearts, usually sheep or beef hearts. There's a recipe in 'Traditional Irish Cooking' by Darina Allen

Black pudding is sliced blood, effectively.

I'm assuming the Aberdeen Nips are pig's trotters, just a guess though
PermalinkPermalink 03/23/06 @ 00:56
Comment from: paul [Visitor] · http://kiplog.com/food
I recently had some spotted dick. It's truly unfortunately named, since it was darn good.

See my shot of it here.

I tried a can of 'spongy pud' in New Zealand once, and that was truly perfectly named, for it was nasty stuff.
PermalinkPermalink 03/23/06 @ 16:28
Comment from: Robert McManaway [Visitor]
Last night on television watching Master and Commander, a story of a British captain sailing around the horn to the Gallapagos Islands, the officers celebrated dinner with a special treat made in the form of their island destination. I believe it was called albemarle [best phonetics I can offer]. The dinner item appeared to be a geletaneous-like chocolate pudding. What was it??
PermalinkPermalink 08/07/06 @ 18:48
Comment from: Pete Hodgkinson [Visitor] Email
Albermarle is the name of the largest of the Gallapogos islands, and as the dish was served in the shape of this island, that is what they called it. Haven't got a clue what the dish was made of.
PermalinkPermalink 11/20/07 @ 00:54
Comment from: Azimuth5 [Visitor] Email
Due to the overabundance of silly food names found in the British Isles, I offer these brand new, equally silly names to be used now for american cuisine:

Pork sandwich: Congress & 2 slices
Hamburger: anti-veggo
Hot Beef Sandwich: carotid clogger
Mom's Apple Pie: SweeT Oedipal Pie
Cold root beer: sweet froth of life

OK... they're not so great, but it's a start...
PermalinkPermalink 07/20/08 @ 12:39

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