Time for reading

Interviewer:

(1) ________________________________________________?

William:

We have three meals a day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and many tea-breaks of course.

Interviewer:

(2) ________________________________________________?

William:

Breakfast – between 7:00 and 9:00, lunch – between 12:00 and 1:30 p.m. Dinner – the main meal eaten anytime between 6:30 and 8:00 p.m. Tea – anywhere from 5:30 at night to 6:30 p.m.

Interviewer:

I see you eat the main meal quite late, don’t you?

William:

Some people have their biggest meal in the middle of the day and some have it in the evening, but most people today have a small mid-day meal – usually sandwiches, and perhaps some crisps and some fruit.

Interviewer:

Let’s talk about each meal in detail. The great English breakfast is famous throughout the world! It is known to consist of eggs, bacon, sausages, toasts, baked beans and mushrooms. Is it still so in Britain?

William:

Actually nowadays it is a bit of a myth, today many British people are more likely to have a bowl of cereals, a slice of toast, orange juice and a cup of coffee. However that is not to say that the traditional English breakfast is dead. It is always served in hotels and guest houses around Britain. The traditional English breakfast is called there the “Full English”.

Interviewer:

And what is a typical English lunch?

William:

Many children at school and adults at work will have a ‘packed lunch’. This typically consists of a sandwich, a packet of crisps, a piece of fruit and a drink.

Interviewer:

(3) ________________________________________________?

William:

A typical British meal for dinner is “meat and two veg”. We put hot brown gravy on the meat and usually the vegetables. One of the vegetables is almost always potatoes. Also carrots, peas, cabbages and onions are very popular. But as I know a recent survey found that most people in Britain eat rice or pasta dishes.

Interviewer:

(4) ________________________________________________?

William:

Yes, there is. Every Sunday thousands of British families sit down together to eat the traditional Sunday Roast. It consists of roast meat, cooked in the oven for about two hours, two different kinds of vegetables and potatoes with a Yorkshire pudding*. The most common joints are beef, lamb or pork; chicken is also popular. Beef is eaten with hot white horseradish sauce, pork with sweet apple sauce and lamb with green mint sauce. Gravy is poured over the meat.

Interviewer:

You mention that anywhere and at anytime the British drink tea. Is it a tradition? What accompaniments are served at tea?

William:

The tradition of drinking tea has been observed by the British for centuries. British cuisine leans heavily on tea, served with milk and sugar which is usually coarse, brown, and unrefined. Tea is served for any meal and any time in between. Among the most common dishes served at tea are finger-foods like crumpets with jam and clotted cream, and scones with raisins or dried fruits.

Interviewer:

(5) ________________________________________________?

William:

It can be some traditional dishes such as roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, steak and kidney pie, treacle tart, or fish and chips, etc.

Interviewer:

(6) ________________________________________________?

William:

Yes, there are. British cuisine has several national and regional varieties, including English, Scottish and Welsh cuisine. England is famous for its creams and butters and for its delicious cheeses: Stilton, Cheshire, double Gloucester, and of course cheddar.

Traditional Scottish dishes are haggis, Black Pudding*, Cock-a-Leekie: a soup or a stew which combines beef, chicken, leeks, and prunes. In addition to foodstuffs, Scotland produces a variety of Scotch whiskies.

Wales is best known for its sheep, and thus lamb is the meat traditionally associated with Welsh cooking. Famous dishes are Welsh Faggots: pig’s liver is made into meatballs with onion, beef suet, bread crumbs; and Welsh Rabbit: cheese is grated and melted with milk or ale, then pepper, salt, butter, and mustard are added; the mix is spread over toast and baked.

Interviewer :

(7) ________________________________________________?

William:

Certainly. Among great number of dishes you might see on offer in a pub or café the most English on my mind are bangers and mash: bangers are sausages, and mash is potato that’s been boiled and then mashed up (usually with butter). The dish is usually served with a rich onion gravy. Another traditional take-away food of England is fish and chips. Long before McDonalds we had the fish and chip shop. Fresh cod is the most common fish for our traditional fish and chips. The fresh fish is dipped in flour and then dipped in batter and deep fried, it is then served with chips. Traditionally fish and chips were served up wrapped in old newspaper. Nowadays they are wrapped in greaseproof paper that has been specially printed to look like newspaper. You often get a small wooden or plastic fork to eat them with too, although it is quite ok to use your fingers.

Interviewer :

By the way, (8) ______________________________________?

William:

We always use a knife and fork. If you eat Chinese food, chopsticks, and if you’re eating a sandwich, your hands. You may eat chicken and pizza with your fingers if you are at a barbecue, finger buffet or very informal setting

Interviewer:

Thank you a lot, William, but so (9) ______________________?

William:

Don’t think it sounds original, but I like good-cooked roast beef with vegetables and rice pudding.