Dear Sarge, my family comes from the north of this country which is poor. They only had Iron foundries and coal mines and now they have gone as well. Sarge our country as the crow flies is only 866 miles long, yet the difference in wealth and the climate is immense. It is very cold and barren up north so the people had to find a way to survive the bitter winters and the short summers with very little money. So I put on the Recipes from my great grandma, grandma, aunties and my mother which are centuries old but are simple, tried and trusted and work every time! They were designed to keep you warm and full up at the minimum cost, yet still taste good, which is not an easy thing to do but they did it. Shepherds pie is eaten everywhere yet it was a British poor mans food, and I love the stuff. What I do not like is when people try to glitz this simple dish up as someone did on a cubits Article. It was not meant for that, it is a very easy and wholesome meal, and a way to use the leftovers up.
Sarge people are far to fussy with food as they have never been Hungry, put them out in the Arctic Warfare School where you need at least 10-12 thousand calories a day to survive and fight.
That would soon stop them moaning, no drive thru Burger places there, just snow as far as you can see and intense cold. The British love pies and Cornish pasties, why I do not know but they do.
The east end of London got bombed by the Germans mercilessly in the second world war, and the thing that kept them going and what they are famous for is pie & mash with liquor. No it is not Alcoholic liquor, it is a green sauce made from parsley or you can have Beef gravy. They still have pie & mash shops everywhere and they are very popular and for a very good reason.
I do not know the difference to what you call expensive to what we call expensive so I have just converted the price of a meal in our pie & mash shop to dollars for you. Sarge you get a large minced beef pie a lot of mash and gravy and a big mag of tea for $2.80, for exactly $4.00 you get two large pies and double mash and a bigger mug of tea. That certainly fills you up and is always served with chili vinegar and pepper if you want it! So a lot of the elderly people go and have their pie & mash as it is cheap and filling, surely that is a good cheap meal. then they go in the pub for a pint of course. i am fully aware that to some people the thought of eating pie & mash would be quite shocking, but Sarge people annoy me when they say they don't like something and you ask them if they have ever tried it and they say NO. How can you not like anything if you have never tried it?
As I stated it would be an honour to cook for you, as my food is simple you might even like it.
Sarge on my Articles right at the bottom is Yorkshire Pudding which is a savoury pudding, it is the staple diet of our Nation, easy to make and filling, have a look when you get a moment.
Regards to all.
Neil.
