English breakfast – the strong start of the working day

Dear friends, you have surely sat down in the morning in front of an overflowing plate with the typical island breakfast not being able to help but compare it to ours – the Bulgarian one. Everything that has been piled on the plate seems to us fit for lunch or dinner, and we wonder who would start the day with such a heavy meal. But, like everything else, this tradition also has its explanation, and it is hidden in its origin.

A peculiarity of the English breakfast, which is called depending on the place full English, full Welsh, full Irish, etc., is that it mainly consists of protein. It requires a lot of frying, so they also call it “fry up”. What do we find in our overflowing plate in the morning? Eggs, fried sausages, beans, fried tomatoes, mushrooms, some black pudding, sometimes potatoes in one form or another, some fried bacon, and a toast, which can be in varying combinations. That’s quite a lot of food, huh?

Once upon a time, in medieval England, breakfast was simple – thick oatmeal or beer and bread. Some cheese or a little meat could have been added if one were better off. This breakfast was often supposed to provide people with strength for the entire working day, right up until dinner. But in the 14th century, the wealthier people and the gentry felt the need to revive the old Anglo-Saxon hospitality and began to invite guests to their large houses in the countryside. Since breakfast was considered the main meal of the day, they made it truly nutritious and filling, demonstrating their affluence to those they cared about.

During the Industrial Age, when wealthy people attracted many workers to their industries, the need for a good morning meal for mercenaries became important. Thus, the abundant breakfast reached the poorer segments of the population. Its popularity grew, and by the Victorian Era, it was already spreading to broader and broader segments of the population. As in the past, the morning meal was considered the most important meal of the day. The wealthy Victorians were very keen to demonstrate their well-being to their guests. They started adding new, expensive components such as boiled tongue, whole smoked herring, and other satiating foods to the already abundant breakfast.

Today, the English breakfast is available in every hotel or bistro and it consists mainly of eggs, sausages, bacon, baked beans, and tomatoes, and we can see variations with the addition of mushrooms, blood pudding, and fried, grated potatoes with onions, called hash browns.

Dear friends of Training Centre Raya London, we are happy to share with you various topics related to the UK and we hope that reading them will help you in your progress with learning English. Whether you are a beginner or an advanced learner, press the button at the top right to change the language, see the English version of the text translated specifically for training purposes! Try to compare the two texts and write the new words in your vocabulary! We look forward to receiving your ideas about new and interesting topics for our articles!

Author: Iveta Radeva