A great big grin can be found on any British person's face at the mention of a Sunday lunch, whether this be due to the possibility of having one in the near future, or whether it simply be at the pleasant memories of Sunday lunches gone by. The family tradition of a Sunday lunch is one that holds a special place not only in the hearts of the British people but stands strong in the cultural tradition of the UK, reaching back for decades.
A normal Sunday lunch, or 'roast dinner' as it is more often known, consists of a piece of roasted meat, perhaps chicken, beef, pork or lamb, combined on the plate with roast potatoes and a choice of boiled vegetables such as carrots and peas. You may also find roasted parsnips on the plate, a favourite in Britain. The British Christmas dinner consists most often of roast turkey, often coupled with some roast ham. The infamous Brussels sprout is traditionally one of the vegetables that you may find on your Christmas dinner … however, it is very much unpopular and many jokes are made in Britain about this vegetable and its potent taste. The dish is then often accompanied by a variety of different sauces: bread sauce with chicken or turkey, mint sauce with lamb, apple sauce with pork and perhaps horseradish (like a spicy mustard) with beef. The infamous gravy is then poured either over the meat or in most cases over the whole dinner! Gravy is simply a sauce made from the meat juices of the roasted meat, a dash of wine and some flour. It's DELICIOUS! Unfortunately, it is greatly misunderstood by many other nations!
And don't forget pudding! Pudding, or dessert, will follow the meal. It is more often than not a hot dessert, such as an apple crumble with custard or a sticky toffee pudding. Other popular British desserts are bread and butter pudding, apple pie or trifle. And after all that, you won't need to eat for weeks!
Discussion
Tell us about a traditional meal from your country.
