Let Us Talk About COMFORT FOOD!!

[Polwarth]

I'm afraid you have no cause to talk about MY closed mind re Mexican food.....

Good food in the UK, local and cooked in season is the finest in the world.... Beans? BLECH!

I defy you to find anything better than Aberdeen Angus beef, cooked rare and served with seasonal vegetables and a red wine reduction... or Scots lamb, pink and seared on the outside... or fresh caught salmon, served with a home made mayonnaise...

Refried beans don't hold a candle!

BTW, I don't eat Spotted Dick, but the fact that you cannot open your mind to Haggis is a very sad thing.... I mean, someone that can eat refried food?!

I just wonder who I remind you of?

[PRgirl]

Polwarth,
I must concede the salmon as something wonderful. The bloody lamb and stuff...no!! Especially with mad cow disease running around. Lol. Again, you think I eat refried beans....lol. MEXICANS eat that. I am Puerto Rican...I gave you a warning not to mix the two. You did. I don't like that. Lol. It means you can't distinguish between the Latinos. A big mistake. If you can't distinguish between the Latinos, I won't distinguish between the Brits, Irish or Scottish or Welsh, Germans, Dutch and Scandinavians...all thrown in the same pot. Do you want me to be that way with you? Lol.

Bloody pieces of meat and no deep knowledge of a lot of seasonings used with subtlety....no, I am not impressed with that. Lol. It's not appealing. Nope..no matter how much you protest Ms. Polwarth the Brits and Scottish and Irish don't have the reputation for Cuisine...and instead they have fame and a reputation for bad cooking. LOL.

I do like you...I like the BLECH!! Lol. You remind me of my mother...whom I love more than life itself. She hates any cuisine not Puerto Rican...and is a traditionalist...and is a big critic, and not easy to please...but she is highly talented cook...and hates Mexican food. And is married to a Mexican gentleman and gives him hell in the kitchen for even attempting to damage her fine dishes with hot chiles and tortillas, and if anyone refries a bean in front of her she makes a face of disgust! Lol.

I do like you Ms. Polwarth...I do! Lol. And I like your defense of all things Scottish. I do. I forgive your lack of refinement with the bloody meat. Lol.

How, I have had fun on this thread!!

PRGIRL.

[Celyn]

Originally posted by PRgirl
Polwarth,
I must concede the salmon as something wonderful. The bloody lamb and stuff...no!! Especially with mad cow disease running around. Lol. .....

Not to worry - perhaps one cannot trust anything in this uncertain world, but not many people get mad cow disease from a lamb.

(ANd I have strawberries - happy me!)

[PRgirl]

Originally posted by Celyn

Not to worry - perhaps one cannot trust anything in this uncertain world, but not many people get mad cow disease from a lamb.

(ANd I have strawberries - happy me!)

_____________________________________________

Celyn,
I know lamb is not beef! Lol. But, I was just teasing Ms. Polwarth...I don't know any Puerto Ricans who like blood in their meat...it is dangerous in the tropics...the heat and humidity create bacteria very fast...and not thoroughly cooking meat...is dangerous...therefore, the lack of tradition of eating red meat without thorough cooking...also heavy meals in the tropics is not healthy and causes a lot of sleepiness...lol. True...the vegetables though and the fruits are spectacular in flavor and content of nutrition. Strawberries are exotic in Puerto Rico and in the islands...and sky high in cost....cheaper is pineapple, banana, and oranges, and jackfruit, and coconuts, guavas, etc. Cheaper and I love Passion Fruit juice...it is excellent for lowering high blood pressure...

Nothing like well seasoned crab cakes, and some rice with saffron and etc, and some tropical fruit for dessert...and a nice pineapple/coconut cocktail....I will steal Polwarth's line....and say nothing holds a candle to it....while looking out at a setting sun with palm trees and a lovely hammock with a loving man next to you....lol. And a breeze and a soft bolero in the background....I think even she Ms. Polwarth find that appealing....Lol. Oh how I am starting to really like her....I like women with pluck!!

[Polwarth]

Pluck? Moi?

Naaah, just your average Scotswoman... speak firmly, be confident in your beliefs and KNOW that we are the chosen ones!!!

BTW, you may be interested to know that Scotch beef (yep, correct use of the word 'Scotch'!) is considered the finest in the world.... many of the main herds in the new world have Aberdeen Angus, Black Galloways etc as the backbone of their herds' pedigree - many from beasts sent out to Texas, Argentina etc way back in the 1800s. There has NEVER been a recorded case of BSE or vCJD from a Scots herd.

I think we should agree to disagree.... I have red hair and very, very fair skin.... heat does not agree with me - the weather of my native heath suits me best!

[PRgirl]

You have red hair and light light skin...never would have thought you a redhead...lol. We got some redheads in Puerto Rico. And light skin too. And dark skin and in between skin...lol. Such is the nature of Caribbean life...variety. The weather agrees with all of them. Lol.

The cold weather does not agree with me at all. I don't like it. But live in the four season zone now. Don't like it...I don't think I am ever going to be a non-coastal cold weather lover. I don't like any place where it is too cold. The state I live in now, is about as cold as I can take...without going nuts. I dislike cold, damp and cloudy....but more important than weather for me..will always be people....the people. And I have met some posters on here in Scotland.com worth remembering....and coming back for...such a witty group.

You are hard to forget Ms. Polwarth. But I think you are a woman of strong opinions....lol. I do like that. But I have a feeling you defend all things Scottish against the onslaught of the other non-Scottish folk on this board. Lol. That is why I think I will have fun with sg here....and Jasper...and others...I love Celyn...don't tell her so though...she needs to find out for herself...lol.


I love my culture too Polwarth...more than words can say...and I would not ever have wanted to be born anything but what I am...."yo no tengo la culpita de nacer en esta islita y de ser buen borincano." Lol. Oh, Polwarth the human experience is lived by many people...and each place has its charms and virtues and meanings....all of the places do....unfortunately many people live ignorant of other people's cultures...and never venture out much..of their bubble....lol. I would find it quite a pleasure to learn about your Angus beef and reduced wine sauce....lol. And to try it at home...you redhead you! Lol. I just got to get used to the idea of not cooking it til the juices run clear...habit you know...is a powerful thing...another song in Spanish talks about that too....ever heard of Rocio Durcal? She sings..."la costumbre es mas fuerte que el amor." And it means, "custom is stronger than love." "Habit is stronger than love." And that is what makes people not try anything new...we get closed in with habits...and customs..lol. Oh, Polwarth...don't think I don't understand how a woman of Scotland would not be a firm one...one has to be with the men from Scotland..they are rogues to be sure....lol.

PRgirl.

[sgriobhadair]

Originally posted by PRgirl
I probably can give a list of atleast 40 dishes from Mexico you have never tried before and would love. But a closed mind is not one to open. I know how it feels to be closed. I am closed on UK and Scottish food...spotted dick, haggis, aspic and cucumber sandwiches, tea in the afternoon, heavy
Scottish breakfasts previously described in these Cuisine threads don't convince me at all...and I find UK and Scottish food tradition bad and inferior. I do.

PRG. it breaks the heart of some Scots, especially those who take an interest in food, that you conflate English and Scottish food. Haggis may be typically Scottish, but cucumber sandwiches and tea in the afternoon are typically English. (Scots 'tea' is actually an early 'dinner'. 'Dinner' is what Scots have instead of 'lunch.' Clear now?)

At the same time you fail to make a distinction between Scots 'comfort food' and Scots 'cuisine.' Scotland has a long history of fine cooking (and we are surely the best bakers in the world!). We have wonderful ingredients (salmon, venison, mutton, berries, tatties, as mentioned by Polwarth) and a subtlety and expertise the English can only dream about. Because of the "auld alliance" with France dating from the 9th century, French cuisine has had a strong influence on the Scots; you can tell by the number of French kitchen words that have been absorbed into Lallans.

There's a political dimension here, which I'm sure you'll appreciate. As you implied, it is a mistake to take food preferences out of context. Scots do well with what the country always provided: oats, fish, game, beef, mutton. Cuisine is part of culture. Your preference for beans may be linked to the fact that they grow well in PR and you grew up with them.

Now here's the dark side: It's also interesting that much racial prejudice is expressed through the issue of preferred foods. Here in California, Mexicans are often derided by the ignorant as 'beaners.' In the same vein, blacks have a supposed preference for water melons. The English moron thinks it hilarious to refer to Scots as 'haggis bashers' and the French as 'frogs.' Americans called the English 'limies.' And on and on.

I'm not surprised that you are not impressed by previous posts on the subject. Only taste can convince. But I don't believe for a moment that your mind is 'closed.' I venture it would take one nicely roasted grouse to open it (with the right claret), or a few of my raspberry jam covered Scotch pancakes, made from the simplest ingredients but a devil to get just right. (My grandmother had the knack. My mother doesn't. It skipped a generation.)


Comfort foods? Since you ask: mince and tatties, stovies, mutton pies and Heinz baked beans, fish and chips. Call them 'bas cuisine' if you like.