Everything about Full English Breakfast totally explained
A
full breakfast, is a traditional cooked meal, typically and originally eaten at
breakfast, though now often served at other times during the day (this is particularly true of the Ulster Fry, described below).
It is a popular
breakfast meal in many countries, mainly in the
Anglosphere.
Bacon and eggs are the quintessential ingredients. The full breakfast comprises at its heart
bacon and
eggs, and is popular throughout the
British Isles and other parts of the English-speaking world. Depending on where it's served, it's called
bacon and eggs, a
fry, a
fry up,
The Great British breakfast, a
full English breakfast,
a
full Irish breakfast, a
full Scottish breakfast
a
full Welsh breakfast, a
(full) American breakfast,
or an
Ulster fry.
The complement of the breakfast varies depending on the location and which of these descriptions is used. Full cooked breakfasts are no longer an everyday occurrence in many British or Irish households, although they occupy an important place in the concept of the morning meal and are the predominant business of many
greasy spoon cafés, as well as generally being offered to
tourists as traditional fare in
hotels,
guest houses and
bed-and-breakfasts. Although it has declined as a breakfast it has grown in popularity as an
all day breakfast, especially on weekends.
Origin
A cooked breakfast of this sort is a relatively modern invention, although this is disputed;
it developed in the houses of successful farmers or landowners during the late nineteenth century. For the more well-to-do, an array of breakfast dishes would be laid out buffet style in much the same way as hotels do today. Up until this period, fresh meat was generally considered a luxury for all but the most affluent. The emergence of town grocers in the 1880s allowed people to exchange surplus eggs, etc., for other food items to diversify their diets. Only with the relative increase in the wealth of the general populace in the 20th century was the consumption of the full breakfast meal commonplace amongst the working classes.
E. Cobham Brewer's
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, published in 1898, describes a full breakfast, calling it a
Scotch breakfast.
He describes it as "a substantial breakfast of sundry sorts of good things to eat and drink." Set six years later in
Dublin of 1904, the opening of
Ulysses by
James Joyce contains a famous breakfast scene in which
Leopold Bloom prepares and eats a fried
pork kidney with bread and tea.
The meal was popularized in the
United States by
Edward Bernays during the 1920s and 1930s. In order to promote sales of
bacon, he conducted a survey of
physicians and reported their recommendation that people eat hearty breakfasts. He sent the results of the survey to 5,000 physicians, along with publicity touting
bacon and
eggs as a hearty breakfast.
More recently, many doctors and health organizations have come to believe that diets high in
saturated fats and
cholesterol, such as bacon and eggs, are unhealthy and contribute to
heart disease.
Tradition
While weekday breakfasts in Britain and Ireland often consist of a brief meal of
cereal and/or
toast, the fry-up is commonly eaten in a leisurely fashion on Saturday or Sunday mornings. Many cafés and supermarkets now serve the fry-up as an "all-day breakfast" which is more often eaten as a hearty lunch. Being reasonably oily and fatty, it's regarded by most diners as an occasional treat, but such is the passion for a good fry-up that even the health-conscious defend an occasional indulgence with the "everything in moderation" rationalisation. Whether the fry-up is accompanied by
orange juice and an abundant supply of
tea or
coffee, or only
bacon,
eggs, and toast, it's regarded as a ritual comfort and a wholly satisfying start to a day.
There are many traditional
cafés in Britain and Ireland that specialise in serving breakfast throughout the day. The full breakfast may therefore be listed as the "all day breakfast". Such cafés (also called "caffs" or "greasy spoons") are typically frequented by local construction workers or passing
lorry drivers. As a consequence, the tea that's typically served in such establishments is known as "builder's tea".
In
hotels and
bed-and-breakfasts, a full breakfast might include additional courses such as cereal,
porridge,
kippers, toast and
jam or
marmalade,
kedgeree, or
devilled kidneys.
Fruit juice and dry cereal were added to the breakfast after 1950. The term "full breakfast" is used to differentiate between the larger multiple course breakfast, and the simpler
continental breakfast of tea, coffee and fruit juices, with
croissants or pastries. Coffee at breakfast is a
Continental European tradition introduced through hotel fare.
Typical ingredients
The ingredients of a fry-up vary according to region and taste. At its heart, the meal consists of bacon and eggs, but to earn the title of a "full breakfast" a number of other ingredients are expected. The bacon, often called rashers, and eggs are traditionally fried, but grilled bacon,
poached eggs, or
scrambled eggs may be offered as alternatives. These are accompanied by
toast. Some of the additional ingredients that might be offered as part of a Full breakfast include:
Due to the increase in popularity of
vegetarianism over recent years, some proprietors offer vegetarian versions of the Full breakfast, using
Quorn or various other substitutes instead of their meat counterparts or simply serving the breakfast without the meat components.
Regional variants
Full English breakfast
The normal ingredients of a traditional full English breakfast are: bacon, eggs, fried or grilled tomatoes, fried mushrooms, fried bread or toast, and sausages. Black pudding is added in some regions as well as fried leftover
mashed potatoes(called
Potato Cakes). Originally a way to use up leftover vegetables from the main of the day before,
bubble and squeak, shallow-fried leftover vegetables with potato, has become a breakfast feature in its own right. Baked beans and hash browns are modern additions that have crept into many recipes.
A popular variant is the
breakfast roll, which is a
French bread demi-baguette filled with the contents of a full breakfast. The concept developed as a ready-to-go meal from
convenience stores. It was spurred on by the innovation of in-store ovens being used to cook part-baked frozen French bread.
When an English breakfast is ordered to contain everything available, it's often referred to as a "Full Monty", and often attributed to
Field Marshal Montgomery, the prominent British military officer of World War II. However the
OED states that "Perhaps the most plausible (explanation) is that it's from a colloquial shortening of the name of Montague Maurice Burton (1885-1952), men's tailor, and referred originally to the purchase of a complete three-piece suit".
Full Irish breakfast
In
Ireland, a full breakfast is served with
white pudding,
soda bread and traditional
boxty, although the latter is now often replaced by hash browns. Although baked beans may sometimes be found served with a full breakfast in Ireland, these are considered to be an English addition to the traditional Irish breakfast.
The Full Irish Breakfast is also known as "chub" in certain parts of Ireland. The term "chubbing up" is local Irish slang for eating a Full Irish Breakfast.
Full Scottish breakfast
In
Scotland, a square "
sliced sausage" in the form of a patty slice, known as a Lorne sausage, white pudding, fried sliced
haggis,
potato scones and
oatcakes might be served.
Full Welsh breakfast
The traditional
Welsh breakfast include
laverbread, a
seaweed purée which is mixed with
oatmeal, which is formed into patties and fried in bacon fat, and often
cockles.
Ulster Fry
An Ulster Fry is a dish of
fried food that's popular throughout
Northern Ireland and the general vicinity of the province of
Ulster. Some, such as
Jack Higgins, claim it as the emblematic dish of
Northern Ireland.
A traditional Ulster fry consists of bacon, eggs, sausages (either
pork or
beef), the
farl form of
soda bread (the farl split in half crossways to expose the inner bread and then fried with the exposed side down),
potato bread and tomatoes. Other common components include mushrooms,
wheaten bread or
pancakes. All this is traditionally
fried in
lard.
Despite, or perhaps because of, the popular comic reference to the dish as a "heart-attack on a plate", many people in Ulster have taken to grilling most of the ingredients, or use healthier alternatives to lard such as
sunflower or
vegetable oil.
The Ulster Fry isn't considered solely a breakfast dish as it's often served for lunch and dinner in households and cafés around the province. Emigrants have also popularised the serving of an Ulster Fry outside Northern Ireland.
From 2001-2007, a
BBC Two Northern Ireland ident used during opt-outs of the network schedule featured the BBC Two logo of a figure 2 eating Ulster Fry at a table.
North American
A full American breakfast consisting of bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast and more is often referred to as a "country breakfast" in many areas of the midwest. The terms "fry" and "full breakfast" are not generally used in North America, though hotels may distinguish between a "continental breakfast" and "American breakfast." Breakfasts of this type are normally served at all hours, and are popular as a late-night meal after a night on the town or as a
hangover cure. "Bacon and eggs" as a meal name was popularised in the
United States by
Edward Bernays in the 1920s and 1930s. In order to promote sales of
bacon, he conducted a survey of
physicians and reported their recommendation that people eat hearty breakfasts. He sent the results of the survey to 5,000 physicians, along with publicity touting bacon and
eggs as a hearty breakfast.
More recent studies have shown that diets high in
saturated fats and
cholesterol (such as bacon and eggs) contribute to
heart disease, however this has been disputed by
low carb diet advocates such as the late Dr.
Robert Atkins.
A North American variant, popular in family restaurants and coffee houses, is the
breakfast buffet: a selection of eggs (usually scrambled), link or patty sausages, bacon,
hash brown potatoes, corned beef hash, various breads and muffins, and sometimes fruit, kept warm at a steam table. Regional variants abound to this formula: in the East, it isn't uncommon to see
scrapple as a popular dish: Southerners occasionally base full breakfasts around
biscuits and gravy, and Midwesterners have been known to enjoy the "stretch", or many components of the breakfast mixed together in a saucepan and served with ketchup and toast.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Full English Breakfast'.
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