Typical dinner in England?

Question

If someone were inviting a guest for dinner in England, what would be typically served? This is for a story I'm writing.

Answer 1

A typical British meal for dinner is meat and two vegetables. They put hot brown gravy, (made from the juices of the roast meat) on the meat and usally the vegetables. One of the vegetables is almost always potatoes. This traditional meal is rarely eaten nowadays (most people in Britain eat curry) Rice or pasta are now favored as the typical British dinner. Vegetables grown in England, like potatoes, carrots, peas, cabbages and onions, are still very popular. Sunday lunch time is a typical time to eat the traditional Sunday Roast. It consists of roast meat, (cooked in the oven for about two hours), two different kinds of vegetables and potatoes with a Yorkshire pudding. Beef is eaten with hot white horseradish sauce, pork with sweet apple sauce and lamb with green mint sauce. Gravy is poured over the meat.

Answer 2

Perhaps a soup for starters - then meat, potatoes and vegetables, and a pudding for dessert. Traditionally.

The Brits you run into on this site will probably serve you an international, ecclectic meal, with interesting ingredients from across the globe.

Answer 3

Where about is the location and season for your story because there are different foods from different regions and certain foods to be eaten in season.

Roasts are really only eaten on Sunday's

toad in the hole which is sausages in Yorkshire pudding. cottage pie - savory mince beef with mashed potato topping, Shepard's pie is the same but with minced lamb instead. Liver and bacon.

Dessert - Apple pie with custard or rhubarb crumble with custard, Strawberries and cream for a summer dish.

Answer 4

If I was doing a 3 course dinner then it'd be starter, main and dessert, but people rarely do these for just a normal meal with family - special occasions and dinner parties mainly.

A normal mid-week family meal for us would be one of the following:

cottage pie

sausages and mash with peas & brown gravy

home made chicken and mushroom pie (in brown gravy)

home made steak and guinnes pie (brown gravy again)

curry and rice

chili con carne and rice

pasta carbonara

Swedish meatballs with chips and peas (chips being fries!)

lasagne

Irish stew

steak and wine casserole

salad with baked potato with tuna and mayo topping

salad with a variety of other things - fish, chicken, cold meats etc

spicy bean enchiladas

laksa

Thai green curry with rice

So a big variety to choose from and not many which are traditional either.  

I don't really do pudding but if I had someone coming for dinner, I'd probably do blackberry and apple crumble and custard or something like that.