chapter XI - yesteryears commercial foods

Mum sold up in Wales after just a year in the new bungalow (pictured here are myself and my elder sister at the bungalow with my new bike) We moved to Plymouth, where mum was from and where all of mum's family lived. I guess like any child, I never realised growing that we were 'poor', I knew we weren't rich, and I knew other families had a lot more than we did. They went on holidays, they had a car etc, we never really wanted for anything and if we did, we knew never to ask. I am sure we did from time to time, but we accepted for the most part that, that mum just couldn't afford things. We never really went without, we always had full bellies, we were always clothed and always greatly loved. 

Mum was never what you would call a great home cook, there was certain dishes she knew and she stuck to them. She was never the type to bake her own biscuits or spend hours making loafs of breads, if she baked a cake it was a packet mix. So like many, our main meal of the day in the evening was the likes of fish fingers, chips and peas. 

Convenience foods were still in their infancy in the 60's, certainly compared to today. Ready made meals or TV dinners were something we only saw in American TV shows. Back then, it was simply pre-made faggots, fish fingers, burger patties etc, main fish or meat items, things with which to make a meal with. Back then we still made our own yorkshire puddings, chopped our own onions, grated our own cheese, made our own chips, ate mostly fresh vegetables apart from frozen or canned peas and corn.

Before going into and putting up recipes for those home cooked meals that mum did do, AND do very well, lets take a trip down 'convenience foods' memory lane. What did we eat in the late 60's and early 70's? What were my favourites? What do I remember? Lets have a look. Being newly back in the UK after decades abroad, I wonder how many of them are still available? 


broken biscuits

Not really a convenience food, but ........ But we never had posh biscuits, not like we had when we visited various aunties and uncles. To this day my Aunty Marg, god bless her, would always bring orange Club biscuits out to me in New Zealand and will now always have them on hand for me when I visit. Often biscuits in our house was a mixture of loose biscuits, not those posh packaged ones, because mum would buy them from Woolworth's, as they would sell loose, broken biscuits dead cheap. Digestives, rich tea, Garabaldi's, fig rolls, a type of shortbread, custard creams, malted milks and sports biscuits. The latter being the same malted milk biscuit but in place of the cows, had silhouettes of different sports on them.

frey bentos pies

The original company Anglo, was established in 1899, in Fray Bentos, Uraguay (presumably by a Brit) who shipped beef products back to the UK, mainly tinned corned beef that I will allude to later.

These believe it or not are, (because I know they are still sold) are steak and kidney pies with a puff pastry top. Not unusual? No, except they are tinned!

The meat etc is cooked but the pastry is raw. Cooking instructions?... open the tin and place into a hot oven for 30 minutes. Then, voila! Out comes a pie with a crisp puff pastry top. We only had the choice of steak and kidney, but they do all sorts of pies. 

vesta chow mein

Very exotic! Still available and no doubt selling strong, simply empty packet, add water and simmer for 10 minutes. I must get around to trying one to see if they evoke any memories or if they have faffed around with it over the years. But it was a favourite during my teen years. It was my introduction to soy sauce, very exotic for those times and I loved the crispy noodles. It took me years to find a soy sauce that was as tasty, I ended up thinking it was just a childhood memory and that was why it didn't taste as good or the same. Then I discovered mushroom soy sauce and wow! There was that all familiar saltiness and flavour again.

tinned spam

The name comes to us as a derision of 'spiced ham'. Another cheap form of tinned meat protein. Now this is definately one that provokes my favourite food saying of "mmmmm, no more for me chef, I'm full'. 

But it was a favourite of my mother's. In sandwiches or served with chips and peas as a fritter. Yes folks, fatty meat, dipped in batter and fried! Mum would often make this delicacy with slices of corned beef too. 

recipe - spam fritters

001 can spam

001 cup self raising flour

002 pc   eggs

              milk

recipe - method of preparation

Slice the spam thickly and set aside. Break the eggs into a bowl, add a slash of milk and break up with a fork, add the flour and beat into a batter, adding more milk if required. Heat approx 3cm of oil or lard in a frying pan over a medium high heat. Dip the slices of spam into the batter and place into the heated oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes until golden brown, turn over and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Remove and serve. 

tinned soup
When we were sick as kids, there was nothing better than a tin of soup, always Heinz. Cambell's was also a popular brand but more expensive than Heinz. Cream of tomato was lovely, cream of chicken was special, oxtail was a treat and Mulligatawney was exotic. Served on a tray with a side dish of hot buttered toast, given to us while we were laid out on the sofa with our pillow and blanket, ahhhhh no better way than that to make us feel better, better, comforted and much loved


toast toppers

these culinary bad boys came in a small can; same small diameter as a red bull, but only 1/2 or 1/3 the highth. They were a thick creamy (veloute) based sauce with 'bits' in (ham, chicken etc) and came in various flavours that included ham & cheese, chicken & mushroom and mushroom & bacon. 

Directions were simple, lightly toast some bread, spread a thick layer of the toast topper (often ours was thinly spread, so get the most out of one can) and then pop back under the grill until it bubbled and went golden brown. Very exotic! basically a tinned version of Welsh rarebit. That more often than not would leave a blister on the roof of your mouth OUCH!  or at the very least; burnt and sore for an hour or so. 

Automatic pop up toasters were not a staple of househoulds, so toast was made under the grill part of the oven (remembering have to do that?). so it meant toasting one side of the bread, watching it very carefully so it didn't burn, (which often it did and we had to take it outside and try and scrape off the burn, thus leaving the yard covered in a light coating of black dust)

tinned salmon
Nothing unusual, still popular today. But it was a special treat for us. Usually reserved for sandwiches for our Sunday afternoon tea, where mum would empty it into a bowl and season it up with salt, pepper and Sarson's  malt vinegar. The sandwiches would be made (sometimes with thin slivers of cucumber), and invariably we would devour them up with crisps (potato chips) crushed inside them. One of my secret delights still to this day.


salad cream
Probably a totally UK thing, but anyone of my age group will remember with fondness (or horror) the taste of Heinz salad cream. When is a mayonnaise not a mayonnaise? When its Heinz salad cream.

A creamy, pourable dressing / sauce that has just an extra degree of sharpness than mayonnaise. Its has a very distinctive flavour. We had in sandwiches, drizzled over a ham salad or as an accompaniment to boiled potatoes, especially new boiled potatoes with the salad.


sandwich spread
Another 'great' culinary delight from the Heinz stable. This jarred product was all manner of diced / shredded vegetables; onion, carrot, gherkin, celery and red peppers all bound in the afore mentioned salad cream.

I guess its a form of coleslaw when one thinks about it. It must still be quite popular as its still sold in every supermarket.

It was a staple for a quick filling sandwich at teatime, as a cheap filler for sandwiches for a packed lunch or for picnics to the beach. On the rare occasion we had baked potatoes, a spoonful usually went into it along with some grated cheese.


branston pickle and piccalilli
What a treat when we had supper, usually mum's favourite of a hunk of cheese, some crackers and either pickled onions, branston pickle or picalilli. Hunkered down in front of the electric fire and TV. I love cheese of any kind, but cheddar with pickles is still one of my favourite snacks.

Branston is a selection of diced vegetables in a thick, brown pickle sauce, made from apples, tomato and dates. Great with cheese and awesome with cold meats. I remember sneaking in from playing with my friends on Sunday, going to the fridge after we had, had roast pork for dinner and getting a slice of the left over pork and slavering it with Branston. And then quickly disappearing back out to play.

Picalilli meanwhile is rough cut vegetables, including small florets of cauliflower and baby silverskin onions in a bright yellow, mustard sauce with quite a vinegar kick to it. It was this vinegar kick, it's tartness than made it a favourite of mum's.


meat & fish spreads
"Mmmmmmm ...... no more for me chef, I'm full"! God knows what goes into these little jars of meaty yuminess. These little jars of meat paste were another staple for those lunch box sandwiches.

Screw tops are the norm these days, but when I remember them as a kid, the lids had a snipped edge, that one had to lever off with a spoon or knife, probably the reason why everyone's knive's back then had a warped end.

It came in small jars and in all sorts of flavours; including devilled ham, ham, chicken and ham and beef. There was also fish paste versions too; salmon being the one that is embedded in my memory of flavours, but there was also one that was quite a dark brown in colour. God only knows what that was; sardine maybe?


peanut butter
How great is peanut butter? How weird is it that masses of people have suddenly become allergic to peanuts? How much weirder is it that peanut butter jars carry a warning that it contains 'traces of peanuts' ?

Peanut butter I discovered on a visit to the family of my father's brother, my Uncle Vic. He, Aunty June and her kids were living in Hemel Hemstead. A jar appeared on the breakfast table along with the usual jam, marmalade etc for our toast and my cousins got stuck in. Not wanting to appear out of the loop, this 10 year old copied and I have been hooked on the creamy, crunchy, salty, sweet ambrosia ever since

I also discovered melon on that same trip. My Uncle Vic had been (or maybe still was at that time) in the R.A.F. and had been posted all over the world, therefore they were use to foods and dishes outside the UK norm. One day my Aunty, for a special afternoon tea or dinner presented us with a Meze. A selection of foods placed on the table that you just helped yourself to, the buffet concept was mindblowingly new to me, to us.


frozen corn cobs
It seems silly now, it seems laughable, but corn features heavily in my childhood memories. They were a revelation, a taste sensation. Not sure why we as a family were maybe late comers to corn, and especially  on the cob. Maybe it was because the UK didn't grow them? But for some reason I don't they were frequently used vegetable in most households. After all they don't go well with bangers and mash, the Sunday roast, steak and kidney pudding etc. We just weren't eating the dishes, the type of foods corn is so suited to.

Indeed, in the UK they, believe it or not featured on many a menu as an appetiser! Yes, corn on the cob as an appetiser. But there again, so was half a grapefruit (demi pamplemousse), Florida cocktail and tomato juice!!  I remember going out for a meal as a teenager and a friend'd girlfriend ordering them, to this day I have never seen anyone strip a corn cob so clean with just her teeth, she stripped it clean, not a thread of the cobs left.

My first recollection of them however, was when for some reason mum bought some frozen corn on the cobs from  (I think) British Home Stores. Again, I have no idea why I recollect us buying them from there, its just a memory I have. I have been passionate about corn ever since. They were also a feature on the odd occasion we were treated to KFC, either steamed cobs with butter or a pot of sweetcorn salad; essentially corn kernals bound in mayonnaise, yum!


baked beans and spaghetti
A staple in our household growing up was the good ole can of Heinz baked beans. With bacon and eggs, with bangers and mash, on toast, with scorching hot slices of fried bread and later mum discovered the culinary delight of adding grated cheese to them as they were heating up. Of course the posh kids, had the luxury of baked beans with tiny sausages in them.

I never understood the logic of the spaghetti, what made someone think that spaghetti in a can was a good idea? What makes it such a popular item in the UK. For those not familiar with this concept, its not like the spaghetti (in the same tomato sauce they use for baked beans) is in lengths, its small, chopped pieces, usually no longer than a few inches. <shudder>


bird's trifle
The previously mentioned Sunday afternoon teas, would not be complete without one of my mother's specialities; a trifle. But not just any trifle, but a Bird's trifle. An instant or convenience mix. In this box came the following; a packet of dehydrated sponge cake, a packet of jelly crystals, a packet of custard powder, some sprinkles or 100's and 1000's. and a packet of Bird's Dream Topping. The latter could also be purchased separately, it was a powdered cream mix, that you added milk to and it whipped like cream.

Often mum would 'spice it up' by adding some canned fruit when she made it. Maybe peaches, but usually pears or manderin segments. The latter being the one my sister's and I liked the most and a firm favourite,

It came in a selection of fruity flavours like strawberry or raspberry. Then they brought out one that had a chocolate custard and also special one's (usually at Christmas) like chocolate rum and the one I have pictured; a sherry trifle version.


birds instant whip & angel delight

The mere thought, the memory of this sends me into shudders. I hated it and it seemed I maybe was the only kid in the UK that did. Because it seemed to get guzzled down at every kids birthday party I ever went to

A packet mix, that was a form of instant  mousse I suppose. It came in just about every fruit flavour along with chocolate and caramel

You simply added the flavoured powdered mix with milk and whisked it until it thickened, poured it into cereal bowls or fancy glasses if you had them and chilled it down. Mind you every household in the UK I think, had glasses like this one in the pic


bird's custard powder
No kid's party or Sunday afternoon tea would not be complete without something served with custard. At that custard was made from a packet mix from that ever so popular, ever so famous dessert company "Bird's". Originally made by the company's owner; Alfred Bird circa 1837 for his wife who liked custard but could not eat eggs, hence (for better or worse) it is still egg free to this day

In our household one of mum's specialities was banana custard. Shhhhh ..... but the secret recipe was as follows

recipe - ma's banana custard
slice bananas into a glass serving bowl, make a really thick custard by doubling the amount of powder to milk ratio stated on the tin so that it really thickened and pour over the bananas. Either place into the fridge as is so the bananas sit on the bottom or give it a slight stir to mix the bananas through. When chilled and just before serving, make up some Bird's instant whip and spread over the top. 


victoria sponge
Mum always called the meal at mid-day dinner; a friendly argument we had until the day she died. While I was caring for before she passed away, she would say something like "I feel like soup for dinner" or "shall we have fish and chips for dinner", to which I would reply "is that dinner or lunch"? That comment would always kick off the same retort from mum "its breakfast, dinner and tea" ..... she never had a reply when I asked her when she ate lunch then. Well, not apart from telling me I wasn't too big or too old for her to give me a thick ear ;-)

Anyway my point being, on occasion after our Sunday family roast dinner (ate around mid-day), mum would on occasion bake a sponge. A packet Victoria sponge, sandwiched with jam and on occasion cream too, but always sprinkled with sugar, not fancy icing sugar but just normal, everyday granulated.


brains frozen faggots
How I love faggots, which begs the question; why have I not ate more of them since being back home in the UK? Hmmm, note to self - eat more faggots.

Those that have followed this blog will know all about faggots (see chapter IV) But for the uninitiated they are a type of meatball and a very popular item in chip shops in the UK.

My mother would usually have Brain's faggots in the freezer. I would love coming home from school, yelling "mum, i'm home, whats for dinner" and hearing the reply "faggots". Served in a deep rich meaty gravy, perfect with peas and instant mash potatoes or home made chips.

On occasion mum would buy some fresh faggots from a butcher in the market when she went into town shopping and make her own gravy, mash her own potatoes or serve them with 'rounders' and mushy peas.

recipe - rounders
partly boil potatoes or take left over boiled potatoes, slice them thickly. Heat an inch of lard in a frying pan, and carefully place the rounds of sliced potato into the hot fat and fry until golden brown on both sides