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I am not tempted by fast foods, ( may be slice of pizza here and there,) but what are "Cornish pastries"?
They are pastries but the official term is Cornish pasty (no R), they were traditionally made for the tin miners of Cornwall, the shape of the pasty is 'half moon' with a crimped edge, the crimped edge was called the 'Oggie'. They threw away the oggies' thick, wide pastry edges after eating the rest of their meal, to avoid being poisoned by tin or copper dust (which contained traces of arsenic) from their fingers. I've heard that they were sometimes baked with a 'savoury' half and a 'sweet' half, effectively it was a meal that a miner could fit into his pocket.
Like many simple foods found throughout the world a pasty was simple 'working class' food originally made from easy to source cheap ingredients that has now become a bit of a 'delicacy'.
My favourite pasty's - Steak & ale, lamb & minted peas, cheese & onion and the traditional which consists of beef, onion, swede (turnip) and potato.
reason is not big in west east/balkan food is because it is meat and bread based. on top of that it is amazing and it is full of carbs. and west want more veggies and east europe is more of dairy and meat
They are pastries but the official term is Cornish pasty (no R), they were traditionally made for the tin miners of Cornwall, the shape of the pasty is 'half moon' with a crimped edge, the crimped edge was called the 'Oggie'. They threw away the oggies' thick, wide pastry edges after eating the rest of their meal, to avoid being poisoned by tin or copper dust (which contained traces of arsenic) from their fingers. I've heard that they were sometimes baked with a 'savoury' half and a 'sweet' half, effectively it was a meal that a miner could fit into his pocket.
That's interesting, because as I once discovered they were using similar concept in Russia ( back in Tzarist times,) with the famous "kalach" ( ch as in "chair") bread.
"Kalach usually looks like a circle, but one part of it is significantly thinner, and the other is significantly thicker. The traditional explanation is that the thinner part was used as a "handle" so kalach could be eaten even by workers who had no time to wash their hands. After eating, the handle was thrown away or given to the poor. Because only desperate people ate the handles that had been thrown away, this is thought to be the origin of the Russian saying "go down to the handle" (дойти до ручки, doyti do ruchki) meaning to experience a profound setback, to hit rock bottom"
Like many simple foods found throughout the world a pasty was simple 'working class' food originally made from easy to source cheap ingredients that has now become a bit of a 'delicacy'.
My favourite pasty's - Steak & ale, lamb & minted peas, cheese & onion and the traditional which consists of beef, onion, swede (turnip) and potato.
And what is "minted peas" and what is "steak and ale" please?
reason is not big in west east/balkan food is because it is meat and bread based. on top of that it is amazing and it is full of carbs. and west want more veggies and east europe is more of dairy and meat
That's traditional cuisine and not that common anymore. Like everywhere else, central European cuisine is evolving and introducing new trends of cooking. Since the end of Communism more fruits and veggies are imported, people travel and bring their experiences and expectations into cooking.
The times when we only relied on cabbage, carrots and potatoes are long over and people are more conscious about their weight and healthy eating.
Even meat consumption is much lower than decades ago. Actually much lower in Eastern Europe than the West: https://eu.boell.org/en/2021/09/07/c...nd-luxury-good
That's traditional cuisine and not that common anymore. Like everywhere else, central European cuisine is evolving and introducing new trends of cooking. Since the end of Communism more fruits and veggies are imported, people travel and bring their experiences and expectations into cooking.
The times when we only relied on cabbage, carrots and potatoes are long over and people are more conscious about their weight and healthy eating.
Even meat consumption is much lower than decades ago. Actually much lower in Eastern Europe than the West:
I don't understand why vegetables and meat have suddenly become an unhealthy diet. I think just the opposite. Any nutritionist will tell you that there are so-called "fast" (simple) carbohydrates, i.e. quickly digestible. They are easily digested and dramatically raise blood sugar levels.
And there are "slow" (complex) carbohydrates.
Fast carbohydrates are mainly found in foods, containing sugar: pastries, fast-food, sweet vegetables and fruits, sweet soda.
Slow carbohydrates are contained in cereals, vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, etc., pasta from durum wheat, in products where there is a lot of fiber. And in lean meat, like lean beef, chicken or turkey, there is only benefit.
I don't understand why vegetables and meat have suddenly become an unhealthy diet. I think just the opposite. Any nutritionist will tell you that there are so-called "fast" (simple) carbohydrates, i.e. quickly digestible. They are easily digested and dramatically raise blood sugar levels.
And there are "slow" (complex) carbohydrates.
Fast carbohydrates are mainly found in foods, containing sugar: pastries, fast-food, sweet vegetables and fruits, sweet soda.
Slow carbohydrates are contained in cereals, vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, etc., pasta from durum wheat, in products where there is a lot of fiber. And in lean meat, like lean beef, chicken or turkey, there is only benefit.
Zimogor, I already arrived to the conclusion that Russian ( specifically Russian) traditional diet is actually VERY healthy in its own unexpected way, the way that doesn't include the traditional "eat your veggies" kinda thinking, so popular in the US.
Zimogor, I already arrived to the conclusion that Russian ( specifically Russian) traditional diet is actually VERY healthy in its own unexpected way, the way that doesn't include the traditional "eat your veggies" kinda thinking, so popular in the US.
So what might be initially perceived as "backwards, poor man's diet," turns out to be actually a very healthy thing in disguise.
It's the "survival kit" of a soldier; unpretentious, but carefully thought through - that's the best way I can put it.
( And yes, I hated it all ( except for the fish part,) but then, again, I was never a soldier)))
You are absolutely right. I will even say more: we have a widespread diet of "buckwheat with kefir". Pour the dry buckwheat grits with kefir overnight and put them in the refrigerator. During the night, it swells and becomes soft. Without salt and sugar. It doesn't taste too good, but you can eat it. Extra pounds fly away like a bullet.
I don't understand why vegetables and meat have suddenly become an unhealthy diet. I think just the opposite. Any nutritionist will tell you that there are so-called "fast" (simple) carbohydrates, i.e. quickly digestible. They are easily digested and dramatically raise blood sugar levels.
And there are "slow" (complex) carbohydrates.
Fast carbohydrates are mainly found in foods, containing sugar: pastries, fast-food, sweet vegetables and fruits, sweet soda.
Slow carbohydrates are contained in cereals, vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, etc., pasta from durum wheat, in products where there is a lot of fiber. And in lean meat, like lean beef, chicken or turkey, there is only benefit.
Vegetables and meat haven't become an unhealthy diet. It's meat and starches, like the traditional meat and potatoes, or meat and bread, that's considered unhealthy. (This type of diet is not exclusive to E Europe, as I pointed out earlier in the thread. It's big in much of W Europe, too. Still. Today.) Russia (I don't know about Poland), being self-classified as a "northern" country, has trouble producing a wide variety of green veggies. For example, you're very unlikely to find zucchini or other small, tender squash varieties, in the markets. Or green beans (string beans), asparagus, etc.
Some traditional E Euro fare is starchy, some isn't. Meat pies, for instance (pirog). (This is a staple in parts of the UK, too.) Although Mexican food is also very heavy and starchy. Anything wrapped in a flour or corn tortilla will cause blood sugar to spike. So the only way to explain the popularity of Mexican food vs. E European is the convenience factor, I think. Although piroshki have a similar convenience factor, and they're yummy! This is why piroshki shops are popular in Seattle.
Potatoes, white rice, and most breads cause the blood sugar to spike, Zim. You may have a point about products like buckwheat, though. And the ubiquitous brown bread in Russia...maybe.
Health has nothing to do with whether a cuisine got popularized or not to be honest. Chinese food is greasy as eff and pretty much served with carb-heavy rice or noodles. Indian dishes usually are served on rice and many of those sauces are heavy and greasy. Mexican of course is another one of those 'could be healthy in theory' but in practice is usually served with tons of carbs (tortillas) and fat (cream, cheese, fatty meat). Adding a slice of avocado and some lettuce to it doesn't make it healthy.
I think it's way more about the 'exotic' appeal than anything else. Those cuisines use ingredients and spices not 'typical' for people raised on old home-style American or European cooking. Many of the ingredients and spices in Central and European cuisine have the ring of the familiar, of grandma's cooking. And that just doesn't have a ton of appeal for a lot of people for now. I think it will be eventually 'rediscovered' and people will act like it's the greatest and most novel thing ever. It's more about the way it's framed and branded than anything.
Health has nothing to do with whether a cuisine got popularized or not to be honest. Chinese food is greasy as eff and pretty much served with carb-heavy rice or noodles. Indian dishes usually are served on rice and many of those sauces are heavy and greasy. Mexican of course is another one of those 'could be healthy in theory' but in practice is usually served with tons of carbs (tortillas) and fat (cream, cheese, fatty meat). Adding a slice of avocado and some lettuce to it doesn't make it healthy.
I think it's way more about the 'exotic' appeal than anything else. Those cuisines use ingredients and spices not 'typical' for people raised on old home-style American or European cooking. Many of the ingredients and spices in Central and European cuisine have the ring of the familiar, of grandma's cooking. And that just doesn't have a ton of appeal for a lot of people for now. I think it will be eventually 'rediscovered' and people will act like it's the greatest and most novel thing ever. It's more about the way it's framed and branded than anything.
You have a point, but I disagree that Chinese food, if done well, is greasy. It's not. Same with good Indian food. And many Chinese restaurants now offer a choice of brown rice along with white.
Mexican food as presented in the US is extremely carb-centric (the beans and white rice, not just the tortillas.) Mexican food in Mexico includes regional cuisines, which have very good, light fish dishes, meat in mole and other sauces, etc.
But yes, Thai, Chinese and Indian are popular because they're exotic. I notice sushi has become popular in some areas, too.
Back during the Cold War, Russia and its food were perceived as "exotic", too. People did used to search out Russian restaurants, and look forward to experiencing dishes like Chicken Kiev (OK, it's not Russian, but they served it anyway, and people loved it), Beef Stroganoff, and even the lowly cabbage rolls. It just wasn't a mass phenom, like Thai, Chinese, Indian, Mexican.
And frankly, the Russian community from those days wasn't interested in popularizing their cuisine. They weren't interested in opening restaurants, not like other immigre communities have done. Maybe because way back in those days, the Russian communities had a high percentage of professionals, who were able to get good jobs. Doing service sector work didn't cross their minds.
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I think just the opposite. Any nutritionist will tell you that there are so-called "fast" (simple) carbohydrates, i.e. quickly digestible. They are easily digested and dramatically raise blood sugar levels.
