Loaves & Fishes

BREAD: Britain’s greatest loaf affair.

We toast it, butter it, dunk it, sandwich it, fry it, stuff it, crumb it and, when all else fails, turn it into pudding.

Bread can be breakfast, lunch, supper, the thing that holds the burger together, or simply the emergency slice eaten over the sink because dinner’s still twenty minutes away.Bread has its own geopolitics in Britain – it seems, we’ve never been able to agree on what to call it.

That innocent little round loaf you might ask for as a bread roll can become a cob in the Midlands, a barm in parts of Lancashire and Greater Manchester, a bap in Staffordshire and elsewhere, a batch in Coventry (but only Coventry), a bun in the North East, and a bread cake or even a teacake in parts of Yorkshire.

One piece of dough, several counties and enough vocabulary to start an argument in a café.

Research by the University of Leeds’ dialect project found that bread roll was the most widely used term overall, but only 28% of respondents chose it, the rest calling something else.

Even the simplest of bakery orders can become a regional identity test.And we are certainly not a nation that has fallen out of love with the stuff.

DID YOU KNOW:

Bread is bought by 99% of UK households, according to the Federation of Bakers.

More than 4.1 billion bakery units are sold each year, including around 2.7 billion wrapped bakery products, while the average household buys a little over 80 loaves a year.

The wider UK bakery market is worth almost £6 billion.There is also something wonderfully British about the sheer variety.

We have the soft, square sandwich loaf, crusty farmhouse loaves, sourdoughs, bloomers, baguettes, rolls, buns, baps, cobs and barm cakes.

We have regional specialities, traditional recipes and breads whose names tell stories about the places where they were made.And then there are the great bread-based institutions – the bacon butty, the fish finger sandwich, beans on toast, cheese on toast, egg and cress, the humble packed lunch and that most comforting of puddings … bread and butter pudding.So this week, we celebrate the staff of life in all its glorious forms. From the humble slice popping from the toaster to the artisan loaf that requires two hands and a small mortgage, bread is far more than something we spread jam on.

It is history, geography, industry, comfort and occasionally, the cause of a surprisingly heated argument about, well – simply what to call it.Whatever you call it, pass the Stokes.

Turn a classic beans-on-toast into something rather special and a little more grown up. This is Dave’s Chilli Beans, using 3 different types of bean in a rich sauce combining our Real Tomato Ketchup and Chilli Ketchup for that wonderful chilli kick.

RECIPE HERE.Toast – so simple, so good.

So, try it with this Mackerel Paté w. Creamed Horseradish. It’s a simple little recipe making the most of the slightly smoky mackerel and our Creamed Horseradish which uses grated horseradish root from Essex and a swirl of single cream.

It’s sharp enough to balance the oily fish, yet smooth to complement the combined effect.

RECIPE HERE.Now, take this round ‘bready’ thing and call it whatever you like. It’s the filling that counts. In this case – Coronation Chicken.

It’s a condiment fit for a King, the Coronation Sauce based on the original recipe created for his dear Mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, on the occasion of her own Coronation.

A twentieth-century classic. Creamy, fruity and spicy all at once! Made with apricots, sultanas and curry spice for the delicious classic chicken sauce. Just add chicken!We call it ‘something on toast‘.

But, give it an Italian twist, top it with exciting slices of salami, ribbons of Parma ham, a few Mozzarella pearls and our perky Chilli Jam … and you have Bruschetta for your weekend lunch.

RECIPE HERE.A Croque Monsieur can be made with our Classic English Mustard, but is represented here as a Croque Madame using our Dijon Mustard.

DID YOU KNOW?

Do you know the difference between a Croque Monsieur and a Madame – literally, she has the egg.

Freudian, biological, innuendo, risqué ? Or just French humour … je ne c’ait pas.

RECIPE HERE.This is a truly delicious and sunny start to any busy day.

A bagel, smoked salmon, squeeze of lemon, crunchy red onion, cream cheese, and the release of Sicilian sunshine in the form of our Sicilian Lemon & Dill Mayonnaise.

Simply … delicious.

RECIPE HERE.Loaves & Fishes.

Simple nourishment, on a grand scale.

Friday evening. Autumn. A chill in the air. Clocks soon to fall back…

… and here we are, standing in the queue for our Friday evening ‘fish supper’.

MAGIC. Fish & Chips. Our nation’s favourite Fish Friday, made tastier than ever before.

There’s only one plaice to get fish ‘n’ chips…You just can’t beat you local chippy!!!

Fish ‘n’ Chips. What sauce do you NEED with that?

Unwrap, plate up and…

For the chips – Stokes Real Tomato Ketchup, thick and naturally tasting of ripe Mediterranean tomatoes having has 200g of the joyous beauties reduced into every 100g of Award-Winning ‘chup.You could try it with our Bloody Mary Ketchup for a charming change – similarly packed with toms, with a shot of Vodka and Bloody Mary spices – yum.

With the crispy battered fish:Stokes Tartare Sauce, a particularly smooth, creamy Tartare, jam-packed with coarsely chopped gherkins and capers, and just a little vinegar, creating a tartare without the tart.

For the Mushy Peas – treat them (and you) to a teaspoon of our sweet garden Mint Sauce stirred into it.

Just wait, you’ll see.