2 February 2016

Black

What do foreigners think of when they hear the name "England"? William Shakespeare, Queen Elizabeth II, The Beatles, Big Ben, Tower Bridge, Hull City A.F.C., Charles Dickens, Mary Poppins, Winston Churchill. Morris dancers and Cornish cream teas perhaps?  But I wonder how many think of the humble black pudding? Yes, my friend, black pudding.

What is a black pudding? Sausage-like in appearance, it is generally made from pork fat or beef suet, pig's blood and a relatively high proportion of oatmeal. In some recipes it may be mixed with grits (oat groats) and  occasionally even barley groats. As it happens, the world's epicentre for the manufacture of black puddings is Bury in Lancashire.

Naturally, when I was over there on Saturday, I made a point of visiting Chadwick's Black Pudding Stall in Bury Market. This little food company produces and sells nothing else but black puddings. Like the two customers in front of me I asked for a "lean one" which cost me £1.08. 

Yesterday lunchtime, I ate half of it with some bacon, a fried egg, a grilled tomato and a slice of bread and butter. The black pudding was delicious - rich and nicely seasoned. I grilled my black pudding slices along with the bacon and the tomato.  A lovely treat to mark the beginning of February and for your interest photographs were taken to capture this delightful culinary experience...

24 comments:

  1. I've not had black pudding many times throughout my life. The last time was probably about seven years ago and I doubt I'll ever have it again. It's not on my "must eat again" list. I did read an article shortly prior to Christmas that it's supposed to be the new "in" food for 2016. Time will tell, I guess. All this old are new again.

    We had it a couple of times, I guess, when we were kids, but in our household we preferred white pudding to the black pudding. Being of Scottish and Irish heritage some foods were handed down through the families from mothers to daughters and so forth. I can't remember the last time I had white pudding.

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    1. Over here in Great Britain any talk of white puddings or black puddings can be laced with innuendo so I find your last sentence a giggle. Please don't be offended Lee. I mean no harm.

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    2. I can imagine, Yorkie! I stopped and deleted something I'd written in my previous comment for fear of offending someone! No harm done...no offence taken. :)

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  2. This may surprise you - I don't know ?
    Here in Ireland we make Black Pudding and also a White Pudding and both of them form part of an Irish fried breakfast along with an egg, baked beans,sausages, tomato, mushrooms and rashers. Plus Soda bread.
    In the past I have often eaten black pudding without cooking it but not so white pudding.

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    1. Ahh, nice fresh Irish soda bread, you can't beat it sir. My late brother married a Galway woman and they also used the term "rashers" when referring to bacon. Thanks for calling by.

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  3. When I hear the name "England" I think of Beatrice Lily (Lady Peel), Anna Russell, Prince Albert in a can, Wordsworth wandering lonely as a cloud, Neville Chamberlain, Bubble and Squeak, Punch and Judy, and Pippa Middleton. Oh, and your magnificent self, of course.

    I find the thought and sight and prospect of eating Black Pudding revolting. Sorry.

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    1. It is important to be open-minded Bob. Give me your address and I will mail you a nice fat black pudding.

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  4. Looks like great stuff. What do I think of England? It was drilled into our heads about being in the commonwealth and England was the boss!!!Oh yes Grandma and Grandpa were English

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    1. Time to bury all that stuff Red and picture a chiller filled with black puddings.

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  5. It can be wonderful stuff. These days it is made from sterilized powdered pigs blood. The Spanish also have some fine black puddings Morcilla they call it and the best I have had is Morcilla de Terror. It is flavoured with almonds and cinnamon.

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    1. Morcilla de Terror sounds good but can surely not compare with Pudding de Bury.

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  6. Ugh... 'nuff said.

    Germans (mostly my parents' generation) eat Blutwurst and Schwarzwurst, both of which are similar to Black Pudding. But not me.

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    1. I am pleased to learn that you are not similar to black pudding Meike!

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  7. Sorry but I have never tried it, although it is eaten a lot round here and is on the menu in most local cafes. I just can't bear the thought - same goes for haggis.

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    1. I am sorry to hear that Mrs Weaver. That's like visiting Paris but not bothering to go up the Eiffel Tower or going on a beach holiday and not visiting the beach. Black Puddings Forever!

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  8. All I can say is: Ugh.

    I have tried it, I really have. And I kept an open mind. But, no.

    (Much like my reaction to haggis.)

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    1. Stick to KFC, Pizza Hut and Burger King Steve! Clearly black pudding and haggis only appeal to those of us who have refined palates.

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    2. When I hear the name "England" I also think of Jack the Ripper, William the Conqueror, Alfred the Great, Ethelred the Unready, William Pitt the Younger, Benjamin Disraeli, The Tower of London and Diana Dors.

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    3. Diana Dors? I hope you have confessed this to Mrs Brague you sinful rogue!
      When I think of America, I think of The Lone Ranger, Fred Flinstone, William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, Sylvia Plath, baseball, summer camps, The Empire State Building, Martin Luther King, The Sioux and the Iroquois, Jan Blawat, Steven Spielberg, Mama Peace Thyme in Colorado, Schlitz beer, Robert H.Brague, chewing gum and above all the living legend who is President Barack Obama.

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  9. On the rare occasions that I have it, I always eat black pudding uncooked. I have eaten it fried but am not really keen. The pud in your photo looks just right - not too fat, and not too lean that it's dry.

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    1. I was a little confused by your first sentence Coppa's Lass - until I remembered that you are a refined lady! I apologise unreservedly for my lewd mis-reading.

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  10. Gag a maggot. We bleed our meat out nicely, thank you, and eat lean. Neither fast foods nor fat foods appeal. I make an exception for bacon, but then...who doesn't love bacon?
    England....I think of royalty, rain & fog, village greens, camaraderie of pubs long ago, sheep on hillsides, and James Herriott's Yorkshire. Of course, I see America in the long ago as well.

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    1. Who doesn't like bacon? Err... Muslims and Jews. I am glad about that because it leaves more bacon for the rest of us. Now excuse me because I need to find a maggot to gag as you instructed.

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Mr Pudding welcomes all genuine comments - even those with which he disagrees. However, puerile or abusive comments from anonymous contributors will continue to be given the short shrift they deserve. Any spam comments that get through Google/Blogger defences will also be quickly deleted.

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