5 French dishes that changed the world
There’s a long history of tension between what the British have dismissed as overly fussy French food versus plain English fare. We’ve had a love-hate relationship with our nearest neighbour for over a thousand years. And during that time, French food conquered not just Britain but quite a lot of the world. But who decided French food was best? Essentially, the French did, then persuaded everyone else to agree.
Croissant Originally a Viennese-inspired almondy cake, it became the puffpastry-like thing of today in the early 20th century. Now it’s become standard hotel breakfast fare around the world.
The French takeover began for Britain in 1066 when the Normans invaded, bringing with them the culinary words we still use for cow (boeuf/beef ), sheep (mouton/mutton) and pig (porc/pork). They even ferried over Cistercian monks to fix the cheese culture. The idea of French culinary supremacy was thus embedded in English gastronomy from the start.