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Afull breakfast orfry-up is a substantial cookedbreakfast meal often served in Britain andIreland. Depending on the region, it may also be referred to as a full English,[1] a full Irish, full Scottish,[2] full Welsh[3] orUlster fry.[4] The fried breakfast became popular in Great Britain and Ireland during theVictorian era; while the term "full breakfast" doesn't appear, a breakfast of "fried ham and eggs" is inIsabella Beeton'sBook of Household Management (1861).
The typical ingredients arebacon,sausages,eggs,black pudding,tomatoes,mushrooms, andfried bread ortoast and the meal is often served with tea.Baked beans,hash browns, and coffee (in place of tea) are common contemporary but non-traditional inclusions.
Many of the ingredients of a full breakfast have long histories, but "large cooked breakfasts do not figure in English life and letters until the 19th century, when they appeared with dramatic suddenness".[5] Across the British Isles and Ireland,early modern breakfasts were often breads served with jams or marmalades, or else forms ofoatmeal,porridge orpottage.[6] Eggs and bacon started to appear in breakfasts in the seventeenth century,[6] but they were not the only meats consumed in breakfasts at that time.[6] The rising popularity of breakfast was closely tied to the rise oftea as a popular morning drink.[5] Of note were the lavish breakfasts of the aristocracy, which would centre on local meats and fish from their country estates.[5][7]
The fried breakfast became popular in Great Britain and Ireland during theVictorian era. Cookbooks were important in the fixing of the ingredients of a full breakfast during this time,[5] and the full breakfast appeared in the best-sellingIsabella Beeton'sBook of Household Management (1861). This new full breakfast was a pared-down version of the country breakfasts of the upper class, affordable to the emergent middle classes and able to be prepared and consumed in a shorter time before a day's work.[5][6][8] The full breakfast reached its peak of popularity inEdwardian Britain,[8] and despite a decline following the food shortages of World War II,[5] new technologies of food storage and preparation allowed it to become a staple of the working class in the 1950s.[8] Since then the full breakfast has reduced in popularity as a daily meal, due to perceived concerns about health and its lengthy preparation compared to convenience-food breakfasts.[5] However, the meal remains popular as an occasional, celebratory or traditional breakfast.[5][8]
It is so popular in Great Britain and Ireland that manycafés andpubs offer the meal at any time of day as an "all-day breakfast". It is also popular in manyCommonwealth nations. The full breakfast is among the most internationally recognisedBritish dishes along withbangers and mash,toad in the hole,shepherd's pie,fish and chips,roast beef,Sunday roast,cream tea and theChristmas dinner.[9]
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There is no fixed menu or set of ingredients for a full breakfast.[5][8] A common traditional English breakfast typically includesback bacon, sausages (usually pork), eggs (fried,poached orscrambled), fried or grilled tomatoes, fried mushrooms,black pudding,baked beans, andtoast orfried bread.[8][10][11][12]Bubble and squeak is a traditional accompaniment but is now more commonly replaced byhash browns.[13]
A poll byYouGov in 2017 found the following to be on more than 50% of 'ideal' Full English breakfasts: bacon; sausage; beans; bread (either toast or fried); eggs (fried, scrambled or poached); hash browns; mushrooms (fried or grilled); and tomatoes (fried, grilled or tinned).[14] Black pudding was the least popular of the traditional ingredients, chosen 35% of the time,[14] and 26% of people included eitherchips orsautéed potatoes.[14]
Butteredtoast, andjam ormarmalade, are often served at the end of the meal, although toast is generally available throughout the meal.[15]
As nearly everything is fried in this meal, it is commonly known as a "fry-up". In the UK it is sometimes referred to as a "Full Monty". One theory for the origin of this term is that British Army generalBernard Montgomery, nicknamed 'Monty', was said to have started every day with a "Full English" breakfast while on campaign in North Africa during the Second World War.[16][17]
Vegetarian orvegan alternatives can be made or are available in cafes and restaurants.[18]Meat alternative sausages and bacon may often be used,[18][19][20] with either scrambledtofu[19][20] oregg substitutes.[20] The role of the mushroom and tomatoes is generally larger in these versions.[19][20]
In Ireland, brownsoda bread, friedpotato farls,white pudding andboxty are often included.[21]
The "breakfast roll",[22] consisting of elements of the full breakfast served in aFrench roll, has become popular in Ireland due to the fact it can be easily eaten on the way to school or work.[22] The breakfast roll is available from manypetrol stations and corner shops throughout Ireland.[22]
InUlster, the northernprovince of Ireland, the "Ulster fry" variant is popular throughout most of the province, where it is eaten not only at breakfast time but throughout the day. Typically it will includesoda breadfarls andpotato bread.[23]
InScotland there are some distinctivelyScottish elements of the full breakfast which include Scottish style orStornoway black pudding,Lorne sausage (sometimes called "square sausage" for its traditional shape), Ayrshire middle bacon andtattie scones. Occasionallyhaggis,white pudding,fruit pudding[24] oroatcakes are included.[25][26][27]
Early editions ofBrewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable referred to aScotch breakfast as "a substantial breakfast of sundry sorts of good things to eat and drink".[28]
Two key ingredients that distinguish theWelsh breakfast from the other "full" variations arecockles (Welsh:cocs) andlaverbread (Welsh:bara lafwr orbara lawr) (anedible seaweed purée often mixed with oatmeal and fried).[29] Fried laver with cockles and bacon was the traditional breakfast for mine workers in theSouth Wales Coalfield, but a breakfast may have also included Welsh sausages, mushrooms and eggs.[3][30][31] Smoked fish may be served as a modern alternative to the traditional full breakfast.[3]
Full Welsh Breakfasts are accompanied by traditional breakfast drinks, with Welsh tea a ubiquitous choice. Today, as they are often served throughout the day in public houses or inns, Welsh beer or ale is not uncommon.
This style of breakfast was brought over byIrish andBritishimmigrants to the United States and Canada, where it has endured.[32]
A few establishments inHong Kong offer all-day breakfast orbrunch options (hybrid of English and North American items) from formal restaurants to low-frills establishments.[33][34]
The Irish might have soda bread, a potato pancake called boxty, white pudding (what you're used to, but with oatmeal in it) or black pudding (the same, but with blood cooked in).
The Scots like to have tattie (potato) scones, fruit pudding (actually a sausage made with very little fruit), and, of course, their curse on the earth, haggis.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Laverbread, not actually bread at all but seaweed, is rolled in oatmeal, fried into crisp patties and served with eggs, bacon and fresh cockles for a traditional Welsh breakfast.
Media related toFull breakfast at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition offull breakfast at Wiktionary
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