Around The World In Food

Around the world in food

Wales


Nowadays there is actually very little traditional Welsh cuisine that is regularly eaten by locals. With culinary influences from the rest of the UK, Italy, Mexico, America, India and North Africa etc its probably more likely that you’ll encounter visitors to Wales eating traditional foods than the residents themselves.

Some traditional dishes that you may try as a visitor to Wales include; cawl (a meaty soup), Welsh rarebit (similar to cheese on toast), bara brith (a bread often filled with dried fruit) and Welsh cakes (a bit like a thin scone, filled with dried fruit and cooked on a griddle). With a ratio of three sheep for every person in Wales, it is perhaps unsurprising that Welsh lamb is noteworthy. Welsh lamb is widely exported and sold around the world.

Welsh cakes are probably the most popular and commonly found Welsh dish. Personally, I’m not a huge fan but a lot of friends who come to visit seem to rave about them so it’s probably just me. Here’s a recipe for traditional Welsh cakes.

Welsh Cakes

Ingredients

  • 225g plain flour
  • 85g caster sugar
  • ½ tsp mixed spice
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • 50g butter, cut into small pieces
  • 50g lard, cut into small pieces, plus extra for frying
  • 50g currants
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • splash milk

Method

  1. Chop the onions, and fry it in a large pan on some oil.
  2. Tip the flour, sugar, mixed spice, baking powder and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Then, with your fingers, rub in the butter and lard until crumbly.
  3. Mix in the currants.
  4. Work the egg into the mixture until you have soft dough, adding a splash of milk if it seems a little dry – it should be the same consistency as shortcrust pastry.
  5. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface to the thickness of your little finger. Cut out rounds using a 6cm cutter, re-rolling any trimmings.
  6. Grease a flat griddle pan or heavy frying pan with lard, and place over a medium heat. Cook the Welsh cakes in batches, for about 3 mins each side, until golden brown, crisp and cooked through.
  7. Delicious served warm with butter and jam, or simply sprinkled with caster sugar. Cakes will stay fresh in a tin for 1 week.