In Great Britain as everywhere else there are no strict rules when we speak about meals, but still the British have some traditions, such as: they usually have breakfast, lunch, tea at five o’clock and dinner. If the dinner is late enough it is called supper. Sometimes they have both dinner and supper, if they like. The biggest meal of the day for an ordinary Englishman is considered to be breakfast. It is usually held between 7 and 9 o’clock. It must be rather big and nourishing, much bigger than breakfast on the Continent. Traditional British breakfast consists of bacon, ham or sausages, fried or boiled eggs, some porridge, cornflakes, toasts, jam, a cup of coffee or strong tea. Certainly some people don’t like the idea of having too much food in the morning and prefer to eat a slice of bread and butter, a boiled egg, some fruit and drink a glass of juice. The English like to eat their boiled eggs with small spoons with some salt. Toasts are usually eaten with butter and some marmalade.
Between 12 and 1.30 p.m. the British have their lunch. It is not so heavy as breakfast and usually consists of some tiny sandwiches or rolls, cold ham, a packet of crisps, some fruit and some drink: a cup of coffee, tea with sugar and milk or cream. Children prefer juice or milk. Mothers usually give their children plastic containers with packed food to be eaten at school or college.
At midday from 1.30 till 2.30 the British have their dinner. Some people eat their dinner rather late: from 6.30 to 8.00 p.m. Then they call it «supper». It depends upon their minds. It is the main meal of the day. It may consist of several courses, such as roast meat, chops, beefsteaks, accompanied with vegetables. In Britain the most common kinds of meat are beef, chicken, lamb and pork. Meat is traditionally served with hot sauce. The most popular vegetables are potatoes, cabbages, onions, peas, carrots and tomatoes. After the main course a sweet pie or a pudding or stewed fruit may come.
The so-called «five-o’clock tea» is quite a substantial meal. The British have it between five and six p.m. Traditional «five-o’clock» usually consists of ham, sausages or tongue, tinned salmon, bread, butter, cheese, caviar (it depends upon the budget, of course), buns, cakes, pies, different kinds of pastries with cream or custard, stewed and tinned fruit: apples, apricots, pears, pineapples and so on. Everything is served with terribly strong tea! Of course, «five-o’clocks» are not available for everybody and every day. This type of meals is common for people of high rank or, perhaps, for well-to-do families. They invite guests and spend a few hours sitting at table and chatting.
Some Useful Words and Word Combinations:
Слова и словосочетания к теме «Прием пищи и блюда»:
the British (собир.) британцы, англичане
breakfast [‘brekfǝst] завтрак
lunch [‘lʌnʧ] ланч или ленч, второй завтрак
dinner [‘dınǝ] обед
supper [‘sʌpǝ] ужин; at supper за ужином; Dutch supper угощение, при котором каждый платит сам за себя
bread [bred] хлеб
butter [‘bʌtǝ] масло (сливочное)
oil [‘ɔıl] масло (растительное)
bacon [‘beık(ǝ)n] копченая свиная грудинка, бекон
ham [hæm] ветчина, окорок
sausage [‘sɔsıʤ] колбаса, любые колбасные изделия: сардельки, сосиски и пр.
fried [‘fraıd] eggs яичница (глазунья)
boiled [‘bɔıld] egg вареное яйцо
porridge [‘pɔrıʤ] каша (обычно овсяная)
toast [tǝust] тост, гренок, поджаренный ломтик хлеба; иногда ломтик хлеба, пропитанный в вине и подрумяненный на огне
cornflakes [‘kɔ:nfleıks] (амер.) кукурузные хлопья, корнфлекс
cereal [‘sı(ǝ)rıǝl] овсянка, овсяная каша; крупа; (амер.) каша (из круп)
slice [‘slaıs] тонкий ломтик, срез
salt [sɔ:lt] соль
sugar [‘ʃugǝ] сахар
spoon [spu:n] ложка
fork [fɔ:k] вилка
knife [naıf] (мн.ч. knives) нож (ножи)
glass [glɑ:s] стакан, бокал, фужер, рюмка; стекло; зеркало (в зависимости от контекста)
juice [ʤu:s] (orange, apple, etc) сок (апельсиновый, яблочный и т.д.)
nourishing [‘nʌrıʃıŋ] питательный, сытный, от nourish питать, кормить; nourished откормленный, упитанный
marmalade [‘mɑ:mǝleıd] повидло, конфитюр (особ. апельсиновый), джем, мармелад
jam [ʤæm] варенье, джем
fruit [fru:t] плод, фрукт (во множественном числе не изменяется)
vegetable [‘veʤıtǝbl] овощ, зелень (во мн. ч. vegetables)
crisps (брит.) чипсы, хрустящий картофель
cream [kri:m] сливки; крем; cream cheese сливочный сыр
roll [rǝul] булочка
sauсe [sɔ:s] соус, приправа, подливка; (амер.) фруктовое пюре, гарнир из овощей
gravy [‘greıvı] подливка, сок, который выделяется из мяса при тушении или жаренье
beef [bi:f] говядина
chicken цыпленок, (зд.) курятина; goose гусь, гусятина; turkey индейка; duck [dʌk] утка, утятина
lamb [læm] ягненок, барашек; молодая баранина
pork [pɔ:k] свинина
chop [ʧɔp] отбивная котлета; (амер. сл.) еда, пища, жратва
tongue [tʌŋ] язык
course (зд.) блюдо, отдельная часть трапезы, например: the first course or the main course блюда на первое; the second course второе и т.п.
the so—called так называемый
substantial [sǝb’stænʃ(ǝ)l] капитальный, основательный, большой, питательный
caviar [‘kævıɑ:] икра рыбья (обычно деликатесная)
bun [bʌn] сдобная булочка
pie [paı] пирог
pastry [‘peıstrı] кондитерская выпечка: торты, пирожные, печенье и пр.
custard [‘kʌstǝd] жидкий заварной крем из молока и яиц, сладкий соус
pudding [‘pudıŋ] пудинг, запеканка, сладкое мучное блюдо; иногда нечто напоминающее кашу или разновидность колбасы
to serve (зд.) подавать, накрывать на стол
high rank высокое социальное положение
well—to—do богатый, преуспевающий, обеспеченный