Today at lunch I had a craving for something I hadn't had (or wanted) for quite a while: beans on toast. Perhaps it's because I am Irish; and we tend to like different foods like soda bread, curry in any form, yorkshire puddings, and HP sauce with pretty much any meat. In keeping with that dietary repertoire, beans on toast was pretty much a staple growing up in my house...a quick hearty meal that filled the spot when there was little else in the cupboard. I have come to realize that other countries and cultures have funny food pairings, that are equally satisfying and nostalgic to their culinary fans.
While growing up in Canada (after we immigrated here), I often encountered what I considered strange food combinations...food that I quickly labelled Canadian food. Things like peanut butter and banana sandwiches, fishcakes and beans, sauerkraut on big sausages, biscuits and molasses. It got even stranger when I met my husband, who hailed from Cape Breton. He grew up eating cod and pork scraps, pork with (ugh) applesauce, and the odd bit of bologna with (again) molasses. To this day, he tries to convince me that pork needs applesauce, and that apple pie and cheese make a sensible pairing (I do not see the connection...). I soon learned that you serve chow with fish, mustard pickles with roast beef, and molasses cookies and oatcakes should never (in his eyes) be eaten without butter. A cookie with butter??!! I found his food quirks odd at best, but sometimes I came around to his way of thinking...mustard pickles with a roast is actually very good...
My husband has discovered a new drinkable combination that he feels is the world's greatest pairing: Corona beer with a slice of lime in the bottle. The idea is that the beer passes through the lime on the way into one's mouth, and makes for an incredible beer tasting experience. It is a notion that he pressed onto my brother last weekend when he and his family were visiting. It seemed to ring true, as they certainly seemed to enjoy their Corona!!My beans on toast hit the spot today, and sent me on this sentimental road. What are your favourite food couples? What ones make you recoil, or make your friends and family shout ugh!! as you partake of them? Who knows, maybe you'll convince me to try something new...and weird!!
Happy eating!!
By the way, feel sorry for me today...I am going in for dental surgery to have a wisdom tooth extracted! If you knew my fear of the dentist, you really would be sympathetic!!!
I suppose I'll be a little dumber after it (that's my hubby's DUMB joke...not mine!!!)
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