What ‘foreign food’ do you remember as a child?

My father did like Gorgonzola cheese.
We also had Edam cheese regularly

JackyB

My mother had one of those blue packets of spaghetti in the larder for years. I don't think she ever cooked it.

Once I made Lancashire hotpot in domestic science at school. As a Londoner, that was exotic enough for her.

She was a fantastic cook, though, and we always had delicious meals.

Once I made Lancashire hotpot in domestic science at school. As a Londoner, that was exotic enough for her
I'd never eaten Lancashire hotpot, even though I'd been to Lancashire several times, until DH made one. He learnt how from his Granny (who wasn't from Lancashire either!).

As I grew up all the curries I ate, except when we live in South Asia, I suppose I should call it now, were home made or served in the Officers mess.

I can remember the shock when my parents returned to England and we went out for a meal and the restaurant had curry on the menu, which I ordered, and I was then asked if I wanted chips or boiled potatoes and when it arrived the curry was closer to a fruit salad than to a beef curry and the rice was littlemore than a garnish - and it came with chips and peas. This was in 1964.

My mother had one of those blue packets of spaghetti in the larder for years. I don't think she ever cooked it.

Once I made Lancashire hotpot in domestic science at school. As a Londoner, that was exotic enough for her.

She was a fantastic cook, though, and we always had delicious meals.

Tins of Ravioli and tins of Rissotto.

Fleurpepper

my future MIL's amazing Cape Malay curries.

Did you know her in your childhood then?

My gran was Anglo-Indian so we used to have a few curries, samosas and chapatis. My DH often. recalls his shock at having to eat dhal! He is not really a fan of pulses still.

My parents cooked curries and all sorts as my Dad worked in a very mixed area and used to encourage my Mum to recreate the recipes. I remember she even used to make hummus. I think they used to buy specialist ingredients from the city centre shops

Nothing much except the local Chinese restaurant food which was horrible, bean sprouts with no flavour and stodgy rice. My parents didn’t like garlic or anything ‘foreign.’ Lots of offal and puddings and tinned fruit and blancmange. As soon as I left home, aged 18, everything changed.

I remember tasting caviar when I was about 16. A friend of my father purloined it from somewhere: I loved it 😍

Nothing in my home town except fish and chips!
I remember DM putting a spoonful of curry powder in mince, which was wonderfully exotic!
When I went to college I was introduced to Indian and Chinese food which I loved, then, working in London even more variety.
And then I went to live in Singapore, I was in heaven!

I was in my teens in the late 60s when my mother first made spaghetti bolognese and I did not like the pasta - it was probably overcooked - though my mother was a good cook otherwise.
Fish and chips was the only takeaway but we never had that. The occasional restaurant meals were Berni Inn steak house or Golden Egg.
I first went to Chinese and Indian restaurants around 1970 with my boyfriend. In the 70s taught how to make proper curries by an Indian friend and also experimented with lots of different types of food.

Whitewavemark2

None, living in deepest darkest Cornwall.

I never had clotted cream or pasties unless I went to Cornwall when I was a child 😃

None, living in deepest darkest Cornwall.

The odd Vesta meals tins of beef curry the curry one end of the tin rice the other can’t remember the brand name. My mum sometimes made a curry with minced beef apple and sultana she said it was Greek. We never got chippy meals they were beyond my parent’s budget.
I went to Liverpool city centre as a treat with friends for a birthday I was about thirteen. We went to a restaurant and never had Chinese food before so we didn’t know what to expect or what was ordered. It was fried rice and to us girls it was dry boring food with no gravy.

Wenmore

Vol au vents

Are they foreign?
Or are they rather like Black Forest Gateau?

I think Chicken Tikka Masala is a British invention 😃

Vol au vents

We used to go to the Swiss Food Centre and the Norwegian Food Centre when I was a child.

I adored the latter and happily loaded my plate with all sorts. However I've no idea what it was.

But I have never forgotten it!

I don't think these restaurants exist any more

Germanshepherdsmum

It’s unkind to say that people were ignorant because their only known use for olive oil was for softening ear wax. My parents had never been abroad and Mum was a good plain meat and veg cook. They might not have been sophisticated but they certainly weren’t ignorant.

Certsinly it is!!

My parents certainly weren't ignorant.
My mother had lived overseas on married accompanied tours of duty and also visited other countries too.
My father probably visited more countries than many posters on GN have ever been to.

Olive oil is still recommended as a softener for ear wax.

Only English food when I was a child. Luckily my mother liked cooking and food was good. Had never heard of Vesta curries until I read about them on GN. I taught myself to cook after a fashion from Elizabeth David French Country Cooking. Remember trying to persuade my mother to make quiche but not succeeding.

We grew up with a British/Northern French cuisine; so I guess basic meat and veg. Not too much fresh fish available in Ontario in the 60's/70's but Mum did good scallops when she could get them.

One of my friends was Italian, and I had pasta at her house for the first time. I was converted! My mother later worked at a factory that tinned tomatoes, and they started making jarred pasta sauce, that we had with spaghetti. I have to say my Dad turned his nose up, but we children loved it.

We did have a Chinese restaurant in town, but I'm afraid we didn't go, I think because we wouldn't have know what to order!

Olive Oil BP was indeed sold for medicinal purposes and its primary use was to soften earwax.

www.pharmacyrequirements.co.uk/olive-oil-bp#:~:text=Olive%20Oil%20BP%20has%20many,needed%20for%20a%20healthy%20body.

I grew up in Birmingham where there were many Indian and Chinese restaurants even in the 1960s. I remember there were a lot of Indian restaurants in Bristol Street - the joke at the time was that they all shared the same kitchen "out the back". I used to enjoy going for a set meal at lunch - it didn't really matter which restaurant you chose, the food all tasted much the same. I loved it though.

It’s unkind to say that people were ignorant because their only known use for olive oil was for softening ear wax. My parents had never been abroad and Mum was a good plain meat and veg cook. They might not have been sophisticated but they certainly weren’t ignorant.

my future MIL's amazing Cape Malay curries.