It is a truly English creation – a meal eaten all over the country, said to ‘start the day like no other’.
Commonly consisting of bacon, sausage, eggs and toast, the full English breakfast dates back to the Victorian era.
And there’s no doubt it is as iconic a meal in English cuisine as roast beef or fish & chips.
What’s more up for debate, however, is the exact combination of components that make the perfect full English.
Now, MailOnline has spoken to scientists to settle the controversy once and for all.
The experts have devised the formula for the perfect fry–up – including whether ketchup or brown sauce makes the ideal accompaniment.
In addition, the scientists have revealed the best way to arrange the elements on your plate for optimal enjoyment.
As suggested by Steve Coogan’s comic character in ‘I’m Alan Partridge’, they confirm that sausages can be used as a ‘breakwater’ between the egg and the beans so that they don’t mix.
Originating in the Victoria era as the breakfast of the wealthy, few dishes divide opinion like the full English breakfast (file photo)
Scientists have devised the formula for the perfect fry–up – including whether ketchup or brown sauce makes the ideal accompaniment
Dr Nutsuda Sumonsiri, a lecturer in food science and technology at Teesside University, called the full English a ‘much–loved tradition’.
‘Its enduring appeal lies in its careful balance of taste, texture, and nutritional content,’ she told MailOnline.
According to the academic, a perfect full English breakfast balances all five of the basic tastes – sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami.
She claims it needs eggs (which she calls the ‘centerpiece’) with grilled tomato, mushrooms, toast and a helping of meat – either sausage or bacon, if not both.
‘Saltiness comes from the bacon and sausages, sweetness from the beans and tomatoes, sourness from grilled tomatoes or sauces, bitterness from charred or toasted elements, and umami from mushrooms, eggs, and cured meats,’ she said.
‘This multi–layered flavour profile enhances both palatability and satisfaction.’
Meanwhile, additional elements such as black pudding and hash browns are ‘discretionary and more regional’, she said.
Part of what makes the full English so satisfying is the Maillard reaction – a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars that occurs under heat.
Pictured, a 1957 British advertisement for Heinz Baked Beans using a fry–up as a sales tactic
An iconic export: An establishment in Majorca, Spain advertises an English breakfast with the essential elements – egg, sausage, bacon, beans, tomato and toast
Dr Sumonsiri said this reaction, which occurs in various different fry–up elements, ‘creates hundreds of complex flavour and aroma compounds’.
‘It is responsible for the rich browning and deep savoury notes in the sausages, bacon, toast, and fried eggs,’ she told MailOnline.
Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at Oxford University, agrees grilled tomato and mushrooms are essential for that ‘double umami hit’, along with eggs and bacon – ‘preferably a bit crispy’.
Professor Spence, who used to cook 36 full English breakfasts every day when working at his parents’ B&B in Leeds 30 years ago, also recommends two elements that are sadly ‘going out of fashion’ – fried bread and black pudding.
In terms of condiments, it’s bad news for brown sauce fans.
Tomato ketchup is a preferable accompaniment for a fry–up than brown sauce, partly due to its greater sweetness and the ‘vibrancy’ of red ketchup being ‘more visually appealing,’ Professor Spence told MailOnline.
Dr Sumonsiri said ketchup, being sweeter and more acidic, works well with eggs and potatoes, but brown sauce’s spices and malt vinegar complement the savoury richness of meats.
Even if it is consumed with less regularity than at its peak in the 1950s, the Full English is still a highly popular dish (1954 file photo)
In Isabella Beeton’s Book of Household Management, a classic Victorian text from 1861, a breakfast of ‘fried ham and eggs’ is mentioned
Almost as hotly–contested is how the elements of a full English should be positioned on the plate, which if done right can help ‘maintain textural integrity’.
Dr Sumonsiri recommends the toast or fried bread to be placed away from moisture-rich components like tomatoes and beans to prevent sogginess, while eggs should be placed on top of the toast on the other side of the plate, so that the bread can ‘absorb yolk run–off’.
Although individual components of a ‘fry–up’ have a long history, the full English originated in the Victoria era as the breakfast of the wealthy – although some sources state even earlier.
In Isabella Beeton’s Book of Household Management, a classic Victorian text from 1861, a breakfast of ‘fried ham and eggs’ is mentioned.
Professor Rebecca Earle, a food historian at the University of Warwick, thinks the term ‘full English breakfast’ started to appear in the 1920s.
‘A reference from 1928 refers to a “full English breakfast” of ham or bacon, and eggs, which the British Legion promised would be served to people who went on a tour of WWI battlefield sites that they were organising,’ she told MailOnline.
‘In 1939, one hotel advertised that guests could “enjoy a full English breakfast at Vane Court – eggs and bacon, marmalade and toast”.
‘So we don’t see any of the “extras” – mushrooms, baked beans, fried bread, a grilled tomato – that we might now consider markers of a full English breakfast.’
In 2017, YouGov asked 1,400 English people: ‘Which, if any, of the following food items would you want as part of your ideal ‘Full English’ breakfast?’ Bacon was cited by 89 per cent, more than any other item
‘Of course people were eating breakfasts long before 1928 – and might have been eating a fried egg with bacon, grilled mushrooms, a sausage, toast, jam – but it was not routinely labelled a “full English breakfast”.’
The hearty dish became more and more popular until its peak in the 1950s, at which point roughly half of British people consumed a cooked breakfast.
Despite health concerns regrading several of its ingredients, the fry–up is still popular today – but fierce debate remains over what should and shouldn’t be included on the plate.
According to 2017 research by YouGov, bacon is considered the most important element of a Full English breakfast, followed by sausage and toast.
When polled, 89 per cent of 1,400 English people said bacon would feature on the plate for their ideal Full English, followed by 82 per cent for sausage and 73 per cent for toast.
Less important elements were fried egg (named by 65 per cent), hash brown (60 per cent), fried mushrooms (48 per cent), fried bread (47 per cent), black pudding (35 per cent) and fried tomato (23 per cent).
Other more controversial additions to the plate were tinned tomatoes (21 per cent), chips (nine per cent), pancakes (six per cent) and boiled egg (six per cent).
Bubble and squeak, meanwhile, did not get a mention.
Speaking to Rick Stein during his BBC series last year, broadcaster and travel writer Stuart Maconie called the hash brown an ‘American incursion’ into the Full English breakfast, often coming at the expense of bubble and squeak.
The cooked tomato, meanwhile, is often ‘a bag of boiling hot water that clings to the roof of your mouth’, Maconie added.
He also praised the full Scottish breakfast, which usually includes haggis, square sausage and Tattie scones, made with potatoes, flour and butter.
The other British variation, the full Welsh breakfast, has cockles and laverbread, a traditional delicacy made from seaweed.
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .