Roasties!

As I sat in the lounge on a decidedly chilly afternoon, I began drifting off to sleep once again. I had only been up an hour, but after the shenanigans of the night before, staying awake was just too much. Gently, I closed my left eye, gradually fading to dark under the light pouring in through the window. I rubbed my right eye with the back of my hand, took a large yawn and closed both lids. Head falling to the side, I nodded off; just forty winks before Sunday lunch.

Ten minutes passed, and I was awoken suddenly, my slumber rudely interrupted. Hissing and spitting emanated from the kitchen, as a plume of smoke filtered through the serving hatch. Mother had put the par boiled potatoes in steaming hot lard on the stove. Mum’s taters were the best, well second best to my grandmothers anyway. Roasted to perfection, they were basted frequently, vigorously shaken in the roasting pan and customary seasoned with salt pepper and occasionally a few well-chosen herbs, picked fresh from the garden — but never garlic!

In the good old days, the dreaded bulb rarely featured in the British diet. These were the years when you could only buy a bottle of olive oil from the chemist, and purchasing a container of vegetable oil was considered terribly posh. Vesta curries were all the rage and Blue Nun was the wine of choice. I used to think, looking back, that Mum cooked everything in lard, I’m sure she didn’t, but it was the late 1970s and times were very different; austerity was the order of the day!

I always enjoyed school dinners. Whenever I feel in need of cheering up, or I am just having a bad day, I look bad at these lunches with fondness. Cooking a similar meal at home, when it’s pouring with rain outside and the wind is howling down the chimney stack, is a memory that makes me feel secure and content with the World. Roast potatoes were very much on the menu then, as they are now. My love affair with the humble roastie, began, way back when; a love affair that continues today.

I was first in the queue, I could smell the scorching spuds, as the Dinner Ladies brought them out to the front of the canteen. There was something about roast potatoes at School, that were so different from any I have ever tasted. To be honest, they were rather soggy, not crisp like Mum used to cook. The taste was great however, and I always had second helpings, thirds if I could, which is probably why I was and still am a little on the larger size.

I am a product of the seventies and all that decade threw my way. Political correctness didn’t exist, and it was OK to be normal, eat humble and not have delusions of grandeur. The lunch menu was a reflection of the values and aspirations of the time — nothing over the top, just hearty, filling, and basic; ideals we should adopt once again today!

At home, sat at the dining table, the dinner plate was piled high. Thick slices of sirloin, three or four different vegetables, pigs in blankets, homemade Yorkshire puddings and piping hot gravy made with the meat juices from the joint slowly cooked in the oven. To the side, each of us had a plate of bread and butter; proper butter, not that margarine stuff — natural wholesome unprocessed. Eating with gusto, I would always make a roast dinner sandwich, filled to bursting with goodies from my plate; always left to last, washed down with a cheeky glass of wine, only allowed on a Sunday afternoon!

Today, my love affair with the simple roast potato still exists, cooking them as often as I can. Today I will cook them with garlic, balsamic vinegar and even Marmite. Unlike the past, I will only use olive oil, or beef dripping at Christmas as a one-off treat. With high blood pressure and cholesterol, lard is most certainly a no no these days.

Suddenly the World became more health conscious, and my spuds adapted to mark the times in which we now live. The basic recipe remains the same, they taste as good as ever, and the memories persist. Transporting me back to family occasions, laughter around the table and stories of decades gone by, the humble roast potato is still very much a part of my life and always firmly on my shopping list!

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