| Author |  Topic  |
E. Cosgrove
 United Kingdom
5850 Posts
Joined: 26 Apr 2004
Status: offline |  Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 09:21:05  
| A funny story.
Although I am an adopted southerner my roots ( and all my family) are in the North West. Last weekend we visited for a family birthday and took with us my sons girlfriend...Swindon born and bred. John, Blott and all you other Northerners will know what I mean by muffins ( the oven bottom type) we would call them baps or bread rolls here in the south.
We were having a quick lunch before we returned home and my sister who was hostess said " i've got some muffins for lunch" Natalie's face lit up( thats the girlfriend)What would you like on your muffin Nat, cheese? (she's a veggie)she looked puzzled, my eldest butted in can I have ham and pickle, whereupon my youngest asked for turkey with stuffing. Natalie said politely yes she would have cheese. When my sister had left the room she looked horrified and whispered to James "I thought muffins had chocolate chips in"
We have not let her live it down!!
Strange habits us northerners have but ham and pickle with a chocolate chip muffin I don't think so!
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Liz
www.orlandovillas.com/florida-vacation-rental-1599.aspx | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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Ray&Sarah
 United Kingdom
10599 Posts
Joined: 11 Nov 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 09:32:21
| quote:
Originally posted by E. Cosgrove
A funny story.
Although I am an adopted southerner my roots ( and all my family) are in the North West. Last weekend we visited for a family birthday and took with us my sons girlfriend...Swindon born and bred. John, Blott and all you other Northerners will know what I mean by muffins ( the oven bottom type) we would call them baps or bread rolls here in the south.
We were having a quick lunch before we returned home and my sister who was hostess said " i've got some muffins for lunch" Natalie's face lit up( thats the girlfriend)What would you like on your muffin Nat, cheese? (she's a veggie)she looked puzzled, my eldest butted in can I have ham and pickle, whereupon my youngest asked for turkey with stuffing. Natalie said politely yes she would have cheese. When my sister had left the room she looked horrified and whispered to James "I thought muffins had chocolate chips in"
We have not let her live it down!!
Strange habits us northerners have but ham and pickle with a chocolate chip muffinI don't think so!
LOL Liz! My youngest son would have been highly disappointed as he loves the choc chip variety. |
Sarah
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ORLANDO_MAGIC
 United Kingdom
404 Posts
Joined: 07 Jan 2005
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 11:40:02
| quote:
Originally posted by Nostromo
quote:
Originally posted by chrizzy100[br
Try saying you're having tiffin....that really gets them going....
Now there is a word that I have not heard used for a LONG time. When I was growing up in India in the 1960s, having 'tiffin' usually meant snacks at teatime, although it was occasionally used for breakfast as well. Since India used to be a British Colony ( ), I always thought that 'tiffin' was a British Colonial term, probably with a military connection. I have never heard any American (or a Brit under 50) use it.
Not only would it have them going but it had me going tooo
Never heard of it myself,though i just checked the dictionary and it says "midday meal" of course im under 50 so maybe that explains it | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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Ray&Sarah
United Kingdom
10599 Posts
Joined: 11 Nov 2003
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ORLANDO_MAGIC
United Kingdom
404 Posts
Joined: 07 Jan 2005
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 12:50:35
| quote:
Originally posted by blott
quote:
Originally posted by Nostromo
8. Easy. The LV Hilton. I love this although I'm not a 'Trekkie'. With those 'Duotronic Computers' and 'Warp Drive', it's amazing howh how fact seemlessly blends into fiction.
We stayed here and got caught up in a hotel fire! Our room was on the 29th floor but we ended up on the pool deck (3rd floor) as we weren't allowed back into the building. My husband got swept away by some firefighters and not allowed back to us again so Mum and I were left to fend for ourselves. Mum and I made hasty plans to jump into the pool if the fire came through the flat roof! After about an hour, the Duty Manager appeared on the pool deck yelling out my name and we discovered that my husband had sent him and another pile of firefighters through the thick smoke inside to come and rescue us! We even got our bags carried for us but had to run around loads of back staircases to avoid the worst of the smoke.
After everything was back to normal (although they had to move two floors of guests so there was a huge queue at the check-in desk), we all got a free meal.
After some refreshments, we did the Star Trek ride (which was, not surprisingly, empty!) and they have a lot of Star Trek items too which makes the pre-ride pretty interesting.
The stay was a complete nightmare and I never realised (although we've had hospital fires) how frightening it is being stuck somewhere with billowing smoke everywhere. A hotel stay never to be forgotten!
A fire anywhere is frightening but stuck in a high rise building which is on fire must be a terrifying experience.
When the World trade center was attacked on Sept 11th and the buildings were ablaze watching those people having to decide whether to jump to their death or stay and burn to death was a harrowing sight and must be every ones nightmare.
I just hope i am never in a similar situation.
John. | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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Nostromo
 United Kingdom
4015 Posts
Joined: 20 Jun 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 13:12:42
| quote:
Originally posted by Ray&Sarah
Didn't they have "tiffin" in one of the Carry-On films, Carry on Up the Kyber or something like that?
The only other 'Tiffin' that I recall from the 60s with a filmy connection was called Pamela. She seemed to disappear after appearing in a few lighthearted roles. |
Nostromo | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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chrizzy100
 USA
7176 Posts
Joined: 26 May 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 18:24:53
| quote:
Originally posted by Nostromo
quote:
Originally posted by chrizzy100[br
Try saying you're having tiffin....that really gets them going....
Now there is a word that I have not heard used for a LONG time. When I was growing up in India in the 1960s, having 'tiffin' usually meant snacks at teatime, although it was occasionally used for breakfast as well. Since India used to be a British Colony (), I always thought that 'tiffin' was a British Colonial term, probably with a military connection. I have never heard any American (or a Brit under 50) use it.
We always have afternoon tiffin....my best friend from school grow up in India...her parents both British were born there and both of her grandparents....they moved back to the UK for her birth .... but Wendy was born at sea after her mother had a bite from a corbra .....lucky it was more of a stratch ....but Wendy was born out at sea early and very small because of it...they went back to India when she was a year old....and then moved back to the UK when she was 9......her dad was a vet dealing in snakes and fish....at the local Zoo....a place I spent most of my childhood.....we always had afternoon tiffin there.... | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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Nostromo
United Kingdom
4015 Posts
Joined: 20 Jun 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 19:59:22
| | I just realised something. Although it has been a long time since I heard the word 'tiffin' used on its own, we still have "Tiffin Carriers". A traditional tiffin-carrier is a brass or stainless steel modulated vessel where 3 to 6 bowls fit snugly on top of each other, with the top one closed with a lid. The entire ensemble is held together by a frame attached to the top handle. If any of you have visited rural India, you'll know what I mean. |
Nostromo | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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chrizzy100
USA
7176 Posts
Joined: 26 May 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 20:35:53
| LUNCH: THE ART OF TIFFIN
Article courtesy: GlobeTrekker
Where:
Mumbai, South India
What's it about:
Military efficiency system from British Raj of lunch time home to office food delivery by dabawallahs.
What's in it:
Platter of Indian pancakes, dumplings, donuts, bhajis, samosas and curries
Serving Suggestion:
Order from a street stall or cafe and eat with fingers
In Southern India light meals and finger-food is always referred to as tiffin, an Anglo-Indian word meaning 'snack'. This vegetarian fare usually includes some kind of a spicy side dish, served with a starch like dosas (pancakes) and idilis (dumplings). It is commonly eaten at breakfast and lunch, but different dishes are more appropriate depending on the time of day.
In the suburbs of Mumbai, middle-class suburban housewives prepare 3-tiered lunch boxes known as dabbas for their husbands, hard at work in the city's offices. The meal, which includes a main dish, a side dish, rice or chappatis, and pickles, is delivered direct to the workplace by one of the city's devoted dabawallahs. These food peddlers can't read, but use numbers and markings to distinguish between the 10,000 dabbas they deliver on a daily basis. The task is completed in just two hours, from midday to 2pm, and at 2 o'clock the whole process is reversed and each box is returned to it's rightful home, making no mistakes. It's a miracle of organisation and efficiency.
Origins and History
Though many of the dishes that now come under the umbrella of tiffin have long been a part of traditional southern Indian cuisine, the tiffin delivery system began under the British raj more than a century ago. British workers were not used to spicy Indian flavour and asked the Parsis to provide them with a blander lunch and dinner. The brigade of dabawallas grew up out of this request, and although these days it's not only the peculiar tastes of foreigners that they cater to, it remains an upper class, quintessentially memsahib-and-servant arrangement.
The trade of the dabbawallahs is passed down through generations of families which come from the villages in the Deccan plateau. There are no dabbawallahs anywhere else in India (or the world), and they are extremely proud of their work. They dress in their trademark flowing pyjamas and Ghandi cap, which is the traditional dress of the Deccan plateau.
Serving Suggestion
You don't have to have a high powered job in Mumbai and a devoted wife to eat tiffin. There are many restaurants throughout Southern India which serve typical light snacks throughout the day.
Though a few kinds of tiffin may be well known to Westerners, here's a guide to some favourites that are likely to be on the menu:
Iddli
Steamed rice or lentil dumplings, served with sambhar and chutney. They are a very popular breakfast dish and are low fat and inexpensive.
Dosai
Fried wafer-thin crepes made from rice or lentil. It can be filled with sambhar, or potato and onion (masala), together with a spicy cocoanut chutney.
Vadai
Deep-fried savory donuts made from lentils, onion and spices. They are delicious covered in yoghurt sauce.
Bhaji
Batter-coated vegetables: everything from potato to chillies, though in the west onion bhajis are the most well known.
Samosas
Triangular pastry parcels with a meat or vegetable filling.
Biryani and Pulao
These are best known in the west as varieties of rice served on the side of a curry. They are actually a rich and flavoursome combination of rice, spices, meat and vegetables all cooked up together.
Most food in Southern India is eaten with the fingers. The idea is that if it's cool enough to touch with your hands it won't burn your mouth. If a particular dish is too messy too eat with your hands it's perfectly acceptable to ask for a spoon, especially if you've not yet perfected the technique. Note also that you should never use your left hand for eating in India: it is considered impure and should never come into contact with food.
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chrizzy100
USA
7176 Posts
Joined: 26 May 2003
Status: offline | Posted - 13 Feb 2005 : 20:37:36
| quote:
Originally posted by Nostromo
I just realised something. Although it has been a long time since I heard the word 'tiffin' used on its own, we still have "Tiffin Carriers". A traditional tiffin-carrier is a brass or stainless steel modulated vessel where 3 to 6 bowls fit snugly on top of each other, with the top one closed with a lid. The entire ensemble is held together by a frame attached to the top handle. If any of you have visited rural India, you'll know what I mean.
Afternoon tiffin can be any light snack........we have tea and small cakes.... | | Report this post to a moderator | goto top of page |
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chris
 United Kingdom
1612 Posts
Joined: 21 Feb 2002
Status: offline | |
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EATING TEA!
