英国人的饮食习惯和对食物的偏好

 　　A nation of foodies?

　　The UK has become a nation of foodies, with increasingly sophisticated tastes and an appetite for world cuisines². Witness all the TV food programmes and cookery books, the celebrity³ status of many chefs, the popularity of farmers' markets and regional food fairs, the trend in food related travel and the money we spend on doing up kitchens.

　　Jamie Oliver won massive support for his campaign for improved standards in school dinners and Gillian McKeith had phenomenal success from her 'you are what you eat' approach to eating. And yet, we are also labelled a bad food nation.

　　The ready meal boom

　　The UK eats the most ready meals in Europe. Pizza, pasta, oven chips all quickly re-heated and no messing. Supermarkets and convenience stores display a dazzling range – the more exotic the better.

　　Julia Michna, head of 'meal solutions' at Marks and Spencer observes that 'Britain's multiculturalism⁴ [means] ethnic⁵ cuisines, which people are often scared of cooking from scratch, are far more popular.

　　One quarter of chilled meals are Indian, and nearly one in five is Chinese'. Only 18% of sales are for traditional British food. We want a tastier, spicier⁶ variation on the bland⁷, standard UK diet.

　　Taste, time, trends – and talent

　　Why do ready meals seduce⁸ us? Convenience certainly; people commonly say they are too busy; they don't have enough time to cook.

　　Other relevant trends in the ready meal boom are social; as more people live alone they are less motivated to cook from scratch. Families often eat apart, and ready-meals allow them more flexibility⁹. Lloyd, 26, from Devon, says 'I think ready meals are okay. They do what that say (give you a fast food fix).

　　My favourite is Marks and Spencer jacket potato with cheese.' Ashleigh, 22, from Downpatrick, says 'My favourites are pizza and frozen meals which I have about twice a week'

　　Our passion for ready meals is probably due to the huge variety and the quality available. We are always so busy and finding time to cook can sometimes seem like an inconvenience when there is a quick tasty alternative. Some people do still enjoy the creativity of cooking a meal from scratch though. What do you prefer?

　　Glossary¹⁰

　　a foodie - (n.) : someone who is knowledgeable¹¹ about food and drink

　　sophisticated (adj.) : good judgement about socailly important things

　　cuisine¹ (n.) : a particular style of cooking e.g. French cuisine

　　a ready meal : a meal which is bought from the shop ready to be reheated and eaten without cooking. These meals are often frozen.

　　dazzling (adj.) : very impressive or attractive

　　bland (adj.) : having little taste

　　a boom (n.) : a rapid increase of business activity

　　jacket potato (n.) : a potato cooked in the oven in its skin

　　do something from scratch : begin something without using anything that existed or was prepared before

1 cuisine   

n.烹调，烹饪法

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• This restaurant is renowned for its cuisine.这家餐馆以其精美的饭菜而闻名。

2 cuisines   

n.烹饪( cuisine的名词复数 )；菜肴；（通常指昂贵的饭店中的）饭菜；烹饪艺术

参考例句：

• Could you tell me the different features of these cuisines? 能不能告诉我这些不同的烹调流派各自有哪些特点？ 来自地道口语脱口SHOW 高中超越版
• Ice sculptures are used as decorations in some cuisines, especially in Asia. 冰雕在某些菜肴中被当作装饰品，尤其在亚洲。 来自互联网

3 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

4 multiculturalism   

n.多元文化

参考例句：

• Switzerland is well known for cheese fondue, penguin parades and its multiculturalism. 瑞士一向以芝士火锅，企鹅游行和多元文化等特色闻名于世。
• That may be one reason why multiculturalism came easily to it. 这也是多元文化容易适应发展的原因之一。

5 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

6 spicier   

adj.用香料调味的( spicy的比较级 )；有香料味的；有刺激性的；（故事、新闻等） 刺激的

参考例句：

• She added some green chili peppers to her cheese dip to make spicier. 她在起司沾酱中加了一些青辣椒让它辛辣一点。 来自互联网

7 bland   

adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的

参考例句：

• He eats bland food because of his stomach trouble.他因胃病而吃清淡的食物。
• This soup is too bland for me.这汤我喝起来偏淡。

8 seduce   

vt.勾引，诱奸，诱惑，引诱

参考例句：

• She has set out to seduce Stephen.她已经开始勾引斯蒂芬了。
• Clever advertising would seduce more people into smoking.巧妙策划的广告会引诱更多的人吸烟。

9 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

10 glossary   

n.注释词表；术语汇编

参考例句：

• The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
• For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便，我们在附录中也提供了术语表。

11 knowledgeable   

adj.知识渊博的；有见识的

参考例句：

• He's quite knowledgeable about the theatre.他对戏剧很有心得。
• He made some knowledgeable remarks at the meeting.他在会上的发言颇有见地。