Living as an American (Texan!) in England
japra | Mar 28, 2009 | Comments 42
Yesterday, I was exchanging messages with Emm about what to write for World Blog Surf Day. I was trying to think of a way to boil down my expat experience here in
In our last few weeks in
Homesick? Me? Pshaw. I was a citizen of the world and didn’t need the familiar stuff. Why would I? I was ready for a change, ready for excitement! I was certain I could adapt to whatever life wanted to throw my way. And certainly I wasn’t a picky eater. British food? Absolutely! Greek?
Well, trying to find authentic Tex-Mex in England is probably as frustrating as trying to find authentic British food in America. None of the restaurants hit the spot. The local Old El Paso stuff in the grocery just didn’t taste right to my practically native Texan palate. In desperation, I turned to my computer and found the world of food bloggers.
Wow–so MANY food bloggers. I spent hours on their sites pouring over their amazing recipes. Salivating. Printing off recipes and stuffing the pages into a spare binder.
I learned how to cook all of our Tex-Mex favourites from scratch: homemade flour and corn tortillas, Mexican chorizo, asado, fajitas, taco meat, stuffed poblano peppers, and even margaritas made from fresh limes! While I was at it, I cooked
And why stop there? I whipped up Guinness bread, South African bobotie, old fashioned English jam tarts,
*deep breath*
Now it’s looking like we’ll be making another move soon, crossing the
And of course, I’ll have my now invaluable 3” binder filled with all the recipes I’ve collected over the last two years.
I wonder how you say “Tex-Mex” in Dutch?
This post was written for World Blog Surf Day. Thanks to Golden Prague for organizing the fun!
Now, won’t you visit An American in Britain? It’s a wonderfully thoughtful expat blog. I particularly liked–and could totally relate to–“The Long and Winding British Mile”, filed under the Travel and Transport category.
Filed Under: Blog • Expat Life • Food
About the Author: JaPRA is an expat Texan living in England with her husband (Mr. DJ), their 17-year old daughter (Roxi), and their dog Trudy.
When’s dinner?
You are SO right by the way – I was in my friend’s kitchen yesterday – she’s going back to Europe and she had almost a dozen boxes of brownie mix and Aunt Jemima syrup.
You’ve made me hungry. I won’t tell you what I’m planning to do for dinner tonight.
Julia–LOL! It is hard to find that stuff here. If you friend runs out of brownie mix, Simply Recipes has a good version. I’ll never go back to a box mix again :-)
Laurie–That’s alright. One day I’m coming to visit you and we’ll go there. I’ll inhale everything on the menu… then you’ll have to roll me outta town!
I found a connection on-line and periodically send for supplies of Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix, A1 Sauce and Corn Meal. It gets very lonely without them.
Mike–When my mother-in-law visits, we always ask her to bring us
American marshmallows (for hot chocolate and rice krispie treats) and butterscotch chips! I recently bought a small bag of “Maize Meal” at the health food store. I miss jalepeno cornbread! I tried making it with polenta (as one cookbook author recommended), but the texture was too coarse and made the cornbread taste underdone. I am going to try again today with the maize meal, though. It’s cold and rainy out, isn’t it? Perfect for some Texas chili and a pan of jalepeno cornbread :-)
Oooh my..it really sounds sooo familiar, this homesickness. Some of the foods you’ve mentioned you do can find in The Netherlands. You’ll have a great time over there!!! (Depends on where you’ll live – of course-).
Hi Just a Plane Ride Away,
Great post!!! I can really relate to trying to find Tex-Mex or Mexican food…I have the same problem here in the Czech Republic! It’s amazing how we become more resourceful when we can’t find what we’re used to!!! I recently made my own homemade Vicks as they don’t have anything like that here! :0)
Have a great day,
Sher :0)
I remember boiling up my first successful batch of bagels in east Africa. I even had a fairly good success in making bacon there.
But your list made me laugh…Digestive? Suggestive! still sticks after 40 yrs. Do they still even say that?
(I think Sher should share the recipe for Vicks…you never know…)
Came to your blog through the World Blog Day trail…
Hehe…how much I understand the having food from home for a rainy day! Luckily London is a hub for flights, so I often get people coming to visit, or just passing through, and brining oh so loved Maltese food..It’s great!
Hi Tex,
This was the first time I’ve been here and was highly entertianed by your view as an expat in the UK. I am now following you and you are on my blogroll as a result. Great to discover and meet you.
Regards from an old blightly.
Lots of that you can get here :-) We have great grocery stores, outdoor markets and expat shops!
Tex Mex in Dutch?
Tex Mex..))
But we have original Mexican food..))
Hans
Dutch in Istanbul
I started to bake my own bread when I lived in the UK, because I am German and need REAL bread to be happy ;-) Excellent post that I could so much relate to! I am quite happy here in Prague because the Czech cuisine is pretty similar to the German one I grew up with ;-)
Hello from Southern California – I just found your blog via Elizabeth at About New York. I love this post! You certainly have become quite a chef of the Tex-Mex. Your blog is fascinating and I will be back to spend some time perusing it.
Sara
I adore Tex-Mex; not much of that delicious and spicy taste here! Have a wonderful weekend, xv.
This was the first I’ve seen your blog and I enjoyed this post very much! Isn’t it amazing what an important role food plays in a culture and our ability to connect to others?
Dear jumping beans, you have made my mouth water. Have you tried logging on the The Mexican Grocer? It is a bit pricey but it sells all the authentic Mexican ingredients from Mole to Corn meal.
Pardon me while I go check the larder.
Isn’t it great that you have become a food artist as well? You must feel it even more than I do that you have packed about 10 years of experience into only 2. Oh, I meant to tell you—did you know that Brennan’s burned down during Hurricane Ike? They are rebuilding and plan to open in October. Love, Mimsy
I love this post! Was it difficult to find all the ingredients you needed to make your own Tex-Mex?
When I was in Paris I had a friend who would ask her family and friends back in the States to send her peanut butter, as beurre de cacahuetes isn’t something you find at your average French grocery store. Sometimes you don’t know what you might miss until you actually miss it.
LOL you’re taking Marmite!! :)
You’ll still be blogging of course?
There were times I almost cried for missing something simple like Mexican food or fried chicken. When I saw microwave popcorn on the very bottom shelf at Asda, I practically sobbed with happieness and took it right home to impress the boys with! A cake mix at the posh grocery store brought back memories of numerous birthdays and celebrations.
But now it’s hobnobs and fruit pastilles I miss. I paid $6.00 for a packet of hobnobs the other day.
xoxoxo
Awesome post! I hadn’t realised that you were new all that Tex Mex cooking – I just thought you’d always cooked like that! This was such a fun exercise!
Why is it I’m always hungry every time I leave your place?!
I wish I could make tortillas.
It’s interesting that your expat experience led you to develop your cooking skills! I like ‘Old El Paso’ but I guess I don’t know any better!
You will need your stash in Holland as Dutch food is quite different again! I hope that the move goes well.
Best wishes,
Roz
CT–I was really surprised how much I missed the food of my hometown. We were so spoiled and had many inexpensive and delicious restaurants at hand. I know we’ll have a good time in NL, though.
Sher–Homemade Vicks!! That is impressive. I imagine it must have been a tough adjustment to move to CZ, mainly because of the language! When we were there about a year and a half ago, we went to the grocery store. Good thing they put photos of the food on the packaging ;-)
Maureen–I need to dive deeper into your blog. How many places have you lived?! And no, I haven’t seen (or maybe I have been oblivious to!) “Digestive? Suggestive!” That is funny!! By the way, I didn’t know how rewarding it would be to get a recipe just right, especially bagels, which always seemed so mysterious! Make your own bacon? Most impressive, friend.
Annuca–I’ve never had Maltese food. I just looked up “Maltese cuisine” and oh no… it sounds so delicious! I would love to try a recipe or two. Or more! You’re lucky you have so many people coming through London :-)
Martin–I’m glad you stopped by! I’m having a great time here in old Blighty, especially now that the days are getting longer. Spring is a beautiful time of year.
Katie–So glad to hear that! I understand there are a lot of Texans there, so I was hoping ;-)
Internation Musing–Glad to hear it. And my, Istanbul! I can’t wait to visit your blog!!
Golden Prague–I learned to bake bread here too! I had the time, a stand mixer, and for five months, I couldn’t drive a car (license expired). Excellent reasons, non? Thanks so much for organizing this fun blogger event. I can’t wait to visit everyone elses blogs :-)
Sara–Desperate measures call for desperate actions ;-) I’m so glad you stopped by! I was basking in a few California blogs over the winter and was so envious of your sunshine.
Viki–Ah, but French food. Oooooo la la!
Journeys and Adventures–Yes, it is surprising! Childhood favourites, new favourites… they’re all important :-)
Moannie–Yes, the online Mexican stores saved me! I can even get fresh poblano peppers, which makes me very happy. Hope you found some good stuff in your larder, friend.
Mimsy–Yes! I was watching all the hurricane stuff real time over the internet and couldn’t believe it when I saw Brennan’s burning down. So many celebrations and happy events associated with that restaurant. I’m glad they’re rebuilding it. I wonder if it will look the same?
Anne–It was a challenge to find all of these ingredients. I have to order many of the spices online–there are two really good resources. That is funny about the peanut butter. They do have it here, but it’s not the same. “Sometimes you don’t know what you might miss until you actually miss it” is SUCH a true statement.
Akelamalu–Ha, yes on the Marmite, can you believe it? And yes, I will continue blogging–wherever I am!
P-D–LOL! I saw a packet of Oreos at a garden shop not far from where we used to live (they had a lot of US foods for the big US expat community nearby) going for $8! And my mom brought us microwave popcorn from the US in our first year. The bag was too big for our microwave and ended up burning! We’ve learned how to make popcorn in a pot. :-)
Emm–I hardly ever cooked! We ate out so much that the waiters knew what we wanted the minute we walked in the door. Sad but true.
A Modern Mother–Sorry about that! And Homesick Texan has a simple recipe for flour tortillas. I HIGHLY recommend it. I think I might have cried a little the first time I tried it.
Roz–I tried Old El Paso taco mix when we first moved to London. It was good, but it had more of an Indian flavour to it. And I tried and tried to like the pre-made tortillas here, but I just couldn’t eat them. I suppose I am picky about my Tex-Mex ;-)
If you move to NL, you are still out of luck when it comes to Tex-Mex. But, that gives us even more of a reason to schedule a Tweetup sometime in which I break out the tortilla press (yes, it IS one of the kitchen tools I required here in NL!) Although, I still have to get people to bring me masa harina from the States… :)
Great post! You made me hungry. I wish we had good Tex-Mex in Maine. It is interesting about food habits and tastes. We still drink PG Tips tea. Henry was very excited to find crumpets here. We miss English beer and pubs.
That’s so exciting that the Netherlands move is confirmed! You are such a global citizen.
It’s so funny, but no one seems to get homesick as much as Texans! My husband occasionally co-writes with friends up in Nashville who are from Texas. They are constantly “going back home”. It seems as though they cannot be away from Texas for more than a few weeks at a time!
I do understand about the food. Whenever I’m in Scotland, I wander the aisle of the markets looking for certain items I would need to make some of my favourite dishes. Alas, no corn meal…no buttermilk!
Hello, I enjoyed reading about your expat experiences In England. Homesickness is something that I wasn’t expecting, but it is something that sometimes creeps up on me.
What I would do for some haggis, neeps and tatties, washed down with some a few glasses of fine Scottish Single Malt.
great post, and your food experiences are a treat to read, all those things you’ve made!
Sheryl–You are one ahead of me! I’ve given up on my tortilla press–I think I need a better one. But yes, def Tweetup in the NL sounds GREAT! I’ll bring you some “maize meal” ;-)
Sarah–I am SO bringing tea with me when we leave England. I told my husband I was going to ship a whole case of tea when we leave here for good. Since he’ll still be in based in the UK, I know we’ll be making the occasional trip back through the chunnel… to stock up on crumpets and tea ;-)
Pamela–I just made my first ever successful batch of cornbread here in the UK using “maize meal” bought in the health food store!! I had to make my own buttermilk too (add a little vinegar to the milk, you can also use yogurt, I understand). Too funny about your husband’s Texan friends!
Garry–Neeps and tatties, I need to find out what those are!! But I’m with you there on the Scottish Single Malt. I particularly like Innis and Gunn beer too.
Christine–I can’t believe how much I learned to cook over these last two years. Kind of a nice souvenir of our time here :-) BTW, I’m glad you’re back from your trip. I missed your posts! Can’t wait to hear all about it.
I wonder if you could use the polenta/cornmeal/grits for making cornbread (when you cannot get maize meal) if you processed it in the food processor for a while to make it finer. Mimsy
Mimsy–That is a great idea, clever girl! I just realized this weekend that I’ll have to get all new small appliances if we move. *sigh*
Lovely post. I can relate to your homesickness. The first time I tried a Cuban restaurant was in Leicester Square, London’s West End, Little Havana it was called. Little Rubbish trying to Pass Off as Cuban Restaurant would be a more appropriate name.
Greetings from London.
Love it and I love Tex-Mex, too. I have to have my spices. At least, now you know that if you ever needed to, you can become a chef. Perhaps, you can do a roaring trade in the Netherlands. And I am curious because I am relatively new to your blog site (I had found you previously), why all the moving around? I moved around a lot in the States as a child and I started doing the same to my kids. I benefitted from it, but I’m afraid they’re not seeing it in the same light.
A Cuban in London–Mmm Cuban food! Ok, so is there a place in town that you can recommend that IS good? The problem with London is there are just too many choices and it’s hard to know…
American in Britain–I had to smile at your question about moving around. Actually, we’ve hardly moved at all! This was our first move out of Texas (minus a six-month stint in DC ages and ages ago), and this is definitely our first overseas assignment. We came over here for my husband’s job. Before we decided to move, we all had to agree that this was the right thing for our family. If one of us said no, the deal was off. Luckily our then 12 year old daughter was very excited about moving to England. And though it’s had its ups and downs, in general, we really love it here. Of course there are some things we miss about America, namely family and conveniences, but we do feel like we are very fortunate to have this opportunity to live overseas. When you moved as a child, did you live in different countries? How old are your children? Someone told me that the first year is hard, the second year is better and the third year is great. Someone else told me that you know you’ve gone native when you stop converting the price of things. That’s probably true too :-) Hope you have a lovely day and enjoy this beautiful sunshine.
LoL! I think I’m on the same path as you! I perhaps don’t miss-miss Malaysian food too much (when I have three Thai restaurants within 5 minutes’ walk, they are good enough to satisfy the chili/hot/spicy pangs), but I have been paying attention to the food blogs :) Then again, I did end up with a whole bunch of spices that I brought back from Malaysia last month… :D
Sorry I’m a little late with the World Blog Surf Day rounds!
Cheers,
*lynne*
Lynne–It’s great to hear from you! I’m glad you have some good eats nearby. I think it really does help. But you’re right about bringing spices back. During our trip home last summer, I went to Sam’s Club and bought HUGE bottles of chili, cumin and garlic powder. They’re down to about 1/3 now. :-)
After reading “Emm in London”‘s blog, I found your site. Fantastic layout and so much info! I’ve added you to my RSS feed, as I intend to get through all of it. I’m an American living in Sydney, Australia, with a very similar setup as yours – albeit different stories.
Cheers!
Stefan.
Hi Stefan! So glad you stopped by. I love making new friends :-) Wow, your blog is fantastic! I am going to add you to my blogroll as well (once I figure out how to do it!) and make my way through your posts.
PS I saw your comment about Bejewelled on Emm’s site. That is my crack too! I can’t even play one game because I’ll look up and it’s an hour later.
Awesome site! Just one question: I’ve been using this RSS reader application. How do I exactly go about adding your website to it?