Why do Brits boil everything ?

[Lotc]

I’m European but not British. I have to say the way you guys cook (vegetables in particular) ie boiling everything) really isn’t for me. It just makes everything so bland even if you add butter and salt after. Carrots especially. Why not roast or lightly sautee in a pan with some olive oil? My husband boils everything. I’ve never seen anything like it. Why boil carrots? Same as ILs. The first time I met ILs we had poached chicken. It’s so weird to me. Is it a health thing?

Then whoever cooked it over boiled it … maybe it’s your DH cooking that is the problem. And cooking everything in butter isn’t healthy.

Roasts quicker and if you par boil in salt water it guarantees crispy skins on you potatoes.yes but when a big family sits down to eat a roast goes far. Sunday roast was special because it wasn't a cheap stewing meat or sausages I suppose. Yorkshire pudding is nice too, although I'm not good at making them like the older generation

Well this is a bit of a sweeping statement to say we all do this! I don’t boil any vegetables. But of a rude and unnecessary thread to be honest! But absolutely carry on with your self righteous smugness with your cooking!

I'm British and I do boil vegetables. I also don't apologise for it. My veggies taste just fine. I also roast and steam depending on which vegetables / what end product I want. I like boiled peas. I like the taste of a lot of veg lightly boiled. I Make of that what you will.
i'm not interested in putting oil/butter or any other fat on my veg (or anything else for that matter). So frying them or drizzling them in oil, even olive oil is a no for me. But I don't mind if others do it.

The same.

Literally made one tonight without parboiling. Never have. Bloody amazing.

Surely it is best to use a variety of cooking methods. Using olive oil all the time is a bit samey. While I accept that OO is good for you, it does add calories to your intake. Too much salt is bad for you and we don’t all want garlic breath all the time! if you want crispy crunchy roast potatoes then you have to boil them for a few minutes first. Have you heard of blanching vegetables to retain colour? OP, not everyone is like your husband and friends and you are being rude.

My parents' generation (born in the 1920s) used to boil everything! I grew up with soggy, tasteless, boiled vegetables and disliked most of them as a child.

But times have changed and I'm not sure if that's what most Brits do now. I certainly don't! Most often, when cooking vegetables I roast them in the oven. Otherwise they're stir-fried, sautéed, steamed or microwaved. Boiling tends to remove most of the nutrients and a lot of the flavour, in my experience.

I think it's just people you know
We don't boil everything.
I roast most vegetables, or I sauteed them or have them raw.
Broccoli I tend to steam but that's about it.

Steaming veg or lightly boiling keeps the nutrients in. I have never in my life poached a chicken 😂😂

Ragebait post. 'I moved to your country and your cooking doesn't come up to my far superior standards'.

I hardly boil anything, the main things I boil are pasta and rice. If im doing veg I steam, roast or stir fry it, however Im really not a fan of roast potatoes so on the odd occasion I have potatoes I will either boil new potatoes or do mash potatoes or jacket potatoes all of which are yummy with some butter added 😋, so, just because your husband boils everything doesn't mean we all do!!

They're rubbish cooks op, I've never poached a chicken breast in my life and I tend to roast or griddle veg with lemon juice, roasted beets, carrots etc are nice and then griddled or stir fried for broccoli. Cauliflower i roast with harrisa and its fab. The only thing I boil is potatoes for mash, eggs, peas or sometimes bland bits for the kids because they hate flavour. I suspect very traditional cooks or people not into food might boil stuff, my grandparents were big on it but my parents never boil stuff either. It's deemed quite old fashioned I think, eating out here I rarely see boiled stuff other than eggs and peas.

It's a revelation I know BUT, meeting and eating with 1 British family doesn't reflect all British people.

I roast veg. Usually. Not always the same’recipe’ but roasted. For my grandson…he prefers his raw, especially peppers. Peas and corn I might boil if it’s all I’m making, but that’s likely to be shared with the dogs. If I’m making veg for the dogs, yes, I parboil broccoli, carrots, kidney beans get added, with peas, corn, asparagus, whatever . I’ve never boiled chicken. I guess a casserole could be said to be boiled in the oven, as it bubbles and is wet. Potatoes for mash..I forgot about those, but I still prefer roast tatties.

I agree - we have recently started doing this, when we make cauliflower cheese, and it is wonderful - not to mention easier!

Brits don't. Your husband has learned how to cook from his parents. They are absolutely not a reflection on the population at large!

Roasting, grilling, steaming and frying are all typical ways of cooking for us.

I love boiled carrots! Roasting everything makes them greasy/oily. A gently boiled carrot is delicious!

Claiming to have never poached a chicken breast while confidently accusing others of being rubbish cooks is a little - niche.

I'm sure it's pretty healthyish if not all that tasty. Sounds like a deconstructed cottage pie. Although I'm not sure why no one would avoid salt totally as it's a flavour enhancer.

But it's not necessarily any healthier than my egg and potato curry or chicken and chorizo bake etc which has plenty of taste

Although admittedly I nooil the eggs for adding to the curry

Chorizo is quite unhealthy, though. The rest of it sounds good!

Flavour is what the mint sauce is for! 🤣

There only a few bits of chorizo and the chicken, potato and veg cooks in its sauce rather than adding oil. Mint sauce doesn't enhance flavor of the other ingredients like salt. You shouldn't actually be able to taste the sale

I’m British and I never boil anything. I steam or saute or stir fry fresh vegetables and use them in other dishes all the time such as curries or rice or pasta dishes. It’s not the 1940s when Brits lived on boiled offal with potatoes and carrots you know!

It doesn’t. Why are you generalising about a whole country ot 70 million people based on one family? 😂 I suspect you’re a Russian bot.

About the only things that are boiled in this house are eggs and potatoes.

Your mistake OP is in assuming that all kinds of potatoes are better roasted. Often it is the case but it definitely isn't the case with new potatoes.

Just because you wouldn't boil a potato doesn't mean that millions of Brits are wrong.