The British royal family has plenty of strange customs and traditions, especially when it comes to food! Many stem from matriarch Queen Elizabeth II, but others are relatively new.
For example, did you know that Prince Philip has a sweet, food-related nickname for his royal bride? Scroll down to read about the cute term of endearment and more!
Credit: Dominic Lipinski-WPA Pool/Getty Images
The British royal family has plenty of strange customs and traditions, especially when it comes to food! Many stem from matriarch Queen Elizabeth II, but others are relatively new. [ami-related id="1380813" url="https://www.usmagazine.com/food/pictures/duchess-meghan-markles-most-relatable-food-quotes/" title="Duchess Meghan’s Most Relatable Food Quotes" target="" showsubt="false" thumb="false" imgsrc="https://www.usmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/duchess-meghan-food-cooking-3.jpg"] For example, did you know that Prince Philip has a sweet, food-related nickname for his royal bride? Scroll down to read about the cute term of endearment and more!
Credit: Dominic Lipinski-WPA Pool/Getty Images
The British royal family has plenty of strange customs and traditions, especially when it comes to food! Many stem from matriarch Queen Elizabeth II, but others are relatively new. [ami-related id="1380813" url="https://www.usmagazine.com/food/pictures/duchess-meghan-markles-most-relatable-food-quotes/" title="Duchess Meghan’s Most Relatable Food Quotes" target="" showsubt="false" thumb="false" imgsrc="https://www.usmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/duchess-meghan-food-cooking-3.jpg"] For example, did you know that Prince Philip has a sweet, food-related nickname for his royal bride? Scroll down to read about the cute term of endearment and more!
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If there’s one food fact most people already know about Britain’s most famous clan, it’s that the pungent spice is off-limits. Duchess Camilla confirmed this during a July 2018 appearance on MasterChef Australia, telling contestants that “garlic is a no-no” in the royal world.
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Duchess Meghan may be a fan of the Italian staple, but don’t expect to find spaghetti on the menu at Buckingham Palace. Former royal chef Darren McGrady told RecipesPlus pasta is never served for dinner at the royal residence thanks to its high calorie count. The same goes for rice and potatoes.
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Freshness is important to the queen, meaning she stays away from foods that are genetically modified. “You can send strawberries every day to the queen during summer at Balmoral [Castle] and she'll never say a word,” McGrady explained. “Try including strawberries on the menu in January [when they’re not in season] and she'll scrub out the line and say 'don't dare send me genetically modified strawberries.’”
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Speaking of fruit, the monarch has a rather interesting way of eating bananas, pears, pineapples and other sweet treats. McGrady told Today Food all fruit is to be eaten with a knife and fork and never touched with one’s hands. “They [anyone present at the royal banquet] have a dessert knife and fork, a small plate and a finger bowl of water … which some guests have been known to drink,” he explained, adding that all fruit is sliced in such a way so it can be easily consumed. First, the ends of the banana are cut off. Then the banana peel is "sliced down the middle" from end to end so the unpeeled fruit can be opened. The peel is then carefully opened and the fruit itself is sliced into circles and eaten with a fork, explained the chef.
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A Buckingham Palace source confirmed to Us Weekly that the prince recently became the first person in Britain to successfully grow his own black truffles after more than a decade of trying. The resulting crop was said to be “highly successful.” Prince Charles also has a thriving organic vegetable garden at his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire, England.
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The royal family has a whole host of nicknames for one another, including at least one inspired by the rather divisive vegetable. Prince Philip lovingly calls Queen Elizabeth “cabbage” for unknown reasons, which was confirmed by royal biographer Robert Lacey in 2006. “Yes, I've heard that is how he will sometimes refer to her,” Lacey said at the time.
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When at a dining table, royal protocol dictates that members of the family must hold their napkins a certain way. Per Business Insider, royals are expected to fold their napkins in half and then, when needed, use the part inside the fold to wipe their faces clean of food. This prevents clothes from getting stained.
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The queen still has the final say over what is prepared for every meal at Buckingham Palace and her other residences. “We'd do a menu book that we'd send up to the queen and she could choose the dishes she wanted,” McGrady told Marie Claire. “The book would come back to the kitchen and we'd prepare them. The queen's menus are done three or more days ahead and she sticks with them religiously.”
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Brits are big on tea, so it makes sense there would be at least some rules regarding specifically how the beloved beverage is to be consumed. Royals are expected to use their thumb and index finger to hold the top of the handle, while the middle finger supports the bottom, Business Insider reports. They also sip from the same spot on the cup to prevent the entire rim from sporting lipstick stains.
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