‘Close, But No Cigar’

A Fairground Revival Dish

Authors

  • Charles Spence Oxford University Author
  • Carlos Chulia Sanchez Independent Scholar Author
  • Jozef Youssef Independent Scholar Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/ppc.27889

Keywords:

United Kingdom, coconuts, fairground food, popular culture, recipe, preparations & techniques, food art, culinary trompe-l’oeil , Chocolate

Abstract

For many years, coconuts were a popular feature of the fairground in the UK. In fact, in the early to mid-eighteenth century, the public’s first exposure to this exotic nut may well have been at the fairground. In support of such a claim, just take Treloar’s (1884) suggestion that: ‘There are a good many people still living who can remember when a Cocoa-nut was a comparative rarity in some parts of England. In a few old country mansions, or on the mantel-shelves of retired sea-captains, and occasionally in London curiosity shops, …’. In this article, we briefly summarize the history of this former fairground food and offer a recipe for a dish comprised of two elements, both involving a little playful culinary trompe-l’oeil that pays homage to the old-time fairground spirit.

Author Biographies

  • Charles Spence, Oxford University

    Charles Spence is a professor at Oxford University and head of the Crossmodal Research Laboratory in the Department of Experimental Psychology. He has written in PPC previously, as well as in many other journals. His book Gastrophysics is essential reading.

  • Carlos Chulia Sanchez, Independent Scholar

    Carlos Chulia Sanchez works as part of the team at Kitchen Theory in London. He studied at Mondragon University in the Basque region of Spain.

  • Jozef Youssef, Independent Scholar

    Jozef Youssef founded the collaborative gastronomic project Kitchen Theory to explore the multi-sensory elements of eating. His book Molecular Gastronomy at Home is a simple introduction to the science behind modernist culinary techniques.

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Published

2020-03-01

Issue

PPC 116 (2020)

Section

Articles

How to Cite

‘Close, But No Cigar’: A Fairground Revival Dish. (2020). Petits Propos Culinaires, 79-92. https://doi.org/10.1558/ppc.27889