Bisto, HP Sauce and OXO beef stock cubes are a few of my favorite British products that I always have in my pantry. They make all my British dishes taste great!
When I’m making things like steak pie, British beef stew, and shepherd’s or cottage pie, these are a few of my “must have” ingredients which really give everything that yummy British flavor.
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BISTO Granules
This is so easy to use! Just sprinkle into the pot as you are simmering whatever beef dish you are making: it not only gives it a great gravy flavor, but it also thickens. I brought back the Onion Bisto from the UK last summer as it is so difficult to find in the US. I love it for giving things an extra onion flavor.
Original Bisto is also great to have on hand in case you want a quick gravy–just pour boiling water onto a couple of tablespoons and stir. PRESTO–instant gravy, which actually tastes good (obviously not the same as homemade, but it’ll do in a pinch)! I’ve also discovered a really tasty Caramelized Onion Bisto which is great with bangers and mash!
OXO Beef Cubes
This is the beef bouillon which we used in the UK. It’s so delicious, you can even crumble a cube into a cup of boiling water and drink it as a broth, and it’s great for flavoring all the typical British beef dishes, especially if you don’t want any thickener. Amazon currently only has the vegetarian version of OXO beef cubes, but you’ll find them at Cost Plus or your local British shop.
Shepherd’s Pie in Baked Potatoes
NB: Bisto and OXO cubes are processed foods that I wouldn’t normally endorse, but since I use them so sparingly and infrequently, I make an exception in my own household. I never claimed I was perfect, haha!
HP Sauce
HP stands for Houses of Parliament, as this is inevitably the first thing people ask when they see this sauce. I’ll let Wikipedia describe it:
“HP Sauce has a malt vinegar base, blended with tomato, dates, tamarind extract, sweetener and spices. It usually is used as a condiment with hot or cold savoury food, or as an ingredient in soups or stew.”
I actually had my cousin in England send me little packets of HP so I can bring it to restaurants with me! Yes, I love it that much! I usually have it with french fries, but it goes great with things like sausage rolls, shepherd’s pie, etc. It is usually sold in British shops and Cost Plus World Markets in the US. It’s also found on Amazon.com.
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They now have A1 sauce with lea Perrins combined in the bottle, much easier to find and significantly cheaper to me tastes like HP!
Oh Adam, I don’t know about that! Both A1 and Worcestershire Sauce are super watery; I not only love the HP flavor, but its consistency. I have found that HP Sauce is much easier to find now, for example, Cost Plus World Market, Fresh and Easy Markets (west coast) and Amazon all carry it and some places the price is very reasonable.
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