The “Ploughmans Lunch,” as defined by modern British cuisine, presents a modest plate of simple sandwich and pickle or small salad. When and where did this practice begin?
Interesting question with several possible answers. Food historians confirm laborers (medieval ploughmen, pastoral shepherds, copper miners, etc.) typically consumed simple, portable, belly-filling foods at midday. These dinners (the practice of calling this midday meal lunch began in the 18th century, but was not widely accepted until the 20th) were brought from home. Most often they consisted leftovers from the previous night’s supper. Indeed, bread, cheese, salted meat and preserved fruit/vegetable (aka pickle) were simple to pack and easy to consume without the aid of utensils. Copper miners in Cornwall “lunched” on Cornish pasties for this reason. The “Ploughman’s Lunch” one finds in British pubs today is a modern twist on this old theme. According this British food historian, this *standard* menu option dates to the 1960s. Notes here: “The ploughman’s lunch is often taken as an example par excellence of the hijacking and perversion of traditional food. What, it is asked, could a
