It has already ruined pizzas for some, but pineapples could soon be landing on plates of full English breakfast after a leading society declared that the greasy classic could benefit.
The English Breakfast Society, which is dedicated to the history, heritage, and culture of the English breakfast, said pineapple had been eaten with a full English breakfast in centuries past and has called for it to replace the grilled tomatoes and mushrooms with which modern diners are familiar.
Guise Bule de Missenden, the society’s founder and chair, told the Daily Telegraph: “Interestingly, in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the pineapple was considered to be a high-status breakfast item in Great Britain.
“Pineapples used to be seen as exotic, expensive, difficult to obtain and were a highly prized breakfast ingredient for wealthy English families, which is why you can find lots of old English pineapple breakfast recipes.”
“King Charles II himself loved them, so if you wanted to add a touch of the exotic to your plate and eat like a 17th-century lord, there is no reason not to give it a try,” he added. “A slice of grilled pineapple can add variety to the English breakfast plate. Simply swap the mushrooms or tomato for a grilled pineapple slice in someone’s English breakfast one day to give them a surprising and unexpected delight.”
He said: “Nobody really likes the tomatoes that usually come with a full English breakfast so why shouldn’t we swap them for a grilled pineapple slice?”
The society has form for causing a fuss over its full English recommendations. Last year, it declared that hash browns had no place on a full English.
Bule de Missenden told the Times last year: “Somebody had to put their foot down. Otherwise we’ll find kebab meat in our English breakfast before long.
“The hash brown – the reconstituted, tater-based fast-food – was popularised by McDonald’s but somehow we now find it in our English breakfast.”
Pineapples were a symbol of high status in centuries past. Charles II commissioned a portrait of himself being presented with one. Hanbury Hall, a stately home built in the early 18th century, has carved pineapples along the top of one of its orangeries.
The status of pineapples in the UK fell during the 19th and 20th century as they became commonplace and affordable after large quantities of the fruit were imported from British colonies.
