The British pub is more than a place to place an order for a pint—it’s the center of local culture, gossip, and convenience. Sure, okay, the pints steal all the attention, but it is the humble pub snack that adds the icing to the cake. Over the years, classic pub snacks have become a part of the pub culture as much a part of the fixtures as the beer pumps and the dartboard. From sour pickled eggs to crunchy pork scratchings, these snacks have survived the test of time and are a favorite spot on bar tops throughout the UK.
Pork Scratchings: A Crispy Classic
Perhaps the most old-fashioned of all pub food, pork scratchings are a savoury-and-salt snack. Roasted pigskin, typically topped with a layer of fat, these tasty crispy morsels are seasoned and occasionally spiced for added taste. They can be brittle to crunchy, to seriously chewy, depending on the firm and how they’re prepared. Although far from the most healthy choice, they are perfect to accompany a cold ale or stout and provide a welcome crunch to a silky pint.
Scratchings of pork are omnipresent in the Midlands and North of England, where they will usually be made at home and full of robustly flavored goodness. More recent innovations are pork crunch and pork crackling, lighter or puffier forms of the more classically full-bodied drink chaser.
Pickled Delights and Vinegary Bites
Pickled snacks are a favourite of a generation on top of the pub. Sour, bitter flavours are used to slice through more robust drinks like lagers and bitters. The pickled eggs are the most historic and would most likely be stored in a big glass jar at the end of the pub. Simple but oddly captivating, a pickled egg is a salty, sour mouthful that can be consumed alone or complemented by a bag of crisps.
Amongst the other pickle snacks are pickled mussels and pickled onions. Sour snacks though not to everyone’s liking, these are a nostalgic reminder of past days when food was stored in vinegar neat and trendy. They also act as a welcome relief to the palate after a session of strong beer.
Cheese, Crisps and Condiments
No list of traditional pub snacks can ever be complete without reference to cheese. The traditional pairing of a piece of decent bread, a piece of mature rich cheddar cheese, and a spoonful of pickled onions or chutney has everything you need for a Ploughman’s lunch—but is equally nice to eat as a snack to go with your drink of choice. In some very old pubs, you will even have it served on a wooden board with butter and celery.
Crisps, of course, are a pub staple. Salt and vinegar, prawn cocktail or hot chilli flavour, they’re a simple, mess-free snack to grab between pints. There have also been specialist brands moving into the pub in more recent years, with hand-cooked options in flavours like roast beef or sea salt and balsamic vinegar for more discerning tastes.
A Culinary Connection to Community
Pub grub is never for grub; it’s culture. It brings together individuals around the sharing plates and informal conversation. In the age of gastro pubs and changing times, they are one constant element bringing the old-school world and modern pub life together.
Though furnishings and menus are going to evolve, reassuringly, the best bits—scratching, pickled joys, and crisps—are never beyond arm’s length. They remain a taste memory from times past and evidence that some things truly are worth clinging on to.
