Potatoes, pasta, pizza: in the British royal family, not everything that tasted good was always served. The prohibited list of foods is long. That should change under the new king.
It should be well known that the British royals are hardly like that in any everyday household. There are strict rules in the Windsor royal family, not only in terms of clothing and the use of the castles and mansions (Balmoral Castle in summer, Sandringham House at Christmas). When it comes to culinary delights, the nobles (and their spouses) especially like it. Therefore, only selected delicacies are on the menu, prepared by an army of chefs who swing the wooden spoon in the official rooms.
What the king’s kitchen brigades serve to the royals follows strict guidelines. They were essentially set up by the former Queen Elizabeth II. Among other things, she ordered that no or only very few starchy foods be served. So no potatoes and no pasta; who despised the queen. At least that’s what a former Windsor’s personal chef told The Telegraph.
Pizza was frowned upon in the royal apartments
Darren McGrady cooked for the Queen at Balmoral Castle, among other places, and was also able to report that the royal family also does not eat shellfish, as these could be too heavily contaminated with environmental toxins. Garlic is also on the list of banned ingredients because the bulb causes bad breath, which is a disadvantage at official receptions.
In addition, the royal family should consume their own mineral water, the Hildon Natural Mineral Water, which they obtain from a company with royal approval and which costs five dollars a bottle, as the “Bunte” reports. The water also goes on royal journeys, so you always know what’s in your glass.
Since Charles III. is king, the restrictive diet in the Windsor households is said to have relaxed. For example, the recently crowned regent does not share his mother’s aversion to potatoes; on the contrary, Charles is considered an outspoken potato fan. The king also likes mushrooms, which is why his kitchen teams often use them and grow them themselves.
Veggie-Day doesn’t give you a tummy ache
On the other hand, Charles banned a dish that was considered particularly noble some time ago: foie gras. The French foie gras fell out of favor with the monarch because of its controversial production method. For foie gras, geese are fattened with a hopper so much that their livers become excessively swollen. A painful affair. Animal rights activists welcomed Charles’ pie ban at the time.
In the meantime, numerous members of the royal family are said to be flirting with vegetarian or even vegan menus. Princess Kate is considered a vegetarian, Princess Beatrice recently threw a vegan party and even the king is known for eating little meat and having a meat-free day several times a week. The proposal for a veggie day, with which the Greens screwed up their election campaign a few years ago, would not have pissed him off.
As far as the next generation of royals is concerned, customs seem to have gotten a little more liberal anyway. William and Harry are said to be big fans of pizza, at least that’s what McGrady once revealed in an interview. He often had to bake pizza for the princes when they were younger. Although the former queen didn’t like the pizza at all. And William’s current wife Kate is also said to be happy to move away from the royal palace practice and cultivate a fondness for pasta, which she shares with her children.
