A ploughman's lunch (often just called a ploughman's) is a cold snack or meal originating in the United Kingdom, served in pubs, sometimes eaten in a sandwich form, composed of cheese (usually a thick piece of Cheddar, Stilton or other local cheese); often cooked ham slices, pickle (often Branston pickle, or any similar relish or chutney), apples, pickled onions, salad leaves, bread (especially crusty bread, which may be a chunk from a loaf or a cob); and butter. Other common additions are grapes, celery and carrot, pâté, diced hard boiled egg or beetroot, or in modern versions, crisps. It is usually served with beer.
The origins of the ploughman's lunch date back to the 1960s, when the Milk Marketing Board promoted the meal nationally to boost sales of cheese, and is a product of this campaign. A comparable meal, popular prior to World War II, was also known as 'ploughboy's lunch'.
It is a common menu item in English pubs, where it is served with a pint of beer. It is considered a cultural icon of England. The familiarity of the ploughman's lunch has led catering companies to describe a sandwich containing Cheddar cheese, pickle and salad as a "ploughman's sandwich".
Read more about Ploughman's Lunch: Origins and Etymology
Famous quotes containing the words ploughman and/or lunch:
“Wind and Thistle for pipe and dancers
And never a ploughman under the Sun.
Never a ploughman. Never a one.”
—Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953)
“Women who are devoted to causes, such as overpopulation and the underprivileged [sic], are much less interested in fashion than, let’s say, those who lunch at La Grenouille and Le Cirque.”
—Ann Landers (b. 1918)