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Published on October 6, 2007

By midday on Sundays in the 1950s, the mouth-watering aroma of simmering Sunday roasts gently wafted from the kitchens in my neighbourhood. When I was a kid, the English Sunday lunch was not only regarded as a ritual, but also a symbol of family union, gathered at the table to air problems, reminisce and banter, while listening to "Wakey Wakey" on the radio.

But while six million people still sit down every Sunday to a roast in Britain, the number has dropped by more than 50 per cent since I was a lad.

No one can quite put their finger on where or when the Sunday roast originated. Some date it back to mediaeval serfs, who ate roasted oxen and mugs of ale on the day of rest, but the most popular theory is it started in Yorkshire during the Industrial Revolution.

In those days, churchgoers popped a piece of meat in the oven before they left for communion, and returned to find it ready to eat. As congregations shrank, however, the pub became a popular venue for killing time while the meal was cooking, or many people indulged in another British tradition - the Sunday lie-in - when one simply stays in bed until noon.

According to Nicola Austin of the Future Foundation, Sunday lunch has declined over recent years because other social events have become more important. Instead of lazing about on Sundays, more people are choosing alternatives such as eating out, shopping or even going to work.

Consequently, more than twice as many families find eating together on Friday evenings more convenient than they did 40 years ago. So, the Sunday roast could soon become known as the Friday roast.

Exceptional ingredients

No matter how much British cuisine is condemned as bland or inedible, the Sunday roast remains an exception. On special occasions, exotic cuts of meat can be served - for example, duck, goose, game or turkey - but traditionally whole chicken, or beef, pork or lamb are prepared in the oven.

Roast beef should come with Yorkshire pudding, horseradish and English mustard, while pork is accompanied by its crispy skin - crackling - sage and onion stuffing and applesauce. And mint sauce is an ideal relish to complement roast lamb.

A roast chicken can be made into a veritable feast when put together with chipolatas, sausage stuffing, bread sauce and red-current jelly.

The supporting cast for these meaty dishes is usually made up from boiled Brussels sprouts and cabbage, and roast carrots, parsnips, turnips, and potatoes that can also be sauteed, baked, boiled or mashed.

And to round off these scrumptious delights - lashings of thick meaty gravy - ah!

Although Yorkshire pudding goes best with beef, it can be served with all the above concoctions. This batter preparation was better known as stodgy dripping pudding in the Middle Ages, when it absorbed drips of fat from beneath the roasting joint.

In the 18th century, Hannah Glasse created Yorkshire pud as we know it today - light and fluffy - which can also be eaten with jam or syrup, or as Toad in the Hole with sausage and onion filling.

Joints in Chiang Mai

When lunching out in the northern capital, The Olde Bell in Loi Kroh Road offers Sunday roasts ranging in price from just Bt185 - for pork with homemade applesauce - to the Sunday sampler at Bt365, which is a genuine blowout of pork, beef and chicken.

All roasts in this typically British pub are served from 1pm to evening and come with roast potatoes, onion mash, gravy and seasonal vegetables, and the Yorkshire pud is expertly baked by a Lahu lady from the Himalayan foothills.

Eat until you're stuffed at Queen Victoria's Sunday roast buffet on Phapokklao Road, where diners can return to the carving table as often as they like for generous slices of chicken, pork, lamb and beef together with all the trimmings.

In Victoriana surroundings, reminiscent of a London hostelry, the carvery commences at noon for a cost of only Bt295.

If you're hankering for an Irish atmosphere step into O'Malley's in Anusan Market. This olde worlde pub, with its paraphernalia placed around the walls, provides the ideal ambience for the Sunday roast.

Here, the usual selection of meat is complemented by roast potatoes, steamed vegetables, Yorkshire pud and various sauces, including gravy, cheese and mint, all for Bt280 - a mere bagatelle.

And for that homely country inn, The Pub on Huay Kaew Road is just 10 minutes drive from town. Served in cosy surroundings from 11am, their full Sunday works at just Bt250 will make the journey well worthwhile.

So, while the customary roast in Britain might be shifting from Sunday lunchtime to Friday's dinner, Chiang Mai is sticking rigidly to traditional Sunday roasts - served only on Sundays.