The Queen of England and the other members of the royal family are famous around the world, and the media is constantly reporting on their activities, including who they marry or what they wear. But until now, there’s one thing that hasn’t gotten a lot of attention about the royals. Aren’t you curious about what they put in their mouths?
Darren McGrady, the royal family’s former chef, claims they eat quite healthy. Healthy habits are the norm for the Queen and her husband, and Prince Charles went organic long ago. McGrady also recalls that Diana and Charles requested meals made with ingredients that were freshly-made such as bread, pasta, ice cream, and mayonnaise. But calling the Queen a foodie would definitely not be a right assessment.
McGrady, who worked for the royals from 1982 to 1993, says: “The Queen’s not really bothered about food. All she cares about are horses and dogs.” The Queen prefers a simpler menu like vegetables, grilled game, and poached fish, unless she’s eating at a fancy banquet. She doesn’t like splurging on new kitchen equipment. Instead, she’d rather the money go to her horses. But one royal prefers to cook because that’s how much they love food.
A personal chef is supposed to keep you fed and travel with you as well, but this royal perk is not something that Kate takes advantage of. Since her upbringing was fairly normal, she’d rather be the one cooking. So she takes care of the cooking, and hopefully, Prince William lends a hand too. But when he becomes king, that arrangement will probably change.
For her lunch meals, the Queen prefers no starch, that is, when she’s eating alone instead of entertaining a bunch of palace guests. That means that rice, pasta, and potatoes are a huge no-no. But when she does invite guests over for lunch, she’ll eat crust-free sandwiches. However, she does have a few favorite meals she likes to indulge in now and then.
The Queen might be a picky eater, but she does indulge in some foods, like chocolate. She loves it and is really fond of chocolate mousse. She also loves mangoes too. In fact, she loves them so much that chefs served a chicken salad dish with mangoes and almonds at her majesty’s coronation in 1953. But there are other royals who are finicky about their food.
Mervyn Wycherley, who was Charles and Diana’s private chef, recalls that the prince had a unique way of eating his eggs. For one thing, the eggs had to be boiled 4 minutes and not a minute more or less. The chef kept pots of water boiling at all times because he was strict about this rule. But you’ll be surprised to learn where the prince got his eggs.
A lot of the ingredients used in preparing food for the royals comes from their properties. They have their own cows for milk, their gardens produce vegetables and fruits, and their estate has wild mushrooms. They also own the lands of Balmoral and Sandringham where they hunt and fish, which provides venison, salmon, and pheasant. The royal family is quite frugal in relations to food just like most hunters.
Charles and Diana’s personal chef, Carolyn Robb, claimed that Charles didn’t like to waste food. So leftovers would get stored and incorporated into a brand new meal the following day. Since the Queen lived through World War II, she saw how her people had to ration food in those days, which is where Charles probably inherited his leftover trait from. But it’s a different thing when dealing with royal banquets.
Paul Burrel, the former royal butler, recalls that you couldn’t eat unless the Queen ate first. It was a complicated etiquette common at royal events. So, if you got invited to an event, you had to keep an eye on when she ate. You also took a cue from her when you had to stand or sit. And when it came to talking, the same philosophy applied as well.
The Queen will address her guests of honor during the first course to her right. Other women will have to adhere to this rule of etiquette/conversation. The Queen will then speak to the guests on the left after the first course is finished. One time, Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton sat on the Queen’s left, but spoke out of place. It’s a safe bet that he also didn’t notice the Queen’s purse while speaking out of turn.
There’s a secret banquet code that states that when the Queen places her purse on the floor, she’s not happy with the conversation, and needs her lady-in-waiting to rescue her. If the purse remains on the table, she wants to end the event in 5 minutes, so everyone needs to eat their meal fast. Be grateful that you are not a foreign leader hosting the Queen at a dinner party.
Traveling isn’t limited to the UK. The royal family also travels the globe as well. But they never eat shellfish unless they’re in the palace, and there’s a good reason for that. The risk of suffering from food poisoning is higher with shellfish, and the royals won’t risk that. But now and then, Charles has been seen enjoying clams when he’s out and about. But when they’re abroad, they will not drink this.
The Royal Family will not drink tap water when they’re traveling abroad. Of course, this makes perfect sense since a lot of the countries that the Queen pays a visit don’t have the best water treatment conditions. Besides, no one wants to see the royal family getting sick because of unsafe water in a foreign country. But you’d never guess that this ingredient is prohibited in the palace.
There’s one food that’s banned in the palace and prohibited from being eaten abroad. John Higgins, a former palace chef, claims the Queen will not allow garlic or dishes with too many onions. The garlic ban is necessary to avoid an awkward situation involving bad breath, especially when the royals interact with dignitaries. But messing up the royal pets’ food is even more awkward.
The Queen simply adores her corgis, so naturally, they get to eat well. Owen Hodgson, the royal chef, simmered a rabbit and chicken terrine to feed to the Queen’s dogs. It’s even necessary to have the carrots all nice and peeled for the horses that belong to the Queen because otherwise, the horses might bite off her fingers, if the carrot is too short, and no chef wants to be responsible for that.