 | |
| Type | Street food |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | South Australia |
| Main ingredients | Australian meat pie, pea soup |
The pie floater is an Australian dish sold in Adelaide. It consists of a meat pie in a thick pea soup, typically with the addition of tomato sauce. Believed to have been first created in the 1890s, the pie floater gained popularity as a meal sold by South Australian pie carts. In 2003, it was recognised as a South Australian Heritage Icon.
Pea soup with meat has long been part of English culinary history, with mentions in the 19th century, including the "pea and pie supper" (in Yorkshire), "pea soup with eel", and suet dumplings or saveloys. (Dumplings in soup were known as "floaters".) It may have developed from those dishes, which are useful for feeding groups of people on a budget, such as at a sports match or at harvest time. [1] A pie floater commonly consists of a traditional Australian-style meat pie, usually sitting, but sometimes submerged (traditionally upside down) in a bowl of thick pea soup made from blue boiler peas. [2] [3] It is often self-garnished with tomato sauce, [4] and the consumer may also add a combination of mint sauce, salt, pepper, or malt vinegar according to personal preference.
Early records in South Australia state that the pie floater was reputedly born in Port Pirie conceived by one Ern "Shorty" Bradley in 1890s, but it remains unknown if he did and how it came about. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
Pie floaters were typically purchased in the street from pie-carts as a late evening meal. [10] Pie-carts are typically a form of caravan/trailer/cart, originally horse-drawn, with an elongated "window" along one or both sides where customers could sit or (more usually) stand to eat their purchases. The pie-cart was typically moved into position at lunchtime and in the evening. As traffic became busier and on-street car-parking in demand, the carts evolved to have one window on the "footpath side", and were moved into position after afternoon peak-hour traffic had ebbed. They did business until late evening or early morning, after which they were returned to their daytime storage locations.[ citation needed ]
South Australia has had pie carts in the Adelaide metropolitan area since the 1870s. In the evenings, the Norwood pie-cart was located on The Parade adjacent to the Norwood Town Hall. It was also the only place where members of the public could buy draft Hall's "Stonie" ginger beer directly from the keg.[ citation needed ] In the Adelaide city centre in the 1880s, there were 13 pie-carts operating in King William Street and North Terrace. By 1915 there were nine pie-carts in operation. By 1958 this had reduced to two: Balfour's pie-cart on North Terrace outside the Adelaide railway station, and Cowley's in Victoria Square outside the Adelaide General Post Office. In 2007, the Glenelg tram line was extended from Victoria Square along King William Street and North Terrace past Adelaide railway station, and the Balfour's pie-cart was forced to close. [11]
In 2003, the South Australian National Trust traced the history of the pie floater back over 130 years.[ citation needed ] The pie floater was recognised as a South Australian Heritage Icon by the National Trust of South Australia, [12] although it is now available at very few locations; among them are the Café de Vilis, Enjoy Bakery on Norwood Parade, [13] O'Connell Street Bakery, North Adelaide and the Upper Sturt General Store.
Tomato sauce can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes, usually to be served as part of a dish, rather than as a condiment. Tomato sauces are common for meat and vegetables, but they are perhaps best known as bases for sauces for Mexican salsas and Italian pasta dishes. Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, soft flesh which breaks down easily, and the right composition to thicken into a sauce when stewed without the need for thickeners such as roux or masa. All of these qualities make them ideal for simple and appealing sauces.
Polish cuisine is a style of food preparation originating in and widely popular in Poland. Due to Poland's history, Polish cuisine has evolved over the centuries to be very eclectic, and shares many similarities with other national cuisines. Polish cooking in other cultures is often referred to as à la polonaise.
Mushy peas are dried marrowfat peas which are first soaked overnight in water with baking soda, and then rinsed in fresh water, after which the peas are gathered in a saucepan, covered with water, and brought to a boil, and then simmered until the peas are softened. The mush is seasoned with salt and pepper.
Comfort food is food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone, and may be characterized by its high caloric nature associated with childhood or home cooking. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual, or it may apply to a specific culture.
A dip or dip sauce is a common condiment for many types of food. Dips are used to add flavor or texture to a food, such as pita bread, dumplings, crackers, chopped raw vegetables, fruits, seafood, cubed pieces of meat and cheese, potato chips, tortilla chips, falafel, and sometimes even whole sandwiches in the case of jus. Unlike other sauces, instead of applying the sauce to the food, the food is typically placed or dipped into the sauce.
Czech cuisine has both influenced and been influenced by the cuisines of surrounding countries and nations. Many of the cakes and pastries that are popular in Central Europe originated within the Czech lands. Contemporary Czech cuisine is more meat-based than in previous periods; the current abundance of farmable meat has enriched its presence in regional cuisine. Traditionally, meat has been reserved for once-weekly consumption, typically on weekends.
Manti is a type of dumpling mainly found in Turkish cuisine and Central Asian cuisine but also in West Asia, South Caucasus, and the Balkans. Manti is also popular among Chinese Muslims, and it is consumed throughout post-Soviet countries, where the dish spread from the Central Asian republics. The dumplings typically consist of a spiced meat mixture, usually lamb or ground beef, wrapped in a thin dough sheet which is then boiled or steamed. The size and shape of manti vary significantly depending on geographic location.
Mee pok is a Chinese noodle characterized by its flat and yellow appearance, varying in thickness and width. The dish is of Chaoshan origin and is commonly served in the Chaoshan region of China and countries with a significant Chaoshan Chinese immigrant population such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Mee pok is commonly served tossed in a sauce, though sometimes served in a soup. Meat and vegetables are added on top.
Adelaide Casino, known commercially as SkyCity Adelaide, is a large casino and recreational venue on the north edge of the Adelaide city centre. Located in the heritage-listed Adelaide railway station building on North Terrace, Adelaide, the casino has 90 gaming tables and 950 gaming machines, as well as several bars, function areas and restaurants. Operated as part of the SkyCity Entertainment Group, it is the sole licensed casino in South Australia, regulated by the Independent Gambling Authority and the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner under the Casino Act 1997.
Barbecue sauce is a sauce used as a marinade, basting, condiment, or topping for meat cooked in the barbecue cooking style, including pork or beef ribs and chicken. It is an ubiquitous condiment in the Southern United States and is used on many other foods as well.
Dominican cuisine is made up of Spanish, indigenous Taíno, Middle Eastern and African influences. The most recent influences in Dominican cuisine are from the British West Indies and China.
Regional street food is street food that has commonalities within a region or culture.
Cowley's pie cart was a late-night eatery which operated in Adelaide outside the General Post Office, Adelaide on Franklin Street close to Victoria Square.
Jiaozi are a type of Chinese dumpling. Jiaozi are folded to resemble Chinese sycee and have great cultural significance attached to them within China. Jiaozi are one of the major dishes eaten during the Chinese New Year throughout northern China and eaten all year round in the northern provinces. Though considered part of Chinese cuisine, jiaozi are popular in other parts of East Asia and in the Western world, where a fried variety is referred to as potstickers. The English-language term "potsticker" was invented by Buwei Yang Chao in her book How to Cook and Eat in Chinese (1945).
Pea soup or split pea soup is soup made typically from dried peas, such as the split pea. It is, with variations, a part of the cuisine of many cultures. It is most often greyish-green or yellow in color depending on the regional variety of peas used; all are cultivars of Pisum sativum.
