Ploughman's Lunch

Ingredients

• A wedge of proper farmhouse cheddar (aged, cloth-bound if the shop loves you) + a second cheese, stilton or a soft one, for the argument
• Crusty bread or a cottage roll, thick butter; a hard-boiled egg
• Branston-style pickle (the sweet dark chutney) AND pickled onions, both; they do different jobs
• Ham off the bone, a few slices, optional; an apple, quartered; celery sticks
• A pint of bitter or strong tea, per conviction

The words inside

West Country Farmhouse CheddarStiltonAged GoudaCelery

Allergen screen

Found: gluten · dairy · egg · celery

Screened for: gluten, dairy, egg, nuts, peanuts, fish, shellfish, molluscs, soy, sesame, celery, mustard, lupin, alcohol. Not screened: sulphites.

Screened by keyword from the ingredient list, not reviewed by a person; check every label for what the list cannot show.

Method

1. There is no cooking; there is only assembly with respect: cheese at room temperature. Cold cheddar is muted cheddar; take it out an hour ahead.
2. Arrange on a board with the pickle in a pot, onions beside, butter thick enough to show teeth marks.
3. Boil the egg 8 minutes if from scratch; halve it; salt it. 8 min
4. Build each bite by hand: bread, butter, cheese, a smear of pickle. The apple resets the palate; the celery pretends at virtue; the pint completes the scene.