When King Edward VII was crowned in 1902, a Lincolnshire farmer honoured him by naming a new variety of potato the King Edward. Half a century later, the culinary creation for his great-granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, resulted in one of the modern nation’s favourite sandwich fillings.
Although coronation chicken is now almost exclusively served between two slices of bread for a workday lunch, at the time of its creation in 1953, it would have been the height of luxury. Post-World War Two rationing was still in place in the UK and it was to be some time before chicken became the cheap everyday ingredient it is today.
These days, coronation chicken is usually roast chicken in curry-flavoured mayonnaise, with the occasional addition of sultanas or fruit such as mango. But the original dish was a delicate, creamy concoction, designed to be served with a rice salad rather than in a sandwich.
