On Sat, 8 Jan 2005 12:43:17 -0000, "Alan Hardie"
Post by Alan HardiePost by Frank ThomasI am curious to know if today in Scotland, people living in different
parts are able to identify where other Scots are from by any accent that
may
Post by Frank Thomasbe noticed in their speech.
I am particularly interested if mainland Scots find the speech of the
Islands, such as Uist, Barra, and Tiree, to somehow sound different to
their
Post by Frank Thomasears than other parts, and if it is partcularly distinctive to their ears.
Having been many times on Uist and Barra - though not Tiree - I can say that
I can detect that the accents are distinctively Western Isles. I can't tell
the difference between the accents of each of the islands of the Western
Isles, though the locals could. With regard to the rest of the population of
Scotland - you may find that some individuals can't differentiate between a
Western Isles accent and any other "Highland" or "Island" accent.
I think a Lewis accent is absolutely unmistakable compared to any
other Western Isles accent, especially the Skye accent. A Lewis accent
is so unique that even when a Lewisman sings I can tell almost
instantly that he's from Lewis!
Whenever a "v" sound appears at the end of a word in Gaelic, like
"sibh" ( said "shiv", meaning "you", plural/polite) people from Lewis
always say, "shoo" instead of "shiv".
I can also tell if someone is from Easter Ross, Caithness and the
northern Isles or the northwest Highlands, especially Sutherland
without any difficulty. Once one gets to Mull and farther south, the
accent changes again. On the mainland, south of Inverness, everyone
sounds like they're from Perth to me. On the East Coast I assume
they're all from Buckie or Aberdeen.
Now, as recipes are sliding back into favour, here's a typical
fisherman's supper recipe for the end of a hard day's applying for EU
grants in the Small Isles.
This of course blows the lid off the accepted wisdom that Hebrideans
live on the edge of starvation, whereas in fact most of us live like
royalty compared to the poor buggers on the mainland, hacking away at
their haggis and trying to convince themselves that they're having an
ethnic experience...
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Grilled Salmon Tournedos with Fennel, Corn and Blueberry Salsa
Ingredients for 4 people
600g salmon, cut into strips
4 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper
salsa
250 ml precooked corn kernels
60 ml olive oil
30 ml white wine
30 ml blueberries
15 ml red wine vinegar
6 small shiitake mushrooms
I shallot chopped
1 red pepper diced
1 fennel stalk diced
1 lemon
A little garlic
Salt & pepper
Making the salsa
1. Sweat the shallot in a little oil; add the white wine and reduce
until the liquid has completely evaporated; remove from the heat;
2. add the corn, the pepper, the fennel, the garlic and the remaining
olive oil; heat gently for a few minutes;
3. remove the mushroom stems; sauté just the caps in a separate
skillet;
4. combine all the ingredients; add the juice of one lemon; season and
keep warm.
Preparing the Salmon
1. Roll up two strips of salmon, one at a time, to form a tournedos
(it should resemble a thick round steak); use a toothpick to hold it
together;
2. brush with olive oil; season and grill for 4-5 minutes on each
side.
Chef's tip
Don't overcook the salmon. Cooking it slightly rare will give it a
softer, more tender texture.
The salsa can be served warm or cold and used with any fish, tastes
delicious with halibut.
The salmon tournedos are placed on wild rice and vegetables and served
with salsa and green asparagus which can be stood up by fixing them
with a small skewer.
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Need a healthy lunchtime snack for the ould fella as he tramps the
hills trying to locate that missing yowe?
Send him on his way with smoked salmon wrapped around prawns in marie
rose sauce to make a parcel. Place several of these on top of a
delicious salad of different lettuce leaves with tomatoes, celery,
grapes with lemon slices for decoration. Wash it down with traditional
swallows of cold tea from a recycled Irn Bru bottle...
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Ah, the Western Islanders - we'll buy and sell you before you know
what's happening!
As the proverb says: "Bidh mìr a ghill èasgaidh air gach mèis - the
smart fellow's share is on every dish!"
(Actually, I have no idea what that means, but it sounds very
traditional, so I just tossed it in...)
Michilín