A full English is one of the UK's great weekend traditions, and with a few swaps it's easy to make one that's completely halal. Here's every item on the plate, one at a time.
Bacon → turkey or beef rashers
Pork bacon is out, but turkey rashers and beef "bacon" are sold in halal butchers and some shops. Check for a halal logo on the pack, since turkey rashers aren't automatically halal. Is turkey bacon halal?
Sausages → halal beef or chicken sausages
Standard supermarket sausages are pork. Halal beef, lamb or chicken sausages from a halal butcher are the easy swap. Vegetarian sausages work too. Check the casing on any sausage: natural casings can be pig intestine. Sausage casings explained.
Eggs → no change needed
Fried, scrambled or poached, eggs are halal. Just cook them in butter or vegetable oil rather than bacon fat.
Baked beans → usually fine
Baked beans are beans in a tomato sauce, but ingredients differ by brand, so read the label. "Beans with sausages" tins contain sausage, which may be pork.
Mushrooms and tomatoes → fine
Fried mushrooms and grilled tomatoes are naturally halal. Again, it's the cooking fat that matters.
Hash browns → check the fat
Frozen hash browns are potato, oil and seasoning, but the fat and flavourings differ by product, so a quick scan is worth it. Are frozen chips halal?
Black pudding → leave it out
Black pudding is made from blood, usually pig's blood, and it isn't halal whatever the animal. Why black pudding is haram. White pudding has no blood but can contain pork fat, so check the label.
Fried bread and toast → check the fat and spread
Toast with butter is fine. Fried bread is fine if it's fried in oil or butter rather than bacon fat or lard.
Brown sauce and ketchup → usually fine
Ketchup and brown sauce are usually a question of the vinegar. Our vinegar page says malt, cider, spirit and rice vinegar contain no meaningful alcohol once made, and treats wine vinegar separately because scholars differ on it.
Eating out
Cafés that serve a full English usually cook pork on the same grill. If you're ordering out, look for a halal café, or ask for eggs, beans, mushrooms and toast cooked separately.
Not sure about a specific product? Scan it with the halal checker before it goes in the pan.
