An A to Z of the Doric: an occasional series. R

Doric, the dialect spoken in the North-East of Scotland is rich in words and phrases associated with the land and the sea. Over the next few weeks I will try to illustrate some of them in an A-Z using examples of their use taken mainly from Buchan Claik, The Saut an the Glaur o't written in 1989 by Peter Buchan and David Toulmin.

ROWIE: A flaky bread roll made with plenty of butter and lard and salt and vaguely similar in style to the French Croissant. Usually eaten at breakfast, hot and spread with yet more butter, or jam, or both. The Rowie is unique to the North East of Scotland and were popular with fishermen during the long periods at sea; the lard and butter stored well and helped insulate the men from the cold winds and conditions of the North Sea.

Rowies are seriously calorific, second only to that other Scottish culinary favourite, the deep fried Mars bar. To make 15 rowies you will need at least:

250g butter
150g lard
1 tablespoon soft brown sugar
500g flour
2 teaspoons of dried yeast
450ml warm water
More salt than is good for you

Good luck!