The best British charcuterie producers
The art of curing meats is a noble one. Nick Baines shares some of the best charcuterie companies in the UK.
In the days before refrigeration, charcuterie was an essential method of preserving meat that could not be eaten immediately. Bacons, hams and all manner of tasty salted pig parts are the result of this wonderful craft. For a long time we have looked to the continent for our saucisson, Parma ham and chorizo, but here in the UK we are preserving meat in equally exciting ways.
Bath Pig
Who doesn’t love a good bit of chorizo, it should be filed under kitchen essentials. There to perk up any dinner or sandwich, it’s invaluable in the kitchen. Doctor Tim French and Graphic Designer Mathew Chiles set about making chorizo early in 2009 but with high welfare British pork here in the UK. "Farmers in this country are rapidly going out of business and in the last 10 years the UK breeding herd has halved,” explains Chiles. “Staggeringly, nearly 70% of pork products sold in Britain contain pork that has been farmed in a way that is illegal here. We insist that all of our pork comes from those farms approved by Freedom Food to strict RSPCA welfare standards.” www.thebathpig.com
Dorset Charcuterie Co
Life would be pretty dull without black pudding, the beauty of blood sausage is its depth, richness and gentle spice. Fortunately, the boys at Dorset Charcuterie Co. produce one of the best black puddings in the UK. Founded in 2009 with the help of The Prince’s Trust, Ben Sugden and Lee Moreton, both young butchers, have moved seamlessly into charcuterie with great success. Making Iberico style air-dried hams, coppa and a whole myriad of traditional British charcuterie their products are ones to sniff out. www.dorsetcharcuterie.co.uk
Great Glen Game
With a healthy collection of Great Taste Awards, Anja and Jan-Jacob Baak have been making charcuterie in Inverness since 2003. “We originally sold fresh meat too, but in 2007 we turned solely to making charcuterie,” says Anja. “Most of our charcuterie is made from wild venison from the local estates, but we’re also using grouse now too.” Look out for their smoked venison bresoala in independent delis and Fortnum & Mason. www.greatglengame.co.uk
Trealy Farm
With a slew of awards including the coveted Observer Food Monthly’s UK Food Producer of The Year, James Swift and Graham Waddington have a vast range of cured meat products all exclusively made from traditional rare breed and free range animals including pigs, lamb, rabbit, goat, wild boar and beef. “We try not to stick to traditions too much,” says Swift. “We want to create new traditions. Our starting point is the great meat from our animals. Then we say, right, lets see what we can do with it.” Incorporating the skills they have acquired from visiting some of the best charcutiers on the continent, and bringing them back home to Monmouthshire in Wales, they are making unique charcuterie that tastes damn special. www.trealyfarm.com
Do you know of someone making charcuterie in your area? Tell us in the comments below.
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