Spring Feast Our FREE quarterly newsletter 01473 786610 www.suffolkfoodhall.co.uk
FRESH FROM THE COUNTER The fishmongers offered us the inside track on a trip to Billingsgate on a cold February night. It’s an early start, setting off from the Food Hall just before 1 AM!! Some preparation has already been completed to ease the workload, with pre-orders placed, although we review all fish before confirming. With experience and a few trips, we have a smaller network that we tend to rely on, which makes the trip a lot easier and smoother. Suppliers are chosen on the quality of the service they provide. Often if that supplier doesn’t have something that morning, they will be able to point us somewhere that might! The most noticeable thing for us, is the substantial increase in quality as a result of going direct! We tend to arrive as close to 2:45 as possible, and on we go! We head to our suppliers, view the offering and then look at the specifics of the fish we have ordered, or anything that simply looks too good to turn down! Its no different from the top tips below, we follow exactly the same process in choosing our fish too. Once the list is checked off, including buying for the chefs and Our Kitchen, there is a window of opportunity to take a good look around out of curiosity, and to learn. The alarm sounds at 4, which means porters can begin delivering fish. One last check to make sure we have everything we expected, and its good enough for our counters and then a coffee before heading home! Once we are back, we separate the chefs orders and prep them to get the freshest product, and get the ball rolling with the in house smoking process. After transferring all the details to the paperwork, sorting shelf life guides and pricing the fun begins to finish the shift – putting together the counter! With all the fish, fresh and vibrant, and knowing exactly what you have to work with, the counter is one of the most enjoyable to put together, with a little extra time given the early hour, and looks fantastic (of course unbiased). By this time the team will be coming in at which point there is a handover, the journey home and zzzzzzzzzz!
Mikey’s Top Fresh Fish Tips
1. No need to touch, just check the eyes! The murkier or cloudier the eyes, the older the fish 2. Common misconception that fish smells, fresh fish should be almost odourless (unless smoked!) 3. If you are happy to touch, the belly should be firm, if it feels like jelly, the fish is older. 4. Ask to see the gills; fresh fish are clean and bright pink, with age the gills turn to a tainted brown. 5. Stiffness - rigor mortis means a fish is freshly caught and still well held together Of course, all of the above tips are difficult with fillets, so look out for the colour, and feel; fresh fillets will be sturdy enough to touch, older fish will begin to fall apart so perhaps look at the skin for tears
- Mikey Whittle
Look out for Local There’s lots of great fresh fruit and vegetables available for the spring season, from Asparagus to
wild garlic.
Blink and you’ll miss it.
The asparagus season is teasingly fleeting, usually peaking in May, with the familiar green spears being picked soon after they emerge from the ground. Considered, for good reason, one of the most prized delicacies of the English garden, asparagus loves our light East Anglian soils and spring sunshine. The first shoots of the season are slender, delicate fronds before they begin filling out into thicker stalks with continued harvesting. Asparagus, potentially more so than any other fruit or vegetable, is something to be enjoyed during its season. As with all things, it’s sad when the season draws to a close, however don’t be tempted to buy imported asparagus. After the exquisite flavour of what has been picked only a stone’s throw away you will only find disappointment. This short season, however, is an exciting one. Whilst you’re enjoying the first asparagus of the year, just think of the soft fruits, runner beans, and all the other boons of summer to come.
Always look for asparagus with a healthy, deep green colour, sometimes tinged with a little purple here and there towards the tip. As with most vegetables, firmness is a sure sign of freshness, as the stalks not looking too dry at the base where they have been cut. In terms of cooking asparagus, firstly bend the stems until the point at which they snap naturally. This will remove any woody parts of the stalk which are usually a bit tough and not so nice to eat. Do not discard these bits though, they are good for boiling and pureeing into a soup or sauce, or making an intense asparagus stock to use in other things. I have gone off boiling or steaming asparagus. I feel it lets far too much flavour out and makes it much easier to overcook. Instead, I think by far the best way of cooking asparagus is to griddle it in a hot pan or roast it in the oven, or, even better (but weather dependant), brush with a little oil and lay the spears on a hot barbeque. Slightly charring the outside adds a delicious smokiness and intensifies the strong flavour even more, as well as not losing any of its striking colour. As with most things, simple is best in terms of dressing. Let the asparagus flavour come through instead of adding too much complexity. It isn’t around for long so enjoy it to the full whilst it is. There’s nothing wrong with just a little knob of butter and some salt and pepper as an accompaniment to fish or chicken. If you want something a little more special, but still incredibly simple, toss the griddled stalks with some good olive or rapeseed oil, a squeeze of lemon juice, capers and a little bit of chopped parsley for a delicious salad which is good as a side dish or a really easy starter.
The first of the local
purple sprouting broccoli is an exciting
time in the calendar as it marks a step closer to Spring. It appears to mark the move away from winter veg, and the promise of what’s to come. At its absolute best between late February and mid-April, it can be used with almost any dish as a side, be it with meat or fish which is of great help to eat as much within this window. The best stuff comes with a darker purple and indicates its younger crop which is best for tenderness. Interestingly, the purple variety, has only really risen to prominence in this country in the last 30 years.
Wild garlic is difficult to miss on account
of its easily identifiable scent, which is only heightened on a warm spring day. It can be found in abundance beside the streams of Suffolk woodland, or alongside the bluebells which form part of a beautiful stroll from the Food Hall. Unlike standard garlic, it can be used in its entirety, so make the most of the stem, leaves and small white flowers. The season is relatively short, usually beginning in early March, but the crop bountiful so there should be plenty to go around!
-Sam Woor
Spotlight on Suffolk Stewart McKendrick outlines his plan for a new venture exploring the heritage, and culinary offering of Suffolk.. launching this summer! Each ‘foodie’ day tour starts at the Suffolk Food Hall and takes us on a journey to discover Suffolk’s rich cultural heritage through the tastes of the bountiful landscape and the inspirational sights of this compelling region. Our tours will offer the opportunity to visit heritage sites and sample delicious foods and beverages. This is a unique opportunity to meet local growers, artisan producers, or speciality retailers and experience the culinary delights of high quality, locally sourced produce.
You will have Six Heritage Food Tours to choose from..
All trips are priced at either £79 or £88 for the whole day and are inclusive of the following: lunch, food and drink tasting, entry or guide costs to heritage sites, free transport, free car parking at Suffolk Food Hall and free pick up from Ipswich Railway station if required.
Private Tours can be arranged for small and large groups of people for that special occasion..
We can create a bespoke experience for family and friends, birthday parties, hen parties and corporate days out. Our focus will be on explore Suffolk and we can build itineraries to allow you to discover the experience of your choice. We aim to create a relaxed and sociable interactive day out in a uniquely tailored experience that will allow you to enjoy Suffolk’s heritage, food and drink. We can be flexible and work around your needs, catering for your budget
Our bespoke Suffolk Heritage Tour can be anything you want it to be but here are some ideas to tempt you!
. Hybrid combined - heritage, food and drink tours . Cocktail, chocolate making classes . Picnics / barbecues . Micro brewery / pub tour, vineyard . Restaurant / evening dining tour . Meet the chef, cooking demonstration
www.suffolkheritagefoodtours.com
Out in the Garden We spoke to Mel who has spent years working on her own perfect garden, to guide us on where to start with wanting to ‘grow your own’
Something for all the family
There is no better time to start sowing the garden, especially if like so many others, you are planning on having a go at growing yourself. There are plenty of reasons to give it a try, what is more local than your own back garden, the control over pesticides and chemicals involved, and the satisfaction of succeeding. Regardless of size and space, it is doable. on some scale; a patio with pots or a small balcony can accommodate potatoes, tomatoes and the odd salad leaf.
Get everybody involved and outside, kids can help pick and plan, sow seed and pot plants. There is so much to learn, and watch throughout the process and it may even make them far more likely to eat their greens. There are several options to choose from, with RHS organic vegetable seeds from Thompson and Morgan, that will provide enough variety and crop throughout the year. Plant these in and amongst edible flowers to fend off the predators and add colour, flavour, and a uniqueness to salads. Of course, if you want a little bit of a head start with your vegetable planting, look into ready to plant vegetable strips which can be transferred to the garden when the weather gets a little milder.
Help the Bees
Herbs. Growing herbs is great for bees, which we take for granted. The herbs are a real source of flavour and relatively inexpensive, and there is such a variety out there to work through and try, from the standard well known parsleys, to the more exotic lemon balm and chocolate mint. Planting herbs is a little easier than growing veg and can make for a pleasant afternoon, be it in a planter, or working with a border. Herbs thrive in a sunny spot, so are handy for patches of poor soil. It is not just the taste, or sight that herbs have to offer, consider the scents they can provide especially if planted at the front of the area in question. Good luck growing!
- Mel Spurling
A little bit of Food Hall History Our heritage with cattle stretches back generations, giving the Food Hall unrivalled access to quality, home-reared beef, with more provenance than you could fit in a cowshed. The story starts in the late 1800s when William F Paul, the great-great-grandfather of the Suffolk Food Hall owners and feed merchant in Ipswich, owned a few cattle at Orwell Lodge. From 1912 his Kirton cattle (on another farm brought in 1909 just west of Felixstowe) start appearing in the Red Poll herd book. Following this pivotal moment, the Paul family has developed this native breed of Suffolk and Norfolk, and been instrumental in its global presence. Produced by crossing a Suffolk Dun, a milking ‘house’ cow, with the Norfolk Red, a beef breed, the resulting cattle, deep red-brown in colour and ‘polled’ which means it naturally has no horns, were essentially a recognisable breed by 1847. With efforts from Stuart Paul (great-grandfather and twice president of the Red Poll Society in 1932 and 1947), these East Anglian cattle were famed across the world for dual-purpose qualities; good converters of lower grade pasture into high grade beef, and a high butterfat content for creamy milk, butter and cheese. Stuart’s herd was possibly the largest ever, at over 750 including followers (young stock). However in the 1960s farming started to move to more single-purpose systems (specialising in just milk e.g. the ubiquitous black and white Holsteins or the heavy beef breeds; Limousine, Charolais, Blues, etc) and the Red Poll fell out of favour. This was also the case on our farm as William S H Paul (grandfather) tried crossing Red Polls with the Danish Red before opting for a red & white Friesian (dairy) cow, and the Kirton herd was almost forgotten. With the Cookhouse building as a straw store and silage (feed) clamp, the Food Hall was originally built around 1975 as a cattle shed to finish stock that came from the new dairy farm in Freston. Take a moment to look at the original wooden posts where the cattle scratched themselves.
we got to wondering about how cows came to being such a big part of the history and heritage of the site, so we asked! More recently the Paul family and others have seen the extensive (low input/cost) nature of the Red Poll as making them better suited to competing demands on the modern farmer. In addition, the summer sun on their glossy conker-coloured coat, makes them the best looking cattle for the pastures around the Food Hall. Following a present from Robert Paul’s wife, our revived Red Poll herd has grown to nearly 200. We continue to run the extensive system (predominantly grass-based, slow maturing and mostly outdoors); as the longer rearing process produces greater flavour and the milk heritage of the Red Poll makes the cows excellent mothers. A smaller animal than the commercial (supermarket) equivalent, the joints are better defined, cook better with more intramuscular fat (marbling), and taste divine.
As our knowledge of cattle expands and we respond to customer preferences; in the last couple of years we have retained the qualities of the Red Poll with our pure-breed cows, and then complemented their progeny by using a pedigree Aberdeen Angus bull. This has had two marked benefits; the Angus / Red Poll (or Redgus as we call them) carcasses are more consistent with a better yield, and the calves tend to be born easily but with a cross-bred vitality and vigour to do well.
Beef demand increases in both the Butchery and in the Cookhouse restaurant, so the challenge today for Oliver and Robert Paul is to increase supply, maintain quality and consistency, whilst tending to the herd essentially on a part-time basis.
- Oliver Paul
The history of Afternoon Tea With Afternoon tea a great gift for Mother’s Day we looked into it’s origins. Afternoon tea, that most quintessential of English customs, is perhaps surprisingly, a relatively new tradition. Whilst the custom of drinking tea dates back to the third millennium BC in China and was popularised in England during the 1660s by King Charles II and his wife the Portuguese Infanta Catherine de Braganza, it was not until the mid 19th century that the concept of ‘afternoon tea’ first appeared. Afternoon tea is credited in England to Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, in the year 1840. The Duchess would become hungry around four o’clock in the afternoon. The evening meal in her household was served fashionably late at eight o’clock, thus leaving a long period of time between lunch and dinner. The Duchess asked that a tray of tea, bread and butter (some time earlier, the Earl of Sandwich had had the idea of putting a filling between two slices of bread) and cake be brought to her room during the late afternoon. This became a habit of hers and she began inviting friends to join her. This pause for tea became a fashionable social event. During the 1880’s upper-class and society women would change into long gowns, gloves and hats for their afternoon tea which was usually served in the drawing room between four and five o’clock. Traditional afternoon tea consists of a selection of dainty sandwiches (including of course thinly sliced cucumber sandwiches), scones served with clotted cream and preserves. Cakes and pastries are also served. Tea grown in India or Ceylon is poured from silver tea pots into delicate bone china cups. http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Afternoon-Tea/
You can enjoy a traditional Afternoon Tea in our Cookhouse restaurant for £14.95 per person, which includes unlimited tea, a fruit scone and jam, a savoury item, sweet treats and a selection of three sandwiches, all freshly prepared on the day. Served daily from 3pm (2pm on Sundays), booking 24hours prior is required, vouchers are available. www.suffolkfoodhall.co.uk/shop
01473 786616
21st June 2018 Building on the success of the very first Suffolk Day, we are looking forwards to shouting loud and proud about what makes the county great, and you should too! Get involved here at the Food Hall, or across the county as we join the celebrations – be it art, history, cutting edge technology, the stunning coastline, wildlife or fantastic businesses, there is plenty to appreciate. To find out more, be sure to google #SuffolkDay
Famous Five Red Poll
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Lookout for the famous five Suffolk animals who will be on site during the day, you may well have heard of the Suffolk Trinity, but did you know there are four other native breeds of Suffolk.
Suffolk Punch
Suffolk Sheep
Large black pig
Ixworth Chicken
Britain’s only all black pig, with long deep body and lop ears
Traditional looking, almost pure white and reasonably large bird
Suffolk Trinity traditional, native breed which is polled (hornless)which has distinctive shade
Strong but good tempered with a shiny chestnut coat
Highly muscular, with black faces and black legs
Do you know the other two breeds???
The Gin thing With gin becoming ever more popular, and some of the finest suppliers on our doorstep, we asked Bullards to give us the lowdown on their history. Bullards Norwich Gin was the first Gin Distillery to be founded in Norfolk back in 2015. We currently produce Bullards Norwich Dry Gin, and Bullards Strawberry and Black Pepper Gin, all made by a team of just five people The original Bullards name dates back to 1837 and was one of the largest breweries in East Anglia. The brewery lasted for a mammoth 130 years, during which time they produced a wide range of real ales. Three years ago we were given the opportunity to resurrect the brand and began the production of gin. The name made perfect sense, as the distillery happens to be situated opposite the old brewery! The Anchor logo found on our gin bottles is the original anchor logo used all those years ago. Our distillery can be found in The Ten Bells Pub on St. Benedicts Street, which we’ve turned into a craft beer and gin pub. The distillery is set behind floor-to-ceiling glass panels, so you can watch the gin being made while enjoying a G&T. In fact, the whole set up is on display – which also happens to include the staff! We run tours a few days a week to let people get hands on with our gin, which is followed by a full gin tasting of four G&T’s.
10%
off Bullards Gin valid until 30/06/2018 only one voucher per transaction. Only valid on Bullards Gin brand
Butchery Corner With the traditions of Easter and spring lamb not far away, what better meat to feature, with the underrated shoulder taking the spotlight.
Three ways with Lamb shoulder Our local lamb comes from a few selected farms across the county, including the Staverton Dorset from Wantisden, Suffolk and on occasion organic lambs from Uncle Martin over at Debenham
Speak to one of the butchers about the cuts we can offer
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Chops
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Shoulder Whole Boned rolled En balon
Simple Roast Place in a deep tray, with a little oil and seasoning. For
extra flavour add rosemary or thyme, and some cloves of garlic (or a lot depending on how much you love garlic) and roast low and slow. The longer the better, but for a rough guide, 140 for 4 hours should work well. To test, grab two forks and without any real effort pull the meat away from the bone, if it’s easy, voila, if not go for a little longer. The beauty of the deep tray is that all the rest of your veg can be added during the cooking to make the most of the juices, and flavour oozing from the joint. Potatoes and carrots at a minimum, with boiled greens too.
En Balon
Something a little different, our butchers can remove the bones and create a cushion purely of meat, easy to carve. The rosemary and garlic are blended into a paste which lines the inside of the joint. It’s still best cooked low and slow, but a temperature of 160 for 3 hours, under a cover of foil, with a small amount of water should do the trick. Really looks the part too.
Shepherd’s Pie
Leg
Whole Boned rolled Leg steaks mini rump roasts
Breast Stuffed minced roasts
Using lamb bones from the butchery, our chefs, create a stock. The shoulders themselves are cooked overnight, for over 12 hours, before the pulled meat is again mixed, and reduced, with the stock and vegetables to create the filling for our shepherd’s pie. With a little seasoning and a few more secrets (we can’t share everything!) the result is absolutely delicious. Try it in the Cookhouse, or create your very own variation at home.
- Craig Bullard / Stuart Drane
Looking Forward Mother’s Day sunday 11th March
Easter sunday Sunday 1st April
Gin Night Friday 16th March
Father’s Day Sunday 17th June
Quiz Night Friday 27th April
Puzzle Room Summer 2018
Suffolk Day Thursday 21st June
01473 786610 www.suffolkfoodhall.co.uk