You have a new match

Charcuterie is fantastic on its own or with tried-and-tested (o en regional) accompaniments but its versatility goes way beyond tradition. FFD looks at some more modern possibilities for combination.

By Nick Baines

SAUERKRAUT & PORK RILLETTE

The classic cornichon has long been the go to airing or a small jar of rillette. But that same crunchiness and acidity can be delivered in a number of ne ound ays than s to the array of sauerkraut variations currently on the market. Given both products’ shredded texture, it’s the deeper flavours rom ermentation that help underpin the rich atty flavours o the ri ette London Fermentary produces sauerkraut made with smoked spices and garlic, as well as one produced with pineapple and turmeric that could be aligned with Cornish Charcuterie’s classic Pork Rillette.

SAKE & JAMÓN

When considering this charcuterie pairing, think tonkotsu ramen broth, the rich fatty liquid made from pork bones. The lightness, fragrance and soft rice grain flavours both cut through the intensity and offer refreshing relief. The same qualities are true when tackling Europe’s most lauded air dried or roducts such as Pata Negra Jamón or Parma ham. n act any air dried or roduct that offers silkiness of fat is going to work well here. Check out London’s Kanpai, which makes a range of elegant sakes in the traditional style.

AGED GOUDA & ’NDUJA

’Nduja could be one of the most versatile charcuterie roducts going he fiery or spread can be smeared across a great number of sandwich and deli items, or loosened into hot pasta dishes for some added clout. When creating a pairing, you’ll want to contrast te ture as e as flavour Look to an aged gouda for a cheese that can stand up to the might of ’Nduja. Its sweetness ripples through the heat of the spread, while cutting through the product’s fattiness. The smokiness of the Real Cure’s Dorset ’Nduja rubs up against the month gouda rom The Cornish Gouda Co in all the right ways.

KOMBUCHA & AIR-DRIED BEEF

Taking a nod from the Argentine steak condiment chimichurri, ombucha is the er ect non a coho ic ti e to air ith air dried beef such as bresaola. The bubbly, probiotic drink carries a level of acidity that plays against the minera de th o flavour from the beef. There’s also that interconnection of fermentation notes in both products that work together to add a ong dra n out finish ry em us oods ir ried Beef alongside a bottle of Jarr’s original kombucha to see how this one works – it also goes well with biltong.

CHILLI HONEY & PEPPERONI

This interplay of sweet and spicy is one that’s currently being enjoyed on pizzas, particularly in the US, with brands like Mike’s Hot Honey becoming a modern pizzeria mainstay. However, this flavour ac ed combo can be taken in a highbrow direction on a charcuterie board too. We like Fortnum & Mason’s smoked chipotle honey drizzled over Trealy Farm’s Hot Pepperoni Salami. It’s a pairing that works well with a third component too. Instead of the melted mozzarella of a Neapolitan style pizza, try the soft elegance of Rosary goats’ cheese.

The UK produces some of the worlds best Charcuterie

We are experiencing a significant increase in demand for artisan cured meats and charcuterie here in the United Kingdom. With the choice of using traditionally reared local livestock and game, there are endless opportunities to develop innovative and award winning air dried, cooked and fermented meat products.

From as far north as the Shetland Isles and outer Hebrides, throughout Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, England and the Isle of Man, we now have a wealth of well established and experienced artisan producers of high quality and tasty British Charcuterie.

Behind the scenes specialist charcuterie consultants, food technologists, senior environmental health officers, food development and training centres have been working with producers to develop their skills and recipes. Expert consultants in their field include: summers@btinternet.com

Contact: 07847 417237 chris@townendfarmshop.co.uk www.wildmanbritishcharcuterie.co.uk steve@good-game.co.uk www.good-game.co.uk

Expert butcher, curer, teacher and consultant, championing regenerative and ethically produced British meat.

Rich is a well-respected industry figure, sharing his vast knowledge of whole carcass utilisation and recipe development through innovative Butchery and Charcuterie techniques.

Award winning, 5th generation Yorkshire butcher, charcutier and grazier, Chris is the founder Wildman Charcuterie.

Widely known for producing fine quality produce from his own home reared rarebreed animals, Chris also runs Charcuterie making courses from his on-site butchery.

Charcutier, consultant, trainer butcher, hunter, restaurant owner and founder of Good Game. Steve (aka Salami Steve) is a true artisan producer.

With a reputation for using the best locally produced meat from native breeds, wild game and for pioneering charcuterie production without the use of nitrates, Steve also teaches courses throughout the UK jackie@marshpig.co.uk www.marshpig.co.uk

Award winning and pioneering charcutier, Jackie, set up Marsh Pig over 10 years ago, producing fabulous British Charcuterie.

As the UK’s 11th charcuterie producer, Jackie developed her technical expertise and skills from scratch. Having made every mistake Jackie is well placed to provide training and guidance.

Do you see yourself as a producer?

Angel Refrigeration work closely with Charcuterie experts, schools, colleges and training centres, who offer a variety of interactive skills and product development courses. Whether you are in the early stages of your own business case development, need to develop your understanding of the food science and food safety standards, advice and tuition is always provided to a high standard.

Courses and Guidance

Here are some of our recommendations:

School of Artisan Food

www.schoolofartisanfood.org/courses/short-courses /butchery-charcuterie

River Cottage

Under the expert guidance of Steve Williams, River Cottage HQ are running 4 courses this year focusing on the principles and practice of making your own charcuterie at home. This introductory day is aimed at the amateur/beginner looking to make charcuterie and cured meats at home with limited expenditure and equipment. Curing & Smoking courses from £245.00 www.rivercottage.net/courses/artisanal-skills/curing-smoking

CanolFan Bwyd Cymru Food Centre Wales

A dedicated food technology centre, where the team of expert Food Technologists, provide advice, technical services and training to business start ups, SME’s and existing food producers. The facilities include food processing areas, food safety HACCP training and the development of production skills and recipes. www.foodcentrewales.org.uk

Food Technology Centre, Llangefni

The Food Technology Centre (FTC) has been established since 1999 and plays a key role in transferring knowledge to the food industry in Wales, across the UK and internationally. The Food Technology Centre provides a broad range of training opportunities to support individuals working at all levels within food businesses. www.gllm.ac.uk

Charcuterie Production Taster Days

A series of Charcuterie Production Taster Days from Angel Refrigeration, in conjunction with National Craft Butchers and Perrys of Eccleshall will be announced soon. Keep following us on social media for further details.

Energy Efficient Refrigeration

As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment, Angel Refrigeration has been working with our suppliers to develop a wide range of energy efficient refrigeration in line with the Carbon Trust standards. The Carbon Trust provides a wealth of advice to help businesses take action to reduce carbon emissions for both existing and new equipment www.carbontrust.com

ISPINI CHARCUTERIE ispinicharcuterie.com

Ispini was founded in 2016 by brother and sister onny and anice uddy to increase the return from pigs on the family farm. It hand-produces a range of ontinenta and orthern Irish inspired charcuterie at the ho ding in o yrone Northern Ireland, using its own meat and some sourced from like-minded local farmers. Ispini sells these products – including its ta e on inocchiona o a and ider in used hori o a ami tic s alongside Northern Irish farmhouse cheese from its deli in Moira.

KE NAKO BILTONG kenakobiltong.co.uk

Beef from organically reared dairy cull cows is the raw ingredient for Ke Nako Biltong, made at Ba y agan rganic arm in Northern Ireland.

Ke Nako was founded in 2012 by Alanagh and Ilse van taden to ma e the outh rican sty e dry cured beef. Now they also make droëwors – ground beef preserved with spices and stuffed in a lamb casing.

KILLENURE CASTLE killenure.com

After years of research, avaun armody o ner o i enure ast e in o Tipperary, revealed her adoped county to be the origin of the hardy but diminutive Dexter cow. armody has or ed with other Irish farmers to steadily build up the biggest herd of pure-bred e ters in the or d art of a nose-to-tail approach, armody s charcuterie ine u inc udes a umin & B ac e er a ami and hori o both so d in re sliced packs of 70g.

LISHMAN’S OF ILKLEY lishmansbutchers.co.uk

Yorkshire butcher and charcutier Lishman’s of Ilkley uses traditional curing techniques and high welfare meat from local farmers to make a range of charcuterie inc uding e eroni or & enne a ami ‘Nduja and Guanciale, as well as ‘limited release’ salamis every season. The company sells its products sliced or whole, and ships nationwide.

LONDON SMOKE & CURE

londonsmokeandcure. com treatham based oss Mitchell and Jamie Beevor s ondon mo e & ure s ecia ises in aged bacon, charcuterie and cold-smoked sashimi grade cottish salmon.

Available in retail packs, the charcuterie is produced from ethically reared, mature oucester d ots pigs, including its latest emi ry hori o made with “very high-quality imenton de a era and plenty of fresh garlic”.

LOXLEY’S LARDER loxleyslarder.co.uk

Run by Martin Miller in rural Nottinghamshire, Loxley’s Larder takes its name from the supposed home of Robin Hood. His range of salamis includes B ac ru fle & or icy ar ic & hi and ed ine & enne Mi er a so produces cured meats, such as o a and bee ecina

MACNEIL’S SMOKEHOUSE

macneilssmokehouse. co.uk

2018 saw Macneil’s mo ehouse in the reat aste o den or or the Midlands for the second year running – this time for its smoked salmon. With nationwide delivery and a raft of Great Taste awards across its range inc uding smo ed fish meat and garlic – this artisan smokehouse is growing sales among both retail and restaurant customers.

MACSWEEN OF EDINBURGH macsween.co.uk

Macsween of Edinburgh has been making haggis and black pudding for the past 70 years, commissioning the world’s first haggis actory hich was expanded in 2003 to accommodate the growing business. Its range of haggis includes a Traditional, Vegetarian and a gluten-free version. Despite its scale, the company says it places emphasis on being as green as possible by sourcing ingredients locally and using minimal packaging.

Retailing Tip: wrapping

As is the case with cheese, most retailers use a combination of cling lm and waxed paper when wrapping charcuterie sliced at the counter. A food-grade, waxed sheet with your shop’s branding looks professional and will be sturdy enough to wrap those wafer-thin slices.

Thin slices of cured meat stacked on top of each other will be virtually impossible to separate. To prevent this, slices can either be laid side by side on fresh cling or be overlapped to look like a staircase. You can use plastic lm between each layer to stop the meat from sticking together. Try not to fold the actual product while wrapping – so ensure the paper is big enough – and hand the item over to the customer at.

Made For Drink

madefordrink.com ongside ng ish ru fle

The clue is in the name. Made for Drink creates products intended to be paired with beverages.

Crisps and Chicken Salt

Fries, charcuterie products include Chorizo Thins (made for Rioja), and most recently, Biltong (made for beer). All are produced at Made For Drink’s kitchens In Berkshire.

Manchester

SMOKEHOUSE themanchester smokehouse.co.uk

Richard Hyman’s cured Scottish salmon follows the family recipe, curing with Israeli coarse grain salt and cold-smoking with British oak. The company’s latest release is a plant-based alternative called Oak Smoked Valmon, which comes in compostable retail packs of 80g (which is around 12 slices) RRP £5.99, £3.60 for trade. 800g catering packs are also available for £28.40.

MARSH PIG marshpig.co.uk

Norfolk charcuterie producer Marsh Pig has been making free-range pork and rare-breed British beef charcuterie by hand for 11 years. The range includes sliced and whole salamis, air-dried meats and three types of beef jerky. Only using leg meat in its salami and chorizo, it trims all the “nasty” bits and only adds 15% fat, which it says results in a much meatier product than others on the market.

MOONS GREEN moonsgreen.co.uk

Moons Green owners John

Doig and Ian Jones’ take on charcuterie is a serious, ingredient-led one, as e em ified by a range o 10 saucissons – including Ebony Lamb & Preserved Lemon and Venison, Pistachio & Sour Cherry – eight beersticks (with joyous names like Reggae, He fire and ru fle tic s range of air-dried meats includes an orange and fennel-cured tenderloin called a Filetto. The producer supplys pubs, bars, restaurants, cafés and wineries, as well farm shops and delicatessens.

NEGRONI negroni.com/en

The best-known brand of charcuterie in Italy specialised in premium deli meats, Negroni has been around for over a century. Its philosophy centres on control of the entire production cycle and its commitment to regional traditions is witnessed by links with several PDO and PGI consortia, including Prosciutto di Parma PDO, Culatello di Zibello PDO and Salame Cremona IGP.

Patchwork P T

patchworkfoods.com

Patchwork was established in 1982 by Margaret Carter who began selling her home-made pâtés to pubs in her local village in Wales.

Operating out of a purpose-built site since 1987, Patchwork produces pâtés, as well as a range of chutneys, salsas and dips. The latest addition is a Black Pudding Jam, a relish, which the producer suggests including in cooked breakfasts, burgers, or pairing with cheese and crackers. RRP £3.50, available in cases of 6 or 1kg tubs.

PEELHAM FARM peelham.co.uk

Peelham is a family run 650-acre farm in Berwickshire, Scotland. The butchery and charcuterie facilities were developed in 2008, producing a range of organic cured and airdried cattle, sheep and pork products alongside classic meats. Stating its mission as “creatively adding value and taste to our organic meat and developing our distinctive ‘terroir’”, the producer uses its own recipes and bespoke cures. Unique products include PastureFor-Life Veal Salami, made with star anise, white wine and pork fat.

Retailing Tip: care for your stock

Storage

Any cut meats must be refrigerated, otherwise they can quickly turn rancid. They should also be wrapped in cling lm to prevent absorbing strong avours from other items.

Whole air-dried hams and salamis can be stored and displayed ambiently but maintaining the right humidity levels can be tricky. Environmental Health legislation has forced many retailers to refrigerate their whole, uncut meats, however, chilling for too long can a ect their quality.

Display

The display lives of open meats on a counter vary from product to product. A whole salami might have a shelf life of 3-4 months but, once cut, that will reduce enormously. It’s important to consult your EHO and speak directly with the producer for guidance.

By law, chilled foods must always be kept below 8°C, but some cooked meats will specify below 5°C. Ultimately, always comply with the temperature recommended on the product label.

PRIME BITE primebite.co.uk

Prime Bite offers a private labelling service with the biltong and jerky it produces at its SALSAapproved facilities. The offering includes product and brand development, and is behind the likes of Hunters, High Protein Company and Raging Bull products.

PROPERONI properoni.co.uk

Properoni is a producer of premium Hungarian pepperoni. As well as supplying restaurants and pizzerias since 1968, the company recently launched a consumer line of products, made with a handful of ingredients and naturally fermented. Both are additive- and preservative-free.

PROTEIN AND PANTRY proteinandpantry.com

Making Chilli Beef

Jerky by hand in small batches with local grassfed beef, Protein and Pantry produces to order on a weekly basis. The preservative- and nitratefree jerky comes in 30g size pouches with a trade price of £1.65 per unit and a RRP of £2.95-£3.65.

REDHILL FARM redhillfarm.com

Redhill Farm free range pork has been going strong for 24 years, farming and producing a range of sausages, dry-cured bacon and hams, pâtés and haslets – as well as pork pies, so popular they were a supplier to the Queen’s Jubilee, Lord’s Cricket Ground and Wimbledon. In 2020, founders Jane and Terry Tomlinson grew their range of charcuterie, adding a Continental-style air-dried pancetta and a ham hock black pudding. Incidentally, that same year was when the Tomlinsons’ Free-Range Pork Shoulder was named Great Taste Supreme Champion.

SALT PIG CURING saltpigcuring.co.uk

SaltPig Curing Company is an artisanal charcuterie producer based in the Cotswolds, run by former chef Ben Dulley, whose nose-to-tail ethos led to his interest in cured meat production. The team uses local, rare-breed pigs to create a range of air-dried meats and salami.

Due to small batch production SaltPig’s products are available to a limited number of trade customers. Popular items include the Pigsticks snacking salamis, of which there are three: Cotswold Chorizo, Garlic & Pepper and Fennel.