Latest News about mutton.
These sheep were happy basking in the April sun with a nice cool breeze coming of Loch Na Keal Isle of Mull
Sandy Granville, the crofting star of the hit “This Farming Life” television series, has offered an unusual piece of advice for his fellow island crofters – go back to traditional working ways and bring back into use the vast acreages of heather-rich moorland.
Read MoreNorth Ronaldsay sheep
It’s funny, whilst we would never go into a supermarket and ask for simply “a bottle of wine”, as there is simply too much choice, yet our only choice of sheep meat there is generic ‘Lamb’.
Just as wine has a choice of grape varieties and terroirs, so sheep meat has a range of potential differences, although to most large retailers, it is a standard commodity, lamb, bought from the cheapest source. The supermarkets are largely unwilling and probably unable (due to scale) to differentiate, other than regional sourcing, between types of sheep meat beyond the standard lamb. They do this to offer their customers a uniform, if rather bland product. Compared with the information available from supermarkets about individual wines, that for lamb is pitiful.
Talk given by Bob Kennard at the National Sheep Association's Sheep Event July 2016
Read MoreCould emerging quality mutton sales in the USA offer sheep producers an opportunity to add value? Article by Bob Kennard in Sustainable Farming summer 2016
Tom Pugh, Knighton, Powys
When you know that a Welsh Borders butcher has won a coveted Great Taste Gold Award for his haggis, and his meat supply chains are just 10 or 20 food miles long, then you realise this must be someone with vision. Andrew Pugh established his first butchery around 1980. Now, with his son Tom, he has two shops either side of Offa’s Dyke, in Knighton (Powys) and Bishops Castle (Shropshire).
Read MoreUncooked mutton bacon (Macon)
Uncooked mutton bacon (macon)
Read MoreAlde Valley Sheep at White House Farm, Great Glemham, Suffolk
The Suffolk town of Aldeburgh is preparing for its third annual Alde Valley Mutton Renaissance & Aldeburgh Mutton Week celebration from Sat 20th February to Sunday 6th March 2016. This year's programme is larger than the previous two years, including a guest visit by Bob Kennard [author of Much Ado About Mutton] and a screening of Addicted to Sheep by Magali Pettier - alongside cutting demonstrations and tastings at Salter & King, and a range of special Alde Valley Mutton dishes at hotels and pubs in beautiful East Suffolk.
For more details see here
Early feedback from the National Sheep Association’s new 'Make More of Mutton' survey of UK quality mutton supply chains has revealed that the sector is buoyant with plenty of good quality products on the market.
NSA’s Make More of Mutton is sponsored by Eblex, HCC and LMC, and extends the work of the Mutton Renaissance Club, an initiative of HRH The Prince of Wales. It was launched last October and an initial fact-finding exercise has shown average confidence levels of those in the supply chain are 3.5 out of 5. There are clear areas where improvements could be made, but levels of enthusiasm and interest are high.
Project Manager Bob Kennard says those responding to the survey so far are mostly sheep farmers retailing their own mutton in small volumes.
“Supply chains were therefore relatively short, with half of the participants having their own butchery facilities, and two traditional butcher’s shops also taking part,” says Mr Kennard. “The markets for mutton identified are wide ranging, with respondents to the survey selling from farm shops, farmers’ markets, butchers and other retail premises, by mail order, wholesale, pubs and restaurants and other caterers.
“There was great innovation illustrated by the responses, with about a quarter of producers supplying various cured and smoked mutton products, and most offering a wide variety of fresh mutton cuts. Between them, the initial respondents offered mutton from 20 breeds of sheep.”
See more at http://www.nationalsheep.org.uk/news-detail.php?NewsID=308
Much Ado About Mutton, having been declared the best food book in Wales, has now been shortlisted, together with eight other books for the meat category of the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2015.
Other shortlisted books are from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Germany, New Zealand, Norway and UK The best in the world will be announced on June 9th in Yantia, China.
Aldeburgh town has gone mutton mad!
Interesting mutton facts….
And because this under-rated, healthy meat tastes so completely delicious, we’ve decided to give it its own festival…
Mutton Week
Launch day – Saturday 14th February, from 2pm
Come to the shop for:
~ A make-the-most-of-mutton Cooking Demo by Gerard King
~ An ‘Introduction to Carcass Cutting’ butchery demo
~ A mutton dish taste-off! The White Lion and Brudenell hotels slug it out for Best Mutton Dish – and you’ll be the judge.
~ Mutton recipes to take home with you.
All week
~ Delicious Alde Valley mutton – grazed in the lush meadows of Great Glemham – available in the shop. Including new and innovative cuts to try, as well as recipe suggestions.
~ Farm Walk at White House Farm, Great Glemham. Enquire at the shop for timings.
~ Farm Supper at White House Farm on 19th February, cooked by local chef Peter Harrison. A must for mutton-lovers! Contact the shop for tickets
~ Special mutton dishes (made with our own Alde Valley mutton) on the menus at the White Lion and Brudenell hotels throughout the week.
For more information, contact Gerard King on info@salterandking.co.uk, or 01728 452758
The book 'Much Ado About Mutton' has been given a Gourmand World Cookbook Award for 2014.
Are you a producer/processor/retailer or caterer of quality mutton? If so, the new 'Make More of Mutton' campaign would like to hear from you. The new scheme, run by the National Sheep Association is aimed at helping the development of quality mutton supply chains. The project is continuing on from the work done by the Mutton Renaissance campaign.
If you would like more information, please contact the Project Manager, Bob Kennard via mutton@nationalsheep.org.uk.
There will be a dedicated mutton stand in the Food Hall of the Royal Welsh Winter Fair at Builth Wells (www.rwas.co.uk/winter-fair) on 1st and 2nd December. This is an oppportunity to see more information about mutton, buy signed copies of Much Ado About Mutton and even taste a sample of the exquisite meat!
Important news for mutton lovers is the launch at the Winter Fair of a new project known as 'Making the Most of Mutton' by the National Sheep Association with teh Royal Academy of Culinary Arts. Information will be on the Mutton Stand in the Food Hall, and the National Sheep Association stand in the livestock area.
Mutton was featured on Radio Scotland's programme Kitchen Cafe, on the 24th October. The programme can still be heard at the BBC Radio Scotland website.
"Mutton used to take pride of place on kitchen tables across the country. But today we no longer eat mutton or even view mutton in the way we used to. Bob Kennard explains why there was a demise in mutton and urges us to try again with this meat that many consider to be tastier than lamb.
For generations Colin Clydesdale has had mutton recipes handed down his family, traditional recipes of mutton and tattie soup and roast leg of mutton. He talks about his favourite recipes and why he has never fallen out of love with mutton.
Jane Moncrieff explores the origins of Shetland's traditional delicacy, reestit mutton, finding out how a salty and sweet brine and then hanging to dry for 21 days adds a further depth of flavour to the meat.
Chef John Quigley demonstrates how to make a simple mutton cous cous."
Edition of 'Mouthwatering Mutton' programme to be repeated today (Monday 6th October at 3.30 pm GMT+1). Also available to listen to via BBC website.
"Mutton tastier than lamb - why we should all demand to eat older meat. Dan Saladino uncovers the mystery of why we no longer eat mutton, despite it being a favoured meat of the Victorians. He hears about the efforts of Bob Kennard, author of a new book, Much Ado About Mutton, who's campaigning for good quality mutton to return to our menus......"
Hear a radio interview from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC Rural) with Bob Kennard on mutton at http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-18/nrn-much-ado-about-mutton/5753456.
Read the article based on the interview 'Mutton on the Comeback Trial'.
A Mutton Dinner and talk launched Much Ado About Mutton at the Ludlow Food Festival on the 13th and 14th September.
The Trio of Mutton at the Bistro 7 Mutton meal at Ludlow
The Ludlow restaurant Bistro 7 hosted the superb sell-out mutton meal, with Chef James Croft-Moss producing a stunning variety of delicious mutton dishes to the delight of everyone there.
Following some superb mutton canapes, the traditional mutton broth was extremely tasty, and the trio of mutton which followed demonstrated both the taste, tenderness and versitility of quality mutton when cooked slowly.
The mutton was from a Texel ewe, farmed by Mr Gittoes of Bleddfa, near Knighton in Powys. The animal was three years old, and the carcass had been hung for 18 days.
Bob Kennard talking at Ludlow Food Festival
On the following day, as part of the Ludlow Food Festival, following a butchery and cookery demonstration, Bob Kennard gave a short talk about what to look for when buying mutton.
Bob Kennard with Dan Saladino of BBC Radio 4 Food Programme recording an interview.
A radio programme devoted to mutton and featuring Bob Kennard, author of Much Ado About Mutton will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 12.30pm on Sunday 5th October, repeated the next day at 3.30pm.
In Victorian Wales, the Ffwrn Fach double boiler cooked meat long and slow, so its modern equivalent, the slow-cooker, is ideal for mutton, producing tender succulent meat every time.
Whether you are cooking a roast or casserole, just prepare the ingredients, switch on and leave it until ready. Modern mutton cookery just couldn’t be simpler or more relaible!
The Independent newspaper has produced a guide to the ten best slow-cookers.
Nigella Lawson has selected Much Ado About Mutton for her Cookbook Corner on her website www.nigella.com.
Mutton broth from the Much Ado About Mutton recipe.
She selects a recipe from each book she features, and in the case of Much Ado About Mutton, it's the ancient mutton broth which took her eye. She says "Reader, I confess: I did choose this book for its title alone. Nonetheless, I am proud and pleased to number it among my collection now, and commend both it and my selected recipe to you. Reminiscent of a particular favourite of mine, Welsh Cawl, it's for a good, old-fashioned, proper Mutton Broth."
The recipe is also available on this website.
Dolau locals and visitors get down to some serious mutton tasting
A local launch of the book Much Ado About Mutton took place in the village Hall of Llanfinhangel Rhydithon (or Dolau, pronounced 'Dolly' for short) in rural mid Wales on September the 6th. With delicious mutton to sample, and some extracts from the book read by the author and friends, not to mention village gossip to catch up on, oh, and the wine flowing freely, what could go wrong?
David and Helen Pickersgill of Weobley Ash Farm, Herefordshire with their Moroccan spiced sausages.
Fortunately, all went relatively smoothly.
Local mutton producers David and Helen Pickersgill of Weobley Ash Farm, Herefordshire (pictured) brought some of their excellent Moroccan spiced mutton sausages.
Local cook and food expert, Lavinia Vaughan, cooked some wonderful mutton tasters from meat butchered by Tom Pugh at Harry Tuffin's supermarket eight miles away at Knighton in Powys.
The ewes for the tastings were of two breeds - Shropshires from Tom, and Lleyn from David and Helen. Both had been hung for between 10 days and three weeks. All the animals were about 4 years old, and were slaughtered at Griffiths, Leintwardine, Shropshire. Both Doug Griffiths and Tom Pugh came along for a taste of their wares.
Mike Reynolds, Bob and Carolyn Kennard reading from Much Ado About Mutton
Author Bob Kennard and his wife Carolyn, together with local sheep farmer, Mike Reynolds (see right) read some extracts from the book, bringing to life the voices of mutton enthusiasts of previous generations.
The general consensus of the evening was that many people found they enjoyed eating mutton and found the evening fascinating, and wasn't it a good idea to get the community together! What was the best gossip of the evening? Well, that would be telling, mind you, I was rather surprised to hear about young George and that sheep .......
