PubChef Live - Northern Exposure

Our second PubChef Live went swimmingly at Nigel Haworth's Three Fishes in Lancashire

Lancashire, famed for culinary staples such as black pudding, Eccles cake and hotpot, was the destination for the second PubChef Live. The educational event hit the Three Fishes pub in the village of Mitton, near Whalley, as chefs gathered to learn about the finest produce from the land of the Red Rose.

The event included a series of tutorials, tastings and demonstrations aimed at getting pub chefs to use more local produce on their menus. Jane Wakeling, regional food and drink manager from Food from Britain launched the event with her guide to getting more from local suppliers. The following are summaries of the presentations.

Local heroes

Britain's small food producers are in vogue states Food from Britain. Regional foods have enjoyed a 6% boost in popularity, with customers increasingly concerned about provenance, says Jane.

With field-to-fork foods now a lifestyle choice, more than 70% of consumers expressed a desire to buy local food, according to recent Food From Britain research and, says Jane, pubs should be making the most of this latest food fashion.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to differentiate your pub and make a commercial benefit," she says. Pubs that want to seek out their nearest local suppliers should take a look at the Food from Britain's website, www.regionalfoodanddrink.co.uk

Delights from the north west

Sandra Allwood from North West Fine Foods reinforced Food from Britain's "go local" message. "Lancashire is rich in great ingredients like white pudding, cheeses and seafood, which have been painstakingly produced," she said. "Customers love to eat food with a story behind it and will pay for the personal touch."

Sandra explained how North West Fine Foods represents hundreds of local producers across Cheshire, Cumbria and Lancashire, offering ingredients from traditional black puddings to more contemporary Lancashire chorizo sausage. For more information visit www.nwff.co.uk

The big cheese

Armed with a few pints of milk, some rennin and a plastic tub, Bob Kitchen boldly predicted he could produce a delicious piece of cheese in just 20 minutes. Bob, a cheesemaker from Leagram's Organic Dairy at Chipping, near Preston, began by adding some full-fat Lancashire milk and pasteurising bacteria to a tub. He explained how the Leagram's dairy produced quality organic cheeses from local milk, which could be "creamy, crumbly but always tasty".

Bob then added some rennin, which is an extract from a calf's or lamb's stomach, to thicken the mixture into a junket. He then scalded the junket with hot water and separated the curd from the whey. The curd was added to a mold and bound in cloth, to give it a skin. The cheese should then be dried out for 12 hours, though Bob had a handy pre-prepared version to save time.

Finally, the cheese was bound in wax to prevent contamination, ensuring it could be stored until maturation. Bob revealed how his cheese-making skills are increasingly rare in Lancashire and urged chefs to back the region's dairies. "Cheese making is a dying art, despite the fact we've got some superb varieties," he says. "We need to get behind these cheeses and tell people about them." Bob's curd cheese was served with crumpet during the event's lunch.

Tasting table

Pub owners and chefs were then invited to sample local produce from Lancashire, Cheshire and Cumbria including: White pudding, black pudding and Morecambe Bay shrimps from producers linked with North West Fine Foods. Cumberland sausage, hams and bacon from Richard Woodhall at Waberthwaite, Cumbria. Vegetables from H&P Ascroft in Tarleton, Lancashire.

Cauliflower ears

Peter Ascroft, from Lancashire-based vegetable supplier H&P Ascroft was first to set out his stall. The firm grows produces like carrots, potatoes and cauliflower. Peter, who supplies the Three Fishes, offered pub chefs tips on sourcing vegetables:

Make menus seasonal: "Cauliflowers come into season at the end of May so make sure you include them on your pub menu. Cauliflowers are planted in March and at H&P Ascroft we plant each vegetable by hand."

Buy with confidence: "We offer full traceability, with each plant traceable back to the parent seed."

Buy British: "Swap imported vegetables like mange tout and baby sweetcorn for British cabbages and cauliflowers."

Bowland Forest beefs up supplies

Jim Curwen, a hill farmer from Lancashire's Bowland Forest Meats, was next to outline his passion for provenance. Bowland Forest Meats represents a co-operative of more than 50 local farms and was designed to boost consumer confidence in locally-reared beef and lamb when it formed in 1999.

The company offers caterers beef, lamb and pork reared in an area of outstanding natural beauty. Customers include both the Three Fishes pub and the Michelin-starred Northcote Manor in Langho, near Blackburn. According to Jim, the meats offer unique quality. "We are working towards delivering a quality product for your business," he says. "You just need to taste the meats to appreciate how special they are."

For information contact 01524 793558.

EBLEX butchery demonstration

Seeking out English beef and lamb carrying the quality standard mark is the best way for pubs to ensure they serve the best product, says Hugh Judd, foodservice project manager of the English Beef & Lamb Executive (EBLEX).

Chefs also viewed EBLEX's new TV ad campaign "At home with Beefy and Lamby" featuring caricatures of English cricket legends Ian Botham and Alan Lamb cooking up quality standard meats. Hugh then handed over to meat consultant and butcher Viv Harvey for a butchery demonstration which emphasised the importance of specifying your meat needs to your butcher so you get steaks cut to your requirements. His top tips for chefs looking to beef up the quality of their rump steak included:

Colour: "Trim any discoloured edges from the rump steak. It's risky to serve these to customers because the taste may vary from the red coloured meat."

First impressions: "Remove any tough tasting connective tissue as you only get one chance to impress the customer."

Specify: "You need to communicate with your butcher and ensure they know exactly what type of steak you want. Make sure they cut steak to an even thickness otherwise parts of the meat will cook faster than others. Don't leave the butcher in control of your business through a lack of communication."

The customer is always right: "Some customers may want the steak served without any visible fat. If that's the case then you should do so even if it goes against your personal preference."

Let's do lunch

Attendees took to their tables for a three course lunch showcasing Lancashire's top ingredients and featuring many foods from suppliers detailed at PubChef Live.

Courses included:

Elmwood platter: House-cured meat,including pickled brisket, ox tongue, organic honey-roast ham, collared pork, homemade pickle and organic homemade bread.

Meats were supplied by Wallings Farm, Cokerham, Lancashire and Wirral Foods.

Nigel Haworth's signature dish: Heather-reared Bowland lamb Lancashire hotpot with pickled red cabbage. Lamb from Bowland Forest Meats, Abbeystead, Lancashire, served with Thwaites' Lancaster Bomber beer.

Buttered crumpet: Bob's organic day-old Lancashire curd, cress and Ascroft's beetroot salad. Curd from Leagram's organic dairy and beetroot salad from H&P Ascroft.

Pub Chef Live III

The next PubChef Live event will be held on 13 June at the King of Prussia, Farnham Royal, Berkshire, and includes a cookery demonstration by TV chef Phil Vickery.

The event costs £10 including a meal.

If you are interested in attending please contact Sue Selby on 01293 610238 or email sue.selby@william-reed.co.uk