Rooting for pigs

First it was Hugh F-W with chickens and this time around it Jamie O making the general public aware of pig welfare. Even though I deem myself to well read on various food issues the programme screened on Thursday night still surprised me.

It may sound silly, but you just don't think of pork being intensively reared, but it can be. It was good to see that the UK has a higher minimum welfare conditions compared to the rest of the EU, but these minimum conditions hardly produce happy pigs. This also means the supermarkets are flooded with cheap pork products that misleadingly appear to be from the UK, but are really from the rest of the EU where welfare conditions are poorer. Similarly, imported pig products that do not conform to UK law and/or common practice are sold alongside UK products in many stores. Not only are these welfare standards poor for pigs they are slowly killing the British pork industry as many consumers are choosing price over quality.

For me, the most shocking part of the programme was the misleading labelling. Don't trust the pictures and writing on the front of the packaging. Even if on the front of the packaging it says "UK sourced" don't trust it. The only place to find out the truth is to read the back label. For example Wiltshire Cured bacon isn't cured in Wiltshire, it's cured using a cure called Wiltshire Cure and could be cured anywhere. For those of you interested in what exactly Wiltshire Cure it I found this .

Not only was it about how pigs are treated, but also what happens to the meat after slaughter. Not mentioning any names but in one supermarket some pork steaks were found to contain only 85% pork. How a slab of meat can only contain 85% meat? That will be the classic trick of pumping meat with saline...mmmm nice.

All of the programme made me very glad we get all of our pork from Packington Pork or from a smallholding friend where we know the pigs have had a happy, free-range life. It also makes me want to rear some pigs. Not right now as we wouldn't be able to fit them in teeny tiny garden, but you never know, in the future. Hubby's piggy visit to River Cottage has also cemented this notion.

In conjunction with Jamie's show the RSPCA have launched a Rooting for Pigs campaign. They are calling for:

* clear and consistent labelling on pork products.
* a better law to protect pig welfare.

In a recent poll, only 2% of those questioned understood the terms used on pork products, such as 'outdoor bred' or 'outdoor reared'. So what do the different terms mean?

Free range
There is no legal definition of 'free range' when it comes to pork. Retailers can label the pork they sell as 'outdoor bred' or 'free range' without providing definitions. Although the perception that keeping livestock outside is best for welfare does not always hold true, free range systems in which pigs are kept throughout their lives outside in paddocks do ensure animals have freedom to move around and express natural behaviours.

Outdoor bred
There is no doubt the term 'outdoor bred' sends out all the right messages to consumers who want to buy pork from pigs free to roam outdoors. However, despite the often held belief that this term means pigs will spend much of their lives living outside, in practice, the term is usually used to label pork from pigs that have only spent the first three or four weeks of their lives in free range systems. ‘Outdoor bred’ pigs are born outside, and their mothers almost invariably stay outside in paddocks throughout their breeding lives. However, once they have been weaned from their mothers, the piglets are moved into indoor systems, which can vary considerably in terms of the welfare standards they provide.

Outdoor reared
'Outdoor reared' is usually used to describe a system in which the piglets are kept with full access to the outdoors for up to around 10 weeks of age, before being moved to indoor rearing/finishing accommodation. Production of ’outdoor reared’ pigs on any commercial scale is relatively rare.

Go on, start rooting for pigs.

Pig in a Day with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Hubby is one of those annoying/lucky people (depending on how you look at it) who's birthday is during the Christmas festivities. After him buying me a KitchenAid for my birthday, I knew I had to pull one out of the bag to make his birthday pressie just as special as his present to me.

A few weeks back I received an email from River Cottage making me aware of some dates with Hugh. Dates with Hugh in River Cottage are becoming rarer and rarer so I knew I had to act quick. The Catch & Cook in June course sold out 5 min before I phoned so I went for the Pig in a Day course, meaning Hubby would have to get his Birthday pressie early. He was a tad bit shocked when I announced where he would be going and that he would be meeting his idol Hugh.

So here I pass on to Hubby who has written his own account of the day, also if you are veggie I suggest you don't read or scroll down any further:



The day started when I pulled into River Cottage. You can't park right at River Cottage so took a bumpy ride down into the valley on a trailer pulled by a tractor. When me and my 23 fellow course mates arrived we were shown to a yurt where tea, coffee and delicious brownies were waiting for us. It was a lovely warm welcome. Then all of a sudden my idol of idols Hugh appeared. He shook my hand and introduced himself to me, signed my Meat cookbook then had our photo taken. The photo makes Jules laugh as we look like bosom buddies.

We then headed down to a converted barn for the course which was essentially demonstrating the process and principles of butchering and processing a pig. I don't own any pigs, yet, but would love to in the future and a smallholding mate of Jules has offered us half a pig after Christmas. Along with Hugh there was also the legend that is master butcher - Ray Smith.




It started with half a pig that Ray slowly butchered into different joints while Hugh cooked the various dishes. This was definitely nose-to-tail eating. The first dish to be prepared was brawn as it has to be slow cooked. From behind the demonstration counter Hugh produced a quartered pig's head. I was able to taste the brawn later on in the day.



The first dish I tried was pig's brains. Hugh first poached the diced brain then coated in breadcrumbs and then deep-fried. Curiosity got the better of me and I knew I had to try it. It's creamy and melt in the mouth, not much taste, more texture. This evening Jules & I have debated over whether or not you can legally buy pig's brains. I say yay, she says nay. Either way it's not worth the risk of seeing Jules' reaction if she came home one day to find a pig's brain the fridge.



Next on the menu was devilled kidneys. Again something I have never tried before as I thought I didn't like kidneys, but these were very very tasty. Hugh may have converted me to kidneys. Liver pate was also demonstrated, but I didn't get a chance to try this one.

While the barn was being transformed for lunch we had the opportunity to walk around the grounds. The pigs all looked very happy in the mud and the geese were quite adamant to peck my shoes. I was also inspired by their smokers made out of barrels. Lunch was generous slices of pork served with creamy mash and roasted veg. To follow was pear sponge cake. Very tasty.

The afternoon was hosted by Ray and Steve and was primarily about preserving and processing meat. During the afternoon they demonstrated how to make air dried ham, chorizo and sausages. All of the people attending the course were given some chorizo and sausages to take home. We ate the sausages the following night and they were absolutely delicious. Very different from sausages you usually buy. They were packed with meat, herbs and a bit of sugar which helps the sausages to caramelise when they split.



I found it a really interesting and informative day. On top of the recipe demonstrations they also advised on what knives to use, how to tie a butchers knot, the right questions to ask at the abattoir. It was a lovely chilled environment and you were encouraged to ask questions throughout the day. I will be returning as I enjoyed myself so much.

Makin' bacon ... plus salami & chorizo - part 1

This post should really be titled "The Hubby who wants to be Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall", oh and I before I go on I suggest veggies, click away now! Hubby's first flit with being Hugh started last summer when he built a clay oven in the back garden. Give him his due it turned out to be a fab oven and that blog post still remains one of my top google hits. With summer just about here Hubby has put his Hugh hat back on.

This time it's the turn of nettle Beer, bacon, salami & chorizo. It has reached the point to where he has built his own smoker and the outhouse has become the place of preserved meat all hanging from the beams. All of this has come about since I purchased Meat. I am thinking of also buying Fish, but am a bit hesitant as to the fact I may come home one day and find Hubby filleting a huge fish ready to smoke in his homemade smoker!



A couple of weeks ago hubby started on the cured belly pork, which in theory will turn into streaky bacon. He dry cured it with salt, peppercorns and bay leaves, wrapped it in muslin then hung it in the outhouse to dry for a week. The first time we tried it, it was unbearably salty because Hubby hadn't washed the salt cure off properly so after a good soaking in water and another week of hanging it's now tasting a great deal more edible. In the next few weeks he is planning to smoke half of it. Some people use saltpetre to maintain the colour of the meat however were unable to get our hands on saltpetre (unbeknown to us at the time apparently used in bomb making) not surprisingly the woman in Holland & Barret gave us a rather scared look when we asked for it!

This weekend Hubby's new sausage making kit arrived so he decided to try and make chorizo and salami. The basic method for the two are very similar apart from chorizo has paprika and the salami he made had different spices and pistachios in it. I have to admit I left him too it. The sight of the ox runners (intestines) were reminding me too much of specimens I studied during the Parasitology module in Uni! Given the fact I was slightly freaked out by the ox runners the meat mixes he made up smelt very authentic. These sausages are also now hanging up in the outhouse. I look forward to trying them in about 4 weeks time. The Cottage Smallholder are also curing pork and salami at the moment and it has been great reading their blog and getting tips.

Sticky Pork with Noodles

This weekend has been the first weekend since the beginning of December where we have had a free weekend. We popped into Derby to do a few jobs and I got stupidly overexcited when I noticed M&S sold cherry stoners, I've been searching for one for ages...I need to get out more.

We had lunch in a great Irish pub in hidden away down the side of St Peters Church. It's very much typical pub grub, but done really well and great prices. So tonight, after our huge lunch we didn't fancy anything big so decided to try a recipe in this months GFM, I adapted it slightly. It was really delicious and possibly the quickest meal I have ever made.

Sticky Pork with Noodles
Serves 2

2 pork steaks
2 tbsp rice vinegar
6 tbsp soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tsp soft dark sugar
5 spring onions, thinly sliced
2 sheets of noodles
1 tbsp sesame seeds

1) Mix rice vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and sugar in shallow bowl. Marinade steaks for up to 24 hours.

2) Cook steaks in saute pan (minus the extra marinade) for about 3 min each side until cooked. Remove steaks from pan and allow to rest. Cook noodles then drain. Add remaining marinade to pan, boil until sticky. Stir in sesame seeds.

3) Slice steaks into strips. Mix steak back into marinade and add noodles. Stir until pork and noodles are coated. Serve with spring onions on top.

Pork chops with cider & mustard sauce

Dinners are very much quick and easy at the moment as I'm up to my ears in sewing nativity costumes. I had a huge baking craving yesterday and had to buy some delicious lebkuchen from Lidl to calm my urge and let me get on with what seems like the 1001th shepherd outfit.

Tonight's tea was pork chops with a cider and mustard sauce. The recipe is adapted from Nigella Express.

Pork chops with cider and mustard sauce
Serves 2

2 pork chops
250ml cider (I used Gayners med/dry)
50 ml single cream
2 tsp wholegrain mustard

1) Fry chops on both sides until cooked (about 5 min per side). Place on a warmed plate.

2) Deglaze pan with cider. Boil rapidly for about a minute. Stir in mustard and cream, continue to cook for a few minutes then pour over the chop.

Perfect Roast Pork with Crackling

I can cook the perfect roast pork and beef, but get me to cook the perfect roast lamb and you can forget it. I just can't master it. Tonight, as it's Sunday, was a traditional pork roast dinner. I love my roast dinners and today I cooked probably the best crackling. After my last roast dinner success of Yorkshire puddings I put my crackling success down to Mellow Yellow rapeseed oil, yet again. Today I also discovered that if you sprinkle polenta on potatoes before you put them in the oven you end up with beautifully crispy potatoes. We ate it with roast potatoes, carrots and parsnips that had been roasted in some roasting oil I had picked up at a farmers market last week, garlic & herb stuffing plus Yorkshire puds. I know you shouldn't have Yorkshire puds unless you having beef, but I love them!

Roast loin of pork with crackling

1) Get pork joint out of the fridge, uncover to allow air to get to the skin. Score skin of pork with sharp knife. Sit for an hour. Pour boiling water over the skin and leave for around 15 min.

2) Preheat oven to 240oc. Rub olive or rapeseed oil into the skin then massage in lots of salt. Cook for 25 min at 240oc. Turn down oven to 190oc and continue to cook (TOTAL TIME = 35min per lb/450g) until juices run clear.

3) Rest for 30 min before carving. This allows you to turn the oven back up a bit to cook the potatoes etc....

Roast Pork with Balsamic Potatoes

Tonight I made roast pork with balsamic potatoes and onions that has featured on a particular *cough* chefs TV programme. It took a lot of pausing the freeview box to get the gist of the recipe!

I have to admit I liked it more than I expected.

For the pork I removed the skin and covered the joint of meat in rosemary, fennel seeds, black pepper and salt. Bunged it in the oven at 200oc for 1 hour, then let meat rest for 10 or so minutes.

While the pork was beginning to cook, I blanched the potatoes for 5 min, then put in a hot roasting tin with some olive oil. Placed a couple of onions and bulb of garlic in between the potatoes. Covered with about 200ml of balsamic vinegar, seasoned then baked for about 50 min.

tip: don't use your best roasting tin for the potatoes, the sticky balsamic mess will ruin it!

If anyone knows why the formatting of text on my blog keeps on changing, please can they let me know!