British Food Fortnight - Love British Food
British Food Fortnight is the biggest annual celebration of British food and drink. As we’re big supporters of British food locally and nationally, we’d like to tell you some more about this and how you can take part and support this event.
The History
Held in Autumn at the same time as the Harvest Festival, The British Food Festival was established around the same time as the Foot and Mouth crisis to raise awareness and promote British food. Even though there were many food initiatives at this time, there wasn’t one clear event for the general public.
The event has received fantastic support with many organisations taking part, and many businesses reaping the rewards of commercial participation. The public sector have also played a big part in supporting this initiative with many hospitals and schools catering services getting involved.
What Can You Do?
There are many easy ways for you to support this fantastic initiative, and here’s our top 3:
1, Shop in your local butchers, greengrocers, farm shops and markets who source locally grown and reared food. Supporting your local businesses will work wonders for your local, and the British food industry.
2, As we know you’re busy, and shopping locally can take time, if you do shop in supermarkets, keep an eye out for British produce. See if you can find out from the label where it is from, who produced it, and if there is a British alternative in season. Look out for the Little Red Tractor!
3, Spread awareness with your family, friends and work colleagues. Let them know what the event is all about, and even better, cook them some wonderful British food. They’ll all thank you for it, we’re sure! If you’re a social media fanatic, remember to use the hashtag #LoveBritishFood. Mention us @CindersBbq and let us know what you’re cooking!
British Recipe Ideas
Roast Lamb – A British Favourite
Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3.
1, Lay the vegetables, bay leaves and a few rosemary sprigs into a large roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil. Use a knife to make little slits all over the lamb. Poke a slice of garlic and a sprig of rosemary into each one. Sit the lamb on top of the veg in the roasting tin, add a slosh of red wine, then cook for roughly 2 hrs if you like it pink, or 2 hrs 15 mins for cooked through. Remove from the oven, transfer to a board and cover with foil, then rest for 45 mins-1 hr.
2, For the gravy, pour off most of the fat from the tray but leave the veg and any meat juices. Place the tray on the heat to caramelise the veg, then stir in flour and cook to a paste. Gradually stir in red wine, cook for a minute, then stir in the stock and simmer until you have a delicious gravy.
3, Turn oven up to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. For the crumbs, whizz bread in a food processor and scatter over a tray. Bake in the oven for around 10-15 mins until crisp, then re-whizz or break up with your fingers. These can be made in whenever and kept in an container for 2 days. Serve the lamb carved into slices, sprinkled with crumbs and a jug of gravy alongside.
Barbecue Pork Spare Ribs
Fire up that barbecue!
1, Cut the ribs down the bone to separate into single ribs. Line the ribs in baking trays on their side.
2, With the racks of ribs in their trays, ladle sauce over the ribs in as equal quantity as possible. Then cover the ribs with foil and place in a preheated 170 C / 150 C Fan / Gas 3 oven for 90 minutes.
Take ribs out of the oven and leave to cool with the foil still in place.
3, Finish on the BBQ. Heat the BBQ to medium high heat. When the barbecue is ready, turn the ribs over in their trays, to let the sauce run back over the ribs as they cook. Recover trays with the foil.
Place the trays on the barbecue. Leave the ribs on the barbecue, in their trays and covered. When the sauce is bubbling, the ribs will fall off the bone, succulent with an amazing taste of the sauce.
Cheesy Corn on the Cob
Again, fire up that barbecue!
1, Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Throw in the corn-cobs and cook for 5 mins until slightly tender. Pop the corn in a roasting tray, cover and chill for a while if needed.
2, Season the corn to taste, put on a hot barbecue and cook for around 5 mins, turning regularly until it begins to blister and some of the kernels have popped and charred in places.
3, Brush on all sides with the melted butter, then scatter over Parmesan cheese and some black pepper.
Simple and delicious!
So before you fire up that barbecue, whether it’s some sumptuous spare ribs or some cheesy chargrilled corn-on-the-cob, remember to support your local and national food community and shop British. Our commercial grills are powerful and dependable, perfect for your British Food Fortnight get togethers and catering events. Contact us today to see how we can help.