Posted on Tuesday, November 17th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Beef Dripping Recipes, Recipes, Side Dishes | No Comments »
Our Beef Dripping is nutrient rich, high in omega-3 acids, clean, pure and carries great flavour. One of my favourite ways to enjoy beef dripping is spread lightly onto hot toast.
Toast the bread and lightly spread beef dripping on hot sourdough bread with a sprinkle of sea salt.
Posted on Tuesday, November 17th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Beef Dripping Recipes, Recipes, Side Dishes | No Comments »
Beef dripping is not only ideal for making pastry or cooking with, it’s also a great way to add flavour to your gravy.
Ds Skillet Gravy – Printer Friendly Download
Sprinkle flour over the beef drippings in a skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and brown. Gradually stir in the water so that no lumps form. Boil until thickened, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper.
Posted on Friday, November 13th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food, Press | No Comments »
I recently spoke to the lovely Ella McSweeney from BBC Radio 4 food programme about the process of making our award-winning Beef Dripping. Our Beef Dripping was recently crowned Supreme Champion at the Great Taste Awards 2015 and as a 5th generation butcher, this product is a real nod to the past.
Listen to the podcast on the BBC Radio 4 website (starts 14mins 15secs.
Our Beef Dripping is available to buy online in small and large pots and is a must have for any kitchen.
Posted on Monday, November 9th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
It never ceases to amaze me the number of teenagers that can’t cook or at least claim they can’t. They certainly won’t starve as they are capable of placing cornflakes in a bowl, pop tarts in a toaster, a ready meal in a microwave or ordering a takeaway, but when it comes to long term sustainable food preparation on a budget, many are clueless. Countless young people are about to strike out on their own, as they do at the start of every college year, and mothers all over the country fret and wonder if they will eat properly. Given that food is something we involve ourselves with every day of our lives we fail to pass on passions and skills and most people have those wilderness years in between their mother’s cooking and developing there own cooking ability later in life. Boys are particularly good at avoiding the challenge altogether and instead put their energies into finding a girl who can cook; a good plan but not the best one.
It makes so much more sense to catch our children young, and I’m talking in the single figure years, and introduce them to food and cooking. It’s not about turning them into professional chefs, but it is about giving them confidence around food and nutrition. It will also give them an appreciation of the work that goes into preparing meals and, long term, the wrench from home when it does inevitably come around, will be one stress less.
Cooking and preparing food involves many skills that will help with a child’s general development. There is a maths element, learning to measure and weigh, reading recipes and making notes. You can even learn about where food comes from which sometimes will involve different cultures and places as well as ingredients. These days we have video and digital cameras to record our work and chart our progress in a fun and colourful food diary if we want to. There is also something quite special about sharing time in a kitchen with a child and nothing gives a greater sense of importance that being involved in making a meal for the family. One of my favourite poems by Seamus Heaney is In Memoriam, where he recalls time alone with his mother preparing a meal. “When all the others were away at Mass, I was all hers as we peeled potatoes.” It is a beautiful piece that encapsulates that shared time of productivity. Also cooking together is something you can do and enjoy for the rest of your life.
So where do you start and how young is too young? Personally I think around 4 years old is a good age and there are plenty of books out there to get you started. Naturally you are going to start out with simple things. If you can count to 10 and hold a spoon, as most 4 year olds can, then counting out ingredients is a great help or stirring and mixing is not beyond them. Washing fruit and vegetables or bashing with a pestle is another task easily achievable as is using a cookie cutter. Of course the job of tasting is always a good one. Now before you think that I have lost the run of myself completely I am fully aware of the time needed for this kind of exercise. It is about learning and enjoyment and so if you are pressed for time or under pressure to prepare a dinner then having a three foot helper with poor or under developed motor skills in the kitchen is a recipe for disaster. It does require time and a tolerance for mistakes and a few spills here and there, but in order to make an omelette we have to break a few eggs and trust me in the long run it will be worth it.
The other obvious difficulty when you are starting to teach a child about food and cooking is the health and safety element, but there are plenty of things you can cook without the use of an oven or even a knife. Making dips and salad dressings, stuffing peppers, topping crackers with a mixture or even making a sandwich to begin with are all without too much danger. Recently I helped my own little guys make a quick guacamole. The kids really enjoyed mashing and bashing the flesh of the ripe avocado and mixing in the other ingredients that I had measured out for them. Squeezing the lime brought more squeals of joy and there was plenty of discussion about the resulting green, lumpy mixture and how it reminded them of Halloween! The best part though was when we brought the big bowl of dip to the table and turned out a big bag of tortilla chips into another bowl and then we all had a taste and a chat. It was simple, there was very little mess and it was great fun listening to them trying to pronounce ‘guacamole’ and discussing where avocados come from. On one of the sunnier days a few weeks ago I put bowls of ice cream out on the garden table and then little bowls of toppings for them to choose and create their own sundae. My next challenge will be a pizza. I will put all the ingredients into little ramekins and let them make their own edible creation. Obviously I intend to supervise the placing in the oven and the general cooking.
My kids are quite young and our cooking ‘lessons’ are not tightly scheduled or planned. They happen on rainy afternoons or days when I have to do something with an over ripe avocado rather than throw it in the bin or sometimes they suggest a desire to bake some cookies or “make Mammy a surprise”. However I do take every opportunity to discuss food with them. I take them blackberry picking or down to the farm to check on the calves. And occasionally I’ll take them on a trip to visit a supplier. I always do it as a fun adventure, never as a rigid educational event. I want them to love food, for it to be part of the fabric of their memories and something that comes naturally to them. Hopefully by the time they are flying the coop, I will be missing them for the great food they can prepare. That’s the plan anyway.
We hope you enjoyed reading this post by Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers. Pat is a 5th generation butcher, cook book author and the director of James Whelan Butchers with shops in Clonmel, the Avoca Food Market Monkstown and Avoca Rathcoole. Sign up to our newsletter for more updates from James Whelan Butchers
Posted on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
A good friend of mine used to describe the highly organised as both anal and smug. Of course now that she has advanced in years, learned the art and the benefits of planning ahead and joined the tribe she once so despised, her view has changed. I tease her mercilessly about it, but her good nature ensures she doesn’t get annoyed. Sadly I don’t visit with her that often but last weekend we made some time to catch up. The basis for our friendship is our shared love of all things edible and so it makes for an interesting relationship. While I consider her a good friend, we never have time to discuss politics, the economy, emotions, work or even our individual families; just food. I also find her a fantastic muse when it comes to reenergising my gastro mojo. I usually come away inspired and excited. I love what I do and have dedicated my life to working with food but her passion is even more admirable in that it is pure hobby. Because of this she can explore new trends, emerging chefs and interesting recipes with abandon and without consequence.
As predicted, when I arrived the house was full of wonderful aromas. The wafts of freshly made coffee were making love to, rather than competing with, hints of warm vanilla emanating from buns just out of the oven. In the kitchen there was a plate of chunky homemade butter biscuits; highly calorific and calling out to be dunked in a mug of steaming liquid. And finally, although unseen, the savoury smell of bacon, cheese and mushrooms seemed to be the low notes of this epicurean perfume. “Can I smell cheese and bacon?” “Yes”, she said and if you hang around long enough you might even get to taste them. I’m doing some Christmas experimenting this weekend; today it’s cheese and bacon twists”. I should mention that Katie is originally from New York. She is a larger than life half Italian, half Jewish wonder that married an Irish man 35 years ago and moved here. While Ireland has infiltrated her heart and influenced her food, her accent and New York state of mind has, thankfully, remained untouched.
So here she was, the first weekend in November, experimenting and preparing for Christmas! I couldn’t help but think that this was both luxury and discipline in motion. When I pointed that out she instantly defended the suggestion of privilege and luxury and settled on disciplined. What she was doing now would save a huge amount of time and money in the coming weeks. For the benefit of this column I asked for some of her best known tips. She instantly revealed that she doesn’t ‘cook’ that many meals come December, a huge time saver during the busy period. She considers her freezer a God send and from about the middle of October she starts to fill it with meals for December and January. Several times during the week in late Autumn and November she will double or treble up and freeze extra portions. The logic is marvellous. Firstly buying meat in larger quantities is usually much more economical as she can avail of all the offers. The same goes for store cupboard items such as tins of tomatoes and puree for example. You are chopping and cooking anyway and so why not just do a little extra now. It means that in the busy month of December when there are people to visit, gifts to make, buy and wrap, trees to trim, cards to write and, even, lighting and cleaning out fires or stoves every day – the dinner is sorted. Her food and menu choices are very much influenced by the seasons, and in particular, the weather. Winter, she will tell you, is for warm, comfort food and warm comfort food tends to be good freezer food also.
Her other great tip was spreading the shopping over several weeks. She pointed out that for years, when she didn’t ‘believe’ in organisation, she would dedicate one day for festive food shopping. A long list would be created and one day chosen to source the booty. This never quite worked out the way she wanted it to. First of all on top of her list she would also see a myriad of other stuff that she would inevitably pick up and spontaneously buy. The ensuing weight of the trolley would cause severe whiplash. Loading such an amount all at once into the car, sometimes in the rain, was unpleasant and the subsequent unloading into a kitchen was overwhelming. Suddenly the cupboards were full to the brim and instead of being exciting, it just indicated the amount of work ahead. It was also jolly expensive to be handing over hundreds on the one day and so it also felt like a huge financial burden which would often make her feel quite guilty, particularly about the impulse buys. Now she does it little and often. From November onwards Katie buys a few extra things with her ordinary shopping each week. At James Whelan Butchers we always know Christmas is on the horizon when she starts buying a jar of chutney, a cranberry sauce or such like with each meat order.
We had a fantastic lunch. We started with a wonderful homemade mushroom soup made with several different varieties of mushroom and brown bread. That was followed by garlic and ginger king prawns on a bed of warmed rocket. (And you and I both thought rocket and prawns were really only for summer!). This was a real treat. It was light, tasty but thoroughly warming with the real ginger complementing the gingery undertones of the warmed rocket magnificently. For afters we tried the freshly made cheese and bacon twists with a small cheese board and a garlic and onion dip, rather than crackers. It was all topped off with coffee and butter cookies. Get organised and to hell with what anyone else thinks of you. The smug will definitely have an easier and less expensive Christmas. I welcome your feedback to [email protected]
Posted on Wednesday, October 28th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
Looking out my window today I watch as the elements enjoy a high octane party. Leaves are bobbing around on the wind, swept into swirling dancing groups, moving at a terrific pace into mini tornado shapes and then disappearing quickly past my first floor window. The sky is ominously dark and I have no doubt that before I finish writing we will experience a shower; perhaps even a violent one by the look of that sky. Autumn is in full swing in Clonmel and as we hurtle towards the Halloween season, the end of the year is just over the hump of the hill. It’s a cliché but this kind of weather always turns my thoughts to large warming bowls of thick soup, long slow cooked rich stews, casseroles and luscious savoury pies oozing pools of gravy and calling to me with their buttery crusts and the promise of mouthfuls of meaty flavour underneath.
The trouble with these kinds of dishes is that it is hard to cook them for one or two people. They tend to be large and abundant by their very nature and while you can freeze any leftovers or cook with freezing extra portions in mind, it strikes me that we should have lots of people around to share them with. The trouble with most of us is that when we invite people to our homes we try to impress with our food and ultimately overly complicate everything. Some people wouldn’t dream of serving guests a simple stew and therefore inviting people to our homes tends to put us under pressure, which in turn makes us reluctant to do it more often. The Scandinavians are very good at inviting each other for hearty, home cooked meals without any pretension to the more fussy traditional ‘dinner party’ or the formality of having people over. It’s simply about good food and good company.
Perhaps this will be one positive upside of the recession that we will loose our desire for blatant one-up-man-ship or keeping up with the Jones’ (or the McGraths or the Powers). Perhaps we will once again be able to go around to each others’ homes in our casual clothes, sit at kitchen tables, breaking bread together enjoying some good grub and great chat. Personally I think the food we choose to cook for friends can influence the evening no end. Place a large pot of steaming goulash in the middle of the table with warm crusty bread and a dish of creamy mashed potatoes and watch as the company instantly relaxes.
Halloween is a great excuse for such a gathering. It needn’t be expensive. Instead of time consuming canapés and cold buffet spreads, make a large pie or a one pot; it is certainly economical and always big on taste. I have to purposefully do Halloween as my children are not in an area or of an age where they can ramble trick or treating to neighbours’ houses. Our circumstance demands that we create our own fun at home. I sometimes think it would be so much easier to do the former, but the memories created by the latter will be around for years.
We try to find a balance between the junk food and the nutritious. I do my best to create an experience with real food. For example if it is a meat pie then the pastry decoration can work the theme. Spiders, bat shapes and even an evil pumpkin face are easy to replicate on the pastry crust. For fun I like to make Ritz cracker spiders by sandwiching two crackers together and using cheese strings to create the spiders’ legs. Food colouring can be added to icing for orange topped cupcakes and, if I’m honest, ordinary food served in shop bought ‘Halloween-y’ shaped or coloured bowls and plates can look very effective. Guacamole is always witches sludge at Halloween and of course, ketchup is good for a little gory blood. You’d be surprised what you can do with a simple burger to make it look like the common feast for any self respecting ghoul.
We can become cynical and tired by these ancient festivals and rituals. As adults we’ve been through a life time of them, but for our children it is, of course, all still quite new. While I have no wish to terrify my children, entering into the spirit of the festival and keeping it fun is part of a healthy childhood. And so Halloween, to me, is the perfect time to invite people around; adults and children. While a recession suggests that there is a dearth of money, it doesn’t necessarily follow that there should be a dearth of fun and laughter.
I’ve be yanked suddenly out of my Halloween reverie by the deafening crash of the rain against the window. My prediction of a heavy wintry shower was bang on. It’s become relatively dark outside and rods of rain have quickly quenched any dancing leaves. As the rain pours down the glass I really feel a steaming bowl of oxtail soup and some homemade bread would be a perfect fit right now. Have a great Halloween.
We hope you enjoyed reading this post by Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers. Pat is a 5th generation butcher, cook book author and the director of James Whelan Butchers with shops in Clonmel, the Avoca Food Market Monkstown and Avoca Rathcoole. Sign up to our newsletter for more updates from James Whelan Butchers.
Posted on Monday, October 5th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
The last time I checked, most human adults were in possession of a decent enough brain. The brain, that vital organ that sits between our ears, helps us survive, work and raise our young without doing them too much damage. It is our ability to assess and make choices using the brain that largely separates us from the animal kingdom. However, when it comes to food we have been so bullied, harassed and harangued about food that we have practically given up all rights to decision making about our own health.
This is often evidenced in the month of September with the return to school and routine and the ongoing modern dilemma of what to put in a lunchbox. Parents look with horror at 30 weeks of trying to come up with interesting and varied lunchboxes for their children when the school or healthy eating campaign has limited the choice to tortilla wraps, a bag of raisins and a Clementine! Okay, I exaggerate slightly but the rules these days can be quite restrictive and all are trotted out in the name of health.
I wish to challenge the assumption and ask who kidnapped our good friend ‘balance’ and where are they hiding him. Release him now so that we can return to some sanity on the subject of healthy eating. Besides the school lunch issue, it’s all beginning to get out of hand. Did you know that moves are afoot to ban advertising cheese and butter to children? This isn’t the first time I’ve said it, in fact I wrote an entire column on the subject some months ago, but butter is not the enemy. Are children up and down the country tucking into pounds of butter with a spoon these days? Are they foraging in the fridge and eating blocks of cheese out of their hands? Of course this kind of behaviour wouldn’t be good for you. Equally though, limiting your diet to bowls of ‘healthy’ muesli will also cause deficiencies. Balance, balance, balance!
As a purveyor of meat I personally don’t like the taste of fast food outlet burgers but even I know the odd one, if that’s what you like, is not going to kill you. The junk food label has become a wieldy and lofty behemoth that is confusing everyone. What is junk food? In my book junk food is food that is of a very poor nutritional quality that the body effectively ‘junks’ as there is nothing to be taken from it. Is that a reason not to eat it? No, it’s a reason not to eat it all the time. It’s a little like saying that we should only watch the television if it is an informative documentary and frivolous movies should be outlawed. These days so many things are shoved under the umbrella of junk food. Everything from fast food to chocolate is pushed in under there as food contraband. Chocolate is not the enemy either. It is perhaps the amount of chocolate or the quality of chocolate you are consuming that is the problem. Chocolate in moderation is fine. A square or two of plain Dairymilk can transport you back years in an instant and conjure memories that are always pleasant. Should you allow this transportation three times a day? Of course not, that would be out of balance. How about a packet of crisps? Is Mr Tayto really an evil villain out to make the children of the world obese? Again we need to clearly define the words ‘treat’ and ‘snack’ in order to make these decisions. Instead we allow the food police with their strict policies and little regard for our taste buds or pleasure to dictate the rules.
I am sickened at the amount of information put out their everyday that scaremongers, overrides common sense and is pulling the wool over the eyes of the public. Study after study which provides endless column inches in press releases for the papers is often printed as scientific fact. If you bother to scratch the scientific surface you will find that the ‘scientists’ have been paid for their work by a company or body with a vested interest. The ‘to spread or not to spread real butter’ debate is always a great example of this. In isolation of course there is ‘fat’ in butter, but when you look at it as part of a balanced diet then it fits in perfectly. Cheese is the same. Nobody should restrict themselves to a cheese only diet, but enjoying cheese as part of a balanced diet is not a problem. I get particularly angry when they start to advertise chemically produced, dairy product substitutes or lookalikes and brand them a healthy alternative. Don’t get me started.
I also have a huge problem with the idea of just rolling out information, facts and figures. It is a form of food dictatorship through which we learn nothing only other people’s discoveries and assertions that we all regurgitate to each other as fact. “But I read it in the paper the other day, it must be true!”
We can be sheep and given that we live in an image conscious world and one that is scared to death over obesity the last thing we should do is continue to swallow the lines from the white coated, bespectacled crowd without questioning and checking out their facts thoroughly. We need some common sense around food, but the problem is that common sense is often not very common. Let’s get back to basics. Real food for real humans as close to its natural state as possible. Living in Tipperary you have little excuse not to eat well. We have fantastic cheese makers and other dairy producers, meat, vegetable, fruit and herb growers along with a host of other artisan food producers. Find them, support them and cherish them because food is also about enjoyment and pleasure as well as nutrition. In Tipp we can combine them all. Let’s get interested in food and where it comes from and how it’s made. Armed with that kind of knowledge we can run the oppressing Food Police out of Dodge in no time!
I welcome your feedback to [email protected]
Posted on Monday, September 21st, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food, Press | No Comments »
Really enjoyed talking to Ray D’Arcy on RTE Radio 1. What strikes me with every conversation, is how nostalgic people are when talking about Beef Dripping.
If we asked you to think of the most luxurious, most delicious, finest food imaginable, what would come to mind? Caviar, smoked salmon or maybe some dripping?
On Monday night James Whelan Butchers won the Supreme Champion award for the best food product in the UK and Ireland and Pat Whelan of James Whelan butchers tells Ray more…
Posted on Monday, September 21st, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food, Press | No Comments »
Had the great pleasure recently of talking to Bobby Kerr on his Saturday Newstalk radio show, Down to Business. We talked about Beef Dripping and family business in general. I’ve put up this link should you be interested in listening to the show.
Posted on Monday, September 21st, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
The winners have been announced for this year’s Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards with James Whelan Butchers celebrating their Gold Award win – beating more than 1,000 products in 85 categories.
The Dry Cure Rack of Bacon won the ultimate award but three other producers won Gold awards too: The Gold Small Producer award went to Meere’s Square White Pudding from Meere’s Pork Products; The Gold Value Q Winner went to Dunnes Stores My Family Favourites 4 Irish Beef Quarter Pounders from Kepak and the Gold Christmas Q award went to Dunnes Stores Simply Better Stuffed Fresh Irish Turkey Breast Joint from Hogan’s Farm.
Wildberry Bakery’s Orange and Almond Cake won the prestigious Small Producer of the Year award sponsored by Tesco Ireland, and judged by a team from the company. In addition to the award, Tesco Ireland will provide them with a prize of €2,500 and a place on the next Tesco Taste Bud supplier development programme run in partnership with Bord Bia.
Wildberry Bakery will receive mentoring from the Taste Bud team and participate in a seven-month programme of workshops helping the company to secure, grow and maintain a listing with Tesco.
The winners were announced by Irish celebrity Chef and proprietor of restaurant L’Ecrivain Derry Clarke, on 16th September at the Round Room, Mansion House, in Dublin.
Over 350 food and drink products were shortlisted in 85 categories. The awards were open to all food and drink retailers, producers and manufacturers across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The Exiles Irish Gin was awarded The Irish Quality Drink Award Gold from Avalon Group Inc.
These prestigious accolades, now in their third year, set out to recognise excellence in food and drink product development from a wide variety of companies across Ireland.
The awards repeated last year’s trade-media partnership with Retail News magazine, and consumer-media partnership with Easy Food magazine.
The awards themselves are organised into two distinct sections: Quality Food Awards – products for the multiple and independent grocery retail market and Quality Drink Awards – alcoholic drinks for the retail sector.
Organised by Metropolis Business Media, group events manager Lara Newton comments: “This has been the most exciting year for all of us here at the Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards – we have been absolutely amazed at the incredibly high standard of both the food and drink put forward this year. It has been a difficult job for our teams of expert judges but we are very proud of all our winners and finalists and hope their success will help them grow their business and reward their dedication and hard work.”
Headline sponsor for the awards is innovative packaging company Graphic Packaging International.
The awards are also sponsored by the Coeliac Society of Ireland, who played an important role during the stringent judging process of the ‘Free From’ categories, Dairymaid, Invest Northern Ireland and Tesco.
A selection of shortlisted and winning products will be showcased at the Food & Hospitality Ireland exhibition on September 16th-17th in Dublin.
Full details about the awards are available at irish.qualityfoodawards.com. Make sure you stay up to date with the latest news and competitions via the IQFA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/IrishQualityFoodAwards and on Twitter @IrishQFAs, #IQFA.
Posted on Tuesday, August 25th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
The 2015 Tipperary Food Producers “Long table Dinner” attracted more than 170 people last Wednesday night. The beautiful, idyllic Coolbawn Quay was the location for this wonderful night of culinary delights. In keeping with the Long Table Dinner custom, only food from Tipperary was served at the sumptuous traditional feast. Fresh, seasonal produce from over 30 food producers from all over county was used. The creative menu read like a journey around Tipperary. The menu combined the very best artisan food resulting in an astounding feast for all the senses with each dish looking every bit as good as it tasted.
Commenting on the success of the event, Pat Whelan, Chairperson of the Tipperary Food Producers Network said ” we are absolutely thrilled with the evening, the quality and taste of the food produced here in Tipperary is exceptional and events such as the Long Table Dinner will make more people aware of the quality artisan food we have on our doorstep in Tipperary. This event is a great opportunity for the producers to get together with customers and celebrate all that is unique in Tipperary”.
The Tipperary Food Producers Network comprises of over 30 businesses and is in existence since 2008, it is an outstanding example of community working together, the Network collaborates and works very closely with the local agencies and is hugely grateful for the ongoing support it receives from Tipperary County Council, Local Enterprise Office, South Tipperary Development Company and North Tipperary Leader Partnership. Mr. Whelan goes on to add “it is through this close collaboration and support that Tipperary continues to develop such a strong vibrant food landscape and we have ambitious plans to develop food as a key pillar of growth for the local economy into the future”.
The Tipperary Food Producers Network directly employs over 220 people in Co Tipperary. For more information see www.tipperaryfoodproducers.com
Posted on Thursday, August 20th, 2015 by Pat Whelan in Foodie Articles, Good Food | No Comments »
Following the success of last year, James Whelan Butchers Beef Dripping has replicated last year’s success with another 3 Star Great Taste Award and inclusion in the 2015 Top 50 foods in the UK and Ireland.Of 10,000 entries to the Great Taste Awards, just 130 were awarded the highest and most coveted rating, 3 Stars and James Whelan Butchers Beef Dripping has now been further selected as a 2015 Top 50 Food and shortlisted for a Great Taste Golden Fork Award.
Produced in Clonmel, Tipperary by Pat Whelan, a fifth generation butcher the Beef Dripping evoked a great deal of nostalgia from the judges, who enjoyed it’s meaty flavour and the balance of sweet and savouriness, calling it “A pure distillation of bovine goodness“.
Beef Dripping is made from the suet of grass fed Angus and Hereford beef. Rendered down and clarifed into a pure fat, James Whelan Butchers Beef Dripping is simply packaged in white wax paper and stays fresh for up to six months, when stored in a cool dark place.
Seeing the upsurge of interest in heritage foods and traditional ingredients, Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers was inspired to create his own Beef Dripping. With the very best of beef available to him and within months he soon perfected a product that he was proud to share with is customers. “It’s the taste of my childhood” said Pat Whelan. “Our Beef Dripping is nutrient rich, high in omega-3 acids, clean, pure and carries great flavour, whether for frying a steak, roasting potatoes, or simply slathered onto good bread.”
The Great Taste Awards, organised by the Guild of Fine Food, is the benchmark for speciality food and drink. Judged by over 400 of the most demanding palates belonging to food critics, chefs, cooks, members of the Women’s Institute, producers and a host of food writers and journalists, Great Taste is widely acknowledged as the most respected food accreditation.
The Beef Dripping, priced €3.99, is available to buy online at www.JamesWhelanButchers.com or from James Whelan Butchers at Clonmel, Tipperary, Avoca Food Market, Monkstown, Avoca Rathcoole or Avoca Kilmacanogue.
The Golden Fork Award winners will be announced in London on September 8th. See #Top50Foods @GuildofFineFood
