Editorial Consultant for this section of our website, Heather Hay French says 'I think this is the most exciting time for food and drink in Britain. For years I’ve travelled around the UK searching out the best produce and the finest products and I’m finding more great examples than ever before. I try to visit farmers' markets wherever I am – they’re a good way to get a feel of a region - to meet producers, and an opportunity to buy local specialities. I like to pop into a good pub for a Ploughman’s, taste some regional cheese and sample the local ale. Working on the Taste website is challenging and exciting, it’s making it simpler for everyone to find food and drink producers all over the UK - many of whom welcome visitors, others who will supply by mail order.’
Living in the beautiful Weald, on the borders of Kent and Sussex, Heather’s life revolves around the ‘foodie’ year. Whenever she has time she turns local produce into regional preserves and confectionary. Her husband, Jonathan, makes artisanal wholegrain mustards and speciality vinegars - their business is called ‘The Merchant Farmer’. She also writes books – including the award winning Great British Food - articles about other British food producers, and increasingly about great places to eat in the UK.
What is your most memorable childhood ‘food’ memory?
My father buying fish ‘off the boat’ at Eyemouth in Scotland, then driving to a deserted beach, gathering driftwood and making a fire for my mother to cook it over. On more ‘refined’ occasions he’d buy lobsters from a fisherman on the stone harbour at nearby Cove. When we got home he’d put them into cold water and bring it slowly to the boil to ‘send them to sleep’. After they’d turned from blue to red he’d halve them with one swipe of a chopper, and we’d all tuck in.
What’s your favourite food or ingredient ‘on your doorstep’?
Biddenden Cider from their Cider Works and Vineyard in Kent. I use their dry cider in the ‘Rumpy’ marmalade I make, Jonathan uses the sweet variety in his mustard – and we both enjoy a glass with supper. It’s very good as a cooler on hot days served half and half with fizzy water, a sprig of mint, some cucumber slices and lots of ice.
What is your favourite food secret?
Visit the beautiful Jacobean house, Audley End in Essex, during the summer and you can buy produce from their fantastic Victorian kitchen garden run by the Henry Doubleday Research Association – everything is organic, all the fruit and vegetables are heritage varieties. I bought flat, white peaches and their flavour was sensational.
What food would you travel for (within the UK)?
Fish and shellfish – go to Whitstable in Kent and you can have oysters in the restaurant on the beach looking over the waters they’ve come from; sometimes we buy a dozen from the fish shop on the quay and take them to a sheltered spot on the beach with a bottle of local wine. Fish bought by the sea always has a special flavour – there’s a small, beachside hut in Beer, Devon that sells the most delicious queenies (tiny scallops).
What is your favourite seasonal food?
Asparagus, I buy it from a local farm near Groombridge in Kent and we have it almost every day until the season ends. First treat is the thickest stalks steamed and dipped in a homemade mayonnaise, then it’s roasted sprue (the thin ones), rolled in sea salt and olive oil. I make soup from the kitchen grade and freeze some for cooler days; a family favourite is asparagus omelette made with eggs from our four middle aged speckled hens.
What is your favourite local food shop?
Burgess Stores at Goudhurst in Kent - it’s a real village shop, locals do their shopping there. And passers-by are attracted by the pretty windows, tubs of flowers and handwritten blackboard. It’s full of local produce and interesting ‘goodies’. The owners, John and Eileen Maxwell Jones, know their stock and will happily tell you where everything comes from and what’s special about it.
What is your favourite eating place?
Borough Market near London Bridge. I love shopping there, there’s so much to chose from that I always walk round a couple of times before starting to buy. Meanwhile I can fortify myself with a choice of burgers from ostrich through venison to organic beef, or perhaps spicy falafel, or grilled chorizo sausage. I might be tempted with a chocolate brownie or a piece of Melton Mowbray pie, and then there are the tasters of cheese before I confirm my choice at Neals Yard. If I want to sit down to eat there’s a restaurant, called ‘Fish’, beside the market that serves deliciously fresh fish cooked to perfection. There are several friendly pubs, and interesting small restaurants nearby – and the café in the centre of the market does seriously good chips!
What is your favourite UK pub?
Difficult – I have lots of favourites, there are great pubs for all sorts of occasions. We visited the High Force Waterfall in North Yorkshire recently with my brother and his family and the inn there served real pub grub, big helpings (my brother liked that!) and their own brewed ale was delicious – it’s won lots of prizes. Fortunately there are miles of beautiful walks nearby to take care of the calories…
What is your favourite dish or recipe?
Yorkshire Pudding Pudding (yes, it says it twice) – you have to try it. We used to stay on a farm in Cornwall and the farmer’s wife made her own clotted cream, this pud was everyone’s favourite – a piece of thin, crispy Yorkshire pudding covered with a sliced banana, topped with a generous spoonful of clotted cream and finished with a drizzle of golden syrup.
Name an inspirational food person? Why?
Peter Gott, farmer and meat producer. Peter can be found at Borough Market most Fridays and Saturdays. He was one of the first to take a stall there in its recent revival and still makes the journey from Cumbria every week. In his highly identifiable bowler and breeches he’s been on lots of TV and radio food programmes. The quality of his produce, from rare breed pork to wild boar sausages speaks for itself, and Peter spreads the message of the dedicated producer far and wide. He’s also a fount of knowledge on farming methods old and new and a champion of producers of genuine, good food.
