The Deli Chefs, Geoff Odgers and Iain Thompson, go out and about to sample some of great produce to be found at Devon’s food markets and events.
This week Geoff and I went to the far off isles of Shepton Mallet in Somerset to attend the Westcountry Game & Equine Festival. Now we’re not given to fanciful exaggeration but this truly is one the great festivals that the region has to offer and absolutely full to the brim with interesting stalls and fabulous fresh produce to buy.
It’s hard to say how many people attended the show but we’re talking about thousands here, all types and interests rubbing along to enjoy the spectacle of it all. And to cap it all the weather was pretty good all weekend, apart from the Saturday night when it poured down, but by that time we were in my local tavern having a well earned de- brief so even that didn’t dampen our spirits too much.
Now this is where we blow our own trumpet a little bit because the festival organisers had asked us to come along in our events guise which we call Deli Shack Smokin’ Tapas to demonstrate Geoff’s Chuck Wagon Smoker and do a spot of cheffing on the theatre stage.
As you may have read in a previous article we’re really keen to promote wood smoked produce, not only because it’s fabulously tasty, but also because with the amount of ‘smoke flavoured’ foods out there to buy it can sometimes be a bit of a revelation to the people we talk to when they try a piece of Gloucester Old Spot belly pork smoked over Ash wood. If you have a look at one of our previous article on Totnes Good Food Sunday we’ve given you a few ideas on how to make your own smoker using nothing more than an old wok and a colander. It’s really worth a go and I’m pretty sure you’ll enjoy the results.
So anyway we were invited to the show to give the people who were attending something different to have a look at and I think we can safely say that most of the people who came over to see us were pretty impressed!
For the cookery theatre Geoff came up with two super recipes that were very much in keeping with the ethos of the festival, the first was a field mushroom burger made with venison mince and the second being a tipsy bunny which had been marinated in cider over night. If you’d like to see the recipes they’re on The Deli Shack website under Deli Chefs Recipes.
Considering that the previous nights de-brief had taken a bit longer than originally intended Geoff was on great form and kept the audience in raptures for over an hour. In fairness, all of the chefs that I watched over the weekend did a fine job, but Geoff’s offhand Cornish irreverence does make me chuckle when he gets into full flow.
So all in all it was a great weekend and to top it off I got to see ferret racing for the first time which was a hoot, I don’t think we have it in Scotland, and we were absolutely delighted with the amount of interest that everyone showed in what we were doing. Smiley faces all around I think.
Definitely one for next year’s calendar I think and we’d definitely recommend it.
The Deli Chefs are Geoff Odgers and Iain Thompson. Both are trained chefs and run their own fine meat and cheese business from the Pannier Market in Tiverton where they sell some of the finest produce the region has to offer as well as regaling their customers with fabulous old Westcountry stories and entertaining with simple, innovative cookery theatre.
To find out more about the The Deli Chefs, including their work in schools, have a look at their website, The Deli Shack or visit The Deli Shack FaceBook page
- The Deli Chefs at the Westcountry Game & Equine Festival - March 26, 2011
- Tiverton Pannier Market – one of the premier markets in Mid Devon - March 12, 2011
- Discover the inviting and exciting Totnes Good Food Sunday Market with The Deli Chefs - February 26, 2011
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