Tastes of the East

Meat Feast

Home to the second largest number of pigs in the
country - pork is the prime meat of the region.
Pick up a traditionally sweet-cured ham at
the village butchers of Emmett's in Peasenhall
(nr. Saxmundham) - or sausages such as
the Braughing (nr. Bishop's Stortford),
and the Newmarket, using the recipe created
by James Musk in 1884. Jimmy's Farm
(nr. Ipswich) rears the Essex pig, a direct
descendant of the Anglo-Saxon/Norman ones
which foraged our great forests.

Our sheep, beef and dairy herds are small
compared to other areas, but they are important to
our farming 'balance' - their grazing playing a crucial
role in maintaining the landscape. Look out for the
native Red Poll cow, whose fine grained meat is of
the highest quality. At Wimpole Home Farm in
Arrington (nr. Royston), the rare breeds produce
beef, pork and lamb. Buy the meats in the gift shop.

Game is plentiful in the East of England. In The Brecks of Norfolk and Suffolk, rabbits were once reared in vast numbers - becoming the staple diet of the poor. Enjoy venison from the Earl of Leicester's estate at Holkham Hall (nr. Wells-next-the-Sea), along with duck, hare and pheasant. This ornamental bird was introduced into the country by the Romans, and plenty abound in the region. More venison at Woburn Country Foods in Haynes West End (nr. Ampthill) - direct from Woburn Abbey. Whilst pheasant from The National Trust's Ashridge Estate (nr. Berkhamsted) is available from Gade Valley Game at Great Gaddesden (nr. Hemel Hempstead). 

A major area for poultry farming - we supply a quarter of England's table chicken.
Norfolk is well-known for turkeys, particularly the small black-plumed variety.
In the 18th C. huge flocks of turkeys (up to 500 at a time) were marched to London
on foot to reach the Christmas markets (their feet coated with tar for protection).

Look out for two meat-based regional specialities - Huntingdon Fidget Pie
(bacon, onions and cooking apples) which was originally made around harvest time
to feed the hungry workers; and Jugged Hare, the joints cooked in a pot with
its own blood, port and vegetables.

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Something Fishy

With 250 miles (402 kilometres) of coastline,
fishing was once one of the great industries of the
East of England. Herrings have been fished
offshore at Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft since
Norman times - and in the late 19th/early 20th C. 
around 1,000 steam drifters working from the ports.
Smoking of the fish created kippers (spilt open
and smoked) and bloaters (smoked whole).

Today just a handful of boats operate along the
coastline - pick up kippers traditionally smoked over
oak sawdust from Cley's Smokehouse in Cley-next-
the-Sea. At the town of Aldeburgh, freshly caught
fish is sold each morning direct from the 
black-tarred huts on the beach. Enjoy some of
the country's best fish and chips here too.

The region is noted for its shellfish. Try the famous
Cromer crabs - succulent and fleshy, they are
regarded as the best in the country. Head to Cookie's
at nearby Salthouse, where you can tuck into a crab
salad whilst overlooking the coastal marshes. Colchester oysters have been cultivated in the tidal estuaries around the town since before Roman times. Enjoy them as part of a seafood platter at The Company Shed on Mersea Island. Alternatively, oysters are grown in the creeks at Orford by the Pinney family - then served up in their restaurant. The fishing town of Leigh-on-Sea is a great place to relax with a pot of locally caught cockles with salt, pepper and vinegar by the side.

In the summer, you can also pick ‘the asparagus of the sea' - the samphire
from the coastline of Norfolk and Essex. Heading inland, Ely is noted for its
eels - once part of the local staple diet. Purchase them from the regular farmers'
market, or follow the special ‘eel' trail.

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Food of the Field

Best known for its cereal crops - farmers in the East of England grow more than a
quarter of the country's wheat and barley. Visit the mill shop of W Jordan (Cereals)
Ltd (nr. Biggleswade), home of the moreish breakfast cereals and crunchy bars.
Meet the miller at Bromham Mill (nr. Bedford); Redbournbury Watermill in
Redbourn; and Mill Green Museum and Mill at Hatfield, where wheat is ground to
create stoneground flours - which you can use to make delicious bread at home.
Pick up some freshly baked loaves at Denver Windmill (nr. Downham Market).
Once an essential part of the area's diet - try a dumpling, also called 'swimmers'
or floaters' because they were made with bread dough, not suet, and hence float.

The historic city of Norwich is the location of Colman's, the famous producer of
mustard. It was in 1814 that Jeremiah Colman first started milling mustard. Visit
their shop in the Royal Arcade which sells prepared and powered mustards.

Home of The Fens - this former wet wilderness has been drained over the 
centuries by man to create some of the most fertile land in Britain. Here
vegetables (carrots, onions and potatoes) are cultivated on a grand scale
to supply our supermarkets

With plenty of sunshine and a low rainfall, the East of England grows some of the best malting barley in the world