The most important ingredient is the quality of meat. The best we had was when we raised a weaner ourselves. The meat was fantastic but scaping the intestines clean, inside and out, was a bit of a faff.
There was great excitement in our house one day when a farmer, living just a short way from us on the same road, opened a farm shop to sell cuts of his own locally reared pigs. I was quite enthusiastic and I told our neighbour, Michelle, all about it, saying how much I was looking forward to trying some recipes using decent meat.
Michell just grunted and rolled her eyes.
âWell, where do you get your pork from then?â I asked.
âIn the local Spar supermarketâ she said.
âYou donât understandâ I replied âlocally reared meat will be much better than anything bought in a supermarketâ
âNo, YOU donât understandâ she said âthe meat counter in the local Spar is a concession rented by a local butcher. He goes round to the neighbouring farmers who raise a few pigs for their own use and buys any surplus they cannot use. They are not allowed sell to the public directly because the strict EU rules are too onerous for a small concern so the butcher takes care of all those problems for themâ
Iâm heading home to France tomorrow with a stash of sausagesâŚ.I called into the local butcher my Mum uses (on the Fylde coast) to purchase their tasty tomato and pork sausages. They were just making them and asked me to call back. I returned an hour later and purchased a dozen, freshly made, salivating at the thought of the sausage baguette I shall have for breakfast on Thursday
Unfortunately this is illegal and if found by customs they will be confiscated and destroyed. Especially at moment with bovine TB taking off again.
**
Vous revenez dâun pays hors UE ou de lâoutre-mer**
Lâintroduction en France de produits alimentaires en provenance dâun pays non membre de lâUnion europĂŠenne ou dâun pays de lâOutre-mer est très contrĂ´lĂŠe.
Sont interdits, tous les aliments dâorigine animale :
I came back at Christmas with bacon and sausages under full understanding they may be confiscated, it was fine and I wish Iâd got more but didnât want to risk loosing too much money! I hope you get through too!
Thereâs a good source of Cumberland sausages and back bacon at the Friday market in RibĂŠrac. A couple of Brits raise their own animals nearby and sell a range of tasty pork products. Iâm donât get up in time to go to the market, which is in the morning, but friends pick up anything I need. Heartily recommended.
