the holy cumberland grail

[quietwatersfarm]

have I missed it?

am I the only one waiting to find out?

when am I going to finally be able to compare my own Cumberland recipe with the undoubtedly definitive one that wheels has been working on since before Cumberland sausages were even invented!

No pressure Phil

[wheels]

The last one I did tasted great - nothing like a Cumberland, but it tasted great! I've made very little of anything in the last 6 months, because I'm on a diet.

Mine certainly won't be definitive; it will comply with the spec in the pdo/pgi but certainly won't major on sage like so many of the modern ones do.

To my mind, it needs to be spice not herbs for it to be a Cumberland.

I need a holiday in Devon so you can show me how to make it!

Phil

[wheels]

To add to the above. Robert (Brican) says, on another thread:

What also surprises me is that ginger isn't on the permitted list of ingredients. It was obviously imported through Whitehaven and is used in other local delicacies.

Was it never added to the sausages?

The one I have from collage was Salt, pepper, nutmeg, mace and coriander - sage was an 'after' thought

...and sausagemaker's recipe is:

Cumberland Sausage...
...SPICE MIX
72% Salt
13.5% Ground Black Pepper
4.5% Ground Nutmeg
4.5% Ground Mace
4.5% Ground Coriander

Parsley Optional

So that's a professional butcher who trained a few miles down the road from (what is now) Cumbria and a professional sausage maker who is from Cumbria, who both have recipes with the same spicing; but, neither would comply with the current PGI spec as they include coriander.

It's no flamin' wonder I can't make mine taste like I remember, using just the spices in the PGI spec.

Phil

[quietwatersfarm]

I think the other thing that comes into play, possibly unreasonably, is peoples perceptions or preconceived notions of what a Cumberland should taste like.

It strikes me that a lot of us wouldn't know a genuine Cumberland if we did taste one and would swear blind that the common herbal mix was the real deal, even if it aint.

[wheels]

That's true, and applies to me as much as anyone else!

My mind set is: Sage - Lincolnshire, Spice - Cumberland.

The info points to sausage in the north of present day Cumbria being just spice; the herb addition being in the old counties of Westmoreland and part of Lancashire which now form the south of Cumbria.

Phil

[BriCan]

A very 'long' time ago in a institute in the so called 'holiday' resort we did (and I still do) the said afore mentioned ~~~ Cumberland

Sad to say it was as most not dun the proper way cuz ther wuz no Cumberland piggies besides that I'm not quite that owld

The recipe that I use to this day iz ~~~ salt, pepper, nutmeg, mace and coriander ~~~ now i'll av probably sid too much and the " Cumberland Sausage Police' will be cuming knocking on the door.

[BriCan]

Just to add ~~~ although it might not be worth it but the following is part of an order just made (100 lbs+)thats going to a restaurant tomorrow



had to turn it on its side cuz it got chopped

[captain wassname]

A large proportion of Cumberland sausage is made in Westmorland. Booths supermaket used to make a Westmorland sausage and I didnt think it quite as hot as their Cumberland.
A good point about the Cumberland pig.It is now extinct.(too fatty).


Jim

[quietwatersfarm]

Jim, would you concur with Phil's Westmorland (Herbs) vs Cumberland (spices) impression?

[BriCan]

A good point about the Cumberland pig.It is now extinct.(too fatty).

It was kind of tongue in cheek Jim, in essence it is extinct but I did read somewhere that it was back into production ~~~~ now am going to have to do a search as all my bookmarks on this has gone due to computer crash

[BriCan]

http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk/farming/1.119619

http://www.allbusinessinfo.com/farming- ... on-3566390

[wheels]

Jim, would you concur with Phil's Westmorland (Herbs) vs Cumberland (spices) impression?

You may find this of interest:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRE40yWrAS0

You'll notice that Peter Gott, the head of the association that registered the sausage, adds chives which are not part of the PGI!

Mr Gott farms near to Kendal at Endmoor; I'm not sure whether that would have been in Westmorland, or maybe even Lancashire, originally.

Phil

[quietwatersfarm]

completely baffled!

he spent 10 years campaigning to get the product protected then says that its recipe varies throughout Cumbria and that as long as its 80% Pork the rest is up to the individual making it ????

ahh, the main thing is that the pigs are fed Cumbrian grass

[wheels]

Mmm...



It's coming along nicely!

Phil

[captain wassname]

I think what we looking at is a sausage designed by comitee .They didnt get exactly what they were after the protection is for "traditional Cumberland sausage" rather than Cumberland sausage I will look in decent butchers and see how the labellng is.

Jim