PubChef Awards - Beer and Food
These days, there's a growing trend to accompany food with beer. The intention behind our Beer & Food category was to challenge chefs to create dishes whose flavours complemented a particular beer. Natalie Cooper reports on how they fared
This new category challenged chefs to come up with an "ideal" beer match to their chosen dish and explain why they thought the pairing made a good combination. The category was sponsored by Beautiful Beer, a campaign being run by
the British Beer & Pub Association with the backing of many industry bodies.
Ros Shiel, Beautiful Beer's PR manager and category judge, says that pubs are perfectly placed to be advocates of exquisite beer and food experiences.
Chefs had an hour and 15 minutes to create four main dishes of the same and serve each with their chosen beer. No preprepared ingredients were allowed with the exception of stocks.
The four other judges were: Richard Fox, food and beer writer and author of the forthcoming Food and Beer Cookbook; Fuller's brewing director John Keeling; Sue Nowak, editor of the Camra Guide to Good Pub Food and The Beer Cook Book; and food writer Mark Taylor.
Chef: Carol Haime, chef/pub owner
Pub: Sandrock, Farnham, Surrey
Dish: Oriental seafood platter with Enville Ginger
Beer: Enville Ginger Beer
Menu price: £5.50
Cost of ingredients: £1.60
Why this dish?: "People are looking for different flavours and want more variety so there's three elements on the plate. It goes really well with the Enville Ginger Beer, supplied by an independent brewery in Dudley, that we have to collect ourselves. The ginger complements the beer."
Why this beer?: "It brings out the flavours of the ginger and garlic in the food. They enhance one another and it cleanses the palette between the three different elements of the dish."
Background: Carol has been the Sandrock's licensee for three years. It was a beer pub when she took it over, but she developed the kitchen.
Chef: John Rudden, chef/director
Pub: White Hart Inn, Lydgate, Oldham
Dish: Roast Hereford beef fillet with rag pudding, carrot purée and onion jus
Beer: Westmalle Dubbel
Menu price: £20
Cost of ingredients: £4.50
Why this dish?: "I've used a combination of expensive and cheaper ingredients. I've used a good beef fillet that's been well hung. The rag pudding is local to Oldham and is made up of the remainder of the fillet, and placed on a suet pastry which is then rolled, tied and poached."
Why this beer?: "The beer helps to cut through the meaty flavour and fattiness of the dish. Its rich flavours work instead of a red wine."
Background: John has been head chef for 11 years and was introduced into the trade aged 15 through his brother who worked at an Italian restaurant.
Chef: Paul Giles-Phillips, proprietor/head chef
Pub: Ebrington Arms, Braunton, north Devon
Dish: Ebrington Cremeski - Russian origin Cremeski of deep-fried chicken and green pepper
Beer: Sharp's Cornish Coaster
Menu price: £10.95
Cost of ingredients: £1.90
Why this dish?: "It's not bistro or restaurant. I wanted to keep it very simple for a full sensory eating experience. My father used to own a restaurant and when I was five I tried this dish - I've never forgotten it. The pea and ham jazzes it up while the green pepper gives it a musky flavour."
Why this beer?: "It's a light, hoppy, honey ale that's subtle in taste and complements the Cremeski."
Background: Paul comes from a family of chefs and previously owned a bistro/restaurant before taking on the Ebrington Arms two years ago.
Chef: Kim Champion, landlady/chef
Pub: Portland Arms, St Albans, Hertfordshire
Dish: Cutlets of lamb resting on a sweet potato cake with red onion and cherry confit
Beer: Liefmans Kriekbier
Menu price: £12.95
Cost of ingredients: £5.30
Why this dish?: "I put this on the specials board over the summer and it sold really well. The meat is well hung to provide a great flavour that takes on the cherry flavour. It's a nice combination and a colourful dish."
Why this beer?: "I stumbled upon this beer over the summer and wanted to put something with it. Teaming it up with the cherry confit and lamb works really well and keeps it tart."
Background: The Portland Arms is a community pub with lots of room for traditional pub food, says Kim. She moved over from New Zealand seven years ago, where she was also a chef.
Chef: Yann Martin, joint head chef
Pub: Ring O'Bells, Thornton, Bradford
Dish: Diced lamb, lamb kidneys & black pudding casserole in a rich Black Sheep Bitter sauce
Beer: Black Sheep Bitter
Menu price: £9.95
Cost of ingredients: £2.80
Why this dish?: "I absolutely love lamb and this is a classic casserole. Black Sheep is my favourite bitter so they go really well together. The pub owns a herd of sheep in a nearby field."
Why this beer?: "It's my favourite and goes well with the taste of lamb. It's a full flavoured beer that matches the richness of the dish."
Background: Yann comes from Brittany, France. He's been with the Ring O'Bells for eight years and has been joint head chef for two. He comes from a restaurant background, but loves working in pubs because it's a cosy environment.
The judges' verdicts on the finalists
Carol Haime: "Superb beer knowledge and a great beer match with the dish. A visually stunning dish. Amazing fishcakes."
Other beer matches: A wheat beer such as Belgian Hoegaarden, with all its citrus and spice could be considered.
John Rudden: "His execution of the dish was fantastic. Loved the idea of bringing back a dish such as the rag pudding. A great beer match."
Other beer matches: As well as a vinous Belgian ale, try a vinous English ale, such as Fuller's 1845.
Paul Giles-Phillips: "Really good presentation. Excellent
light batter and chicken had great flavours and textures."
Other beer matches: Go for a beer with a strong taste of honey, such as Young's Waggledance, or beers with sweetness such as Manns Brown Ale.
Kim Champion: "Fantastic lamb. Impressive beer knowledge and passion for the provenance of her ingredients. The dish had
great colours."
Other beer matches: A contrasting beer, such as golden Oakham JHB, with all its clean, hop flavour.
Yann Martin: "The dish had great textures. The gravy was delicious and it was good to see him using offal, which is underused on pubmenus."
Other beer matches: Any full-bodied English bitter with good malt and hop balance.
The winner
John Rudden of the White Hart in Lydgate, near Oldham, Lancashire, won the Beer and Food category. Of the winning dish, Richard Fox said it was absolutely faultless and an
excellent regional dish. It was classic, tasteful, superb and beautifully presented. Judges agreed that John is a class chef.
John's pub has an award-winning pedigree. The awards include
Manchester Wine List of the Year, Craft Guild of Chefs Pub Restaurant Chef of the Year, Lanchashire Life Restaurant of the Year. In addition his chef, Ryan Dutson, won the title of Young Pub Chef in last month's PubChef cook-offs.
Covers average 1,200 a week with a 50:50 wet:dry split. He describes his menu as modern British and European with a classic French influence.
His meat comes from Fairfield Meats, of Lees in Oldham, and he buys locally as much as he can. His menu is varied according to the season.
John's pub is hosting its second annual "Camra Gourmet" event, a beer matching evening to promote beer from all over the British Isles and British food. He feels that beer matching provides him with the opportunity to promote British products, while at the same time getting the customers excited at the opening up of new boundaries.
