Christmas at the ginger pig
Our Christmas poultry is reared by the Botterills on Lings View Farm, in the heart of the Belvoir Estate. The birds completely free range and fed a natural diet of homegrown wheat and vegetable protein, and are never given any growth promotors to speed up the rate at which they reach maturity. After slaughter, they are carefully dry-plucked — rather than wet-plucked, which results in the off-putting clammy feel that you often find with poultry — and then hung for 7-14 days for to give great flavour and succulence. They are then prepared for the table, with the giblets vacuum sealed and included with the bird.
The Botterills showcase all of the elements of good animal husbandry, to continue to produce the best, tastiest birds we’ve ever tried. Try one for yourself and see.
TURKEYS
A traditional Bronze breed, hatched in mid-Spring to ensure a long, outdoor grazing season to allow the birds to reach full maturity at a natural pace. One of the characteristics of the bronze turkey is their dark plumage, when plucked it can leave dark marks and tiny pieces of quill in the skin, especially around the wing and under carriage. These are absolutely nothing to worry about, and are a trait present in all Bronze turkeys; the marks and quills disappear during cooking.
£11.50 / kg
SMALL 4.5 - 5.5 kg Serves 6 - 10 people
MEDIUM 5.5 - 6.5 kg Serves 11 - 15 people
LARGE 6.5 - 7.5 kg Serves 16 - 20 people
EX LARGE 7.5 - 9.0 kg Serves 21 - 24 people
GEESE
Our geese are grazing birds, and the goslings are hatched in early May to take advantage of the newly growing grass. The birds live on the fresh pasture throughout the summer and early autumn and are then fed a cereal diet when the grass has stopped growing.
£13.50 / kg
SMALL 4.0 - 4.5 kg Serves 3 - 4 people
MEDIUM 4.5 - 5.5 kg Serves 5 - 6 people
LARGE 5.5 - 6.0 kg Serves 7 - 8 people
EX LARGE 6.0 kg plus Serves 8 - 9 people
COCKERELS
Reared too a minimum of 100 days, giving the birds time to develop lots of flavour yet remain much more tender than a boiling hen or old yard cockerel. It’s a chicken that really tastes a chicken, with a little gaminess which comes from being hung for a week before evisceration. They are around 3.5kg - 4kg feeding approximately 8 people. £10.50 / kg.
Something else?
If turkey isn’t your thing, order a rib of beef, loin of rare breed pork or even simply a top-notch free range chicken. Just let us know what you’d like when placing your order.
Gammon and ham
Gammon (unsmoked/smoked)
On the bone - £11/12/kg
Off the bone - £13.50/14.50/kg
Glazed ham (unsmoked/smoked)
Whole on the bone - £15/16/kg
Off the bone, available in 1/4, 1/2 or whole - £16.50/17.50/kg
The trimmings
Traditional chipolatas £11.50/kg
Sausages - £10.50/kg, choose from Traditional, Cumberland, Toulouse, Garlic Toulouse, Prune & Brandy, Cracked Black Pepper
Streaky bacon unsmoked - £14/kg, smoked £15/kg
Stuffing - £11.50/kg, choose from Pork & Prune, Chestnut, Sage & Onion
Sausagemeat - £10/kg
Pâtés and pies
Pork rilletes - £2.45/100g
Pâté de campagne - £2.45/100g
Pork pie - £5.50 or £12.50 for large
Raised game pie - £8.50
Traditional sausage rolls - £3.50 each
Something sweet (available in store now and not for pre-order, except mince pies)
The Ginger Pig marmalade pudding 350g - £9.50, 700g - £18
The Ginger Pig Christmas pudding 350g - £9.50, 700g - £18
Brandy butter - £4.50 a jar
Rum butter - £4.50 a jar
Christmas cake 9cm - £8.50, 15cm - £15
Mince pies - £1.10 each, available for pre-order
RECIPE GUIDE
Turkey
Take your turkey out of the fridge 6-8 hours before it goes in the oven. Rub the skin with plenty of butter and pepper and cover the breast with lots of streaky bacon. Make a big tin foil cross inside your roasting pan, place the turkey in the middle and wrap the foil around to make a loose but closed parcel. Cook at 220˚C/ 425˚F/ Mark 7 for 40 mins. Reduce heat to 170˚C/ 325˚F/ Mark 3 and cook for approximately a further 3hrs (small turkey), 3.5hrs (medium), 4.5hrs (large) and 5 hrs (X-large). Uncover for the last 30 minutes to crisp the bacon. Stick a long skewer in the fleshiest part to test for doneness; the juices should run clear. Wrap the turkey well in foil, and rest it for an hour before carving.
Goose
Prick the skin and fatty parts with a skewer but don’t pierce the meat, then season with salt and pepper. Place on a rack over a deep baking tray and roast for 3-4 hours (depending on whether you have a small, medium or large goose) at 180˚C/ 350˚F/ Mark 4. You may need to drain off excess fat a couple of times. Once cooked, wrap the bird well in foil, cover with a large, clean bath towel and rest it for 45 minutes, while you roast your potatoes in the delicious goose fat.
Gammon
Rinse the gammon in cold water. Pour one inch of boiling water into a baking tin. Place the gammon on a rack in the tin, making sure the water doesn’t touch the meat. Loosely cover the gammon with foil but ensure the foil is airtight. Bake at 180˚C/ 350˚F/ Mark 4 for 45 minutes per kilo. Remove from the oven and when cool enough to handle, remove the skin (but not the fat), criss-cross the fat, cover with honey mixed with mustard or your favourite marmalade mixed with a little orange juice and place in a hot oven for 20 minutes to glaze.
Rib of beef
Heat the oven as hot as it will go. Just before it goes in the oven, cover the beef with a little bit of salt and pepper. Place the beef in a roasting tray so that it rests upright on the bone, put the tray in the oven and roast for 20 minutes, until the fat starts to sizzle. Turn the temperature down to 180˚C/ 350˚F/ Mark 4 and roast for a further 25-30 minutes per kilo, depending on whether you like your beef rare or medium rare. Remove the beef from the oven, cover with foil, drape a bath towel over the top and leave it to rest for 30-40 minutes before carving. If you have some people who like quite rare meat, and others who prefer it a little bit more well done, carve the entire joint as the middle will be rarer than the edges.