So, on to
our second part of the Bury St Edmunds series, a visit to a butcher we have
reviewed before but have never stepped inside their shop. It’s Hubbards Traditional Butchers of St
Olaves Precinct, and we last met them at their mobile stall at beautiful
down town Docking Market. The label
sticking into Hubbard’s Old English sausages when I visited them read “A
sprinkle of herbs and lemon zest helps this one to be a favourite with bangers
and mash.” Does their strap-line bear
out? We’ll see later on. First a little background information.
David
Hubbard is a most interesting chap who will happily hold a meat-based conversation
with you for as long as you have to spare.
He’s had a long apprenticeship in the art of butcherism and really knows
his stuff. He was a little disgruntled
(in a nice, friendly way, I hasten to add) about our preference for a chunky-cut
sausage filling, having been educated in a Germanic sausage style, thus leaning
to finer fillings. More recently he’s
taken an interest in the Mennonite culture of North America, who took their
style of sausage making with them from Friesland in the seventeenth
century. It’s thanks to this fascinating
background, via Nossack Fine Meats in Alberta, that David Hubbard
lives and breathes a passion for pork sausages, and may explain why you’re sure
to get a good product if you put Hubbards’ bangers on your plate.
Their new
shop is slightly out of Bury town centre but please, please, please do NOT let
that deter you in the slightest. A
super-warm welcome is guaranteed, and I can assure you that you won’t be
disappointed with any bangers you buy. Trust
me, I’m a doctor. Did “a sprinkle of
herbs and lemon zest” prove a winning combination? Read on to find out....
Meat
Content:
That’s more
like it Bury! Between 85% and 90% is the
official figure and it tastes that way too.
Not just any old pork though, “good” quality pork, which makes a real
difference to the sausage, from Dingley Dell pork near Woodbridge (as
previously mentioned when we reviewed their Hubbards Traditional Pork Sausage last year. A great foundation for a (hopefully) great
sausage.
Oh, on a complete tangent, on my perambulations around deepest, darkest, delightful Bury St Edmunds I happened upon the scene of some personal sporting highlights (see above). It's been upgraded somewhat since that summer evening in 1987, and now boasts a snazzy tartan running track instead of the cinders track upon which I clocked personal best times for the 3000m and 400m. The 3000m I finished in 8 minutes 51 seconds, which was bloody good let me tell you! The 400m took place about half an hour later, hence the rather pedestrian 58.7 seconds. And bugger me, I just realised that those two races happened 26 years ago. Oh dear.
Still on Tangent Street, I imbibed the traditional post sausage-hunting beers in Bury town centre, opposite the corn exchange in The World's Smallest Public House". It's called The Nutshell and is one of the quirkiest places it's possible to visit. There's enough room for maybe a dozen people inside, including the barman, and the toilets are off a tiny hallway up some narrow rickety stairs. In the picture above you may be able to make out the almost-as-famous-as-the-pub-itself mummified cat which hangs from the ceiling, in the company of many, many more strange and varied artefacts. It's a fascinating little place which would make it worthwhile visiting Bury for in itself, and I commend it to you!
The brown-painted part of this facade is the entire frontage of The Nutshell.
Flavour:
First
impression was a simple “meaty and tasty”.
Not a bad start. The pork really
shines through, backed up by delicate, well-judged seasoning and a hint of
herbs, which become more noticeable after you’ve swallowed a couple of pieces
(couldn’t make out any lemon zest though).
I don’t know about bangers and mash, but I do know that these sausages
are perfect for a “naughty” Friday”let’s start the weekend” tea with eggs,
chips and peas.
Texture:
Bearing in
mind David’s background and Hubbard’s Traditional Pork sausages I was expecting
a fairly smooth and fine texture. The
filling is indeed quite fine but grainy and bitty, and falls enjoyably apart
when pushed. So much so that it was not
easy to take the six slices picture. Push
your fork flatly through and the filling falls apart but grips the tines
brilliantly. Dry-ish, which is good – no
excessive sloppy plop going on – and the skins are good too (natural).
Shrinkage:
Average
weight uncooked – 62g
Average
weight cooked - 50g
Shrinkage -
20%
Average for
the year so far.
Value For
Money:
£1.73 for
four sausages, weighing 248g - this works out as a price of £6.99 per kg, or 43p
per snorker.
Hubbard’s
Old English sausages are rated as very good value for money - you really should
seek some out as soon as possible.
Opening
Hours:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 0900
- 1700
Wednesday: 0900
- 1700
Thursday: 0900
- 1700
Friday: 0900
- 1700
Saturday: 0800
- 1500
Sunday: Closed
And
Finally, Esther:
This
sausage scored the highest of any so far in 2013, will any of the remaining
three specimens from Bury match up? I
really enjoyed eating these, the others definitely have their work cut out....these
Old English sausages are a substantial step up from Hubbard’s Traditional Pork
variety and I can hardly wait to try their “Satan’s” sausages which are
currently resting in the Sausage Storage Facility (freezer) gaining heat day by
day.
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