At The Orde Food Company we're always looking for ways to make each wedding individual and unique for the special couple. We had the delight of catering for a bride who had a special request and it was a pleasure to carry it out.
For her wedding of 200 guests the bride had asked for something a little different to a standard hog or lamb roast. The wedding was to take place on her family's farm using meat that had been raised and cared for there. After meeting her on the farm we knew that a hangi was the way forward. A hangi is a method of cooking where the food is cooked in a pit with heated stones and originating from New Zealand. Having worked in New Zealand for a few years Christian was the man for the job and perfected his hangi methods for the big day.
The lamb we cooked was fed on the grass in the very field we dug the pit and cooked the meat in. Truly farm to fork! In the morning the pit was filled with wood from the trees around the farm and set alight. On top of the fire we placed local Whinstone, which after about 3 hours were white hot and ready to cook.
Damp cloths were placed over the top of the cages to provide some steam and then sealed in with soil.
Once the pit was fully covered and no steam was escaping the meat was cooked for 3.5 hours.
After this the soil was removed and carefully scraped away from the cloth before pulling back and revealing beautifully moist and juicy joints of meat. A Hangi involves a lot of work to get it ready, but the results are amazing.
Links with the farm did not end with the lamb but were throughout the wedding breakfast menu.
The family had put a lot of thought and care into the menu choices for their special day and it was a real pleasure to cook such a local meal for them and their guests.
Starters
A selection of our own whisky-cured gravlax, cured mackerel and mackerel pate
pickled cucumber
beetroot relish
horseradish cream
dill & mustard dressing
rye bread
Mains served family style
Hāngi Roast Joints of our farm Lamb
Garnished with roasted lamb cutlets, braised lamb neck beignets and fresh rosemary
served carved on boards with salsa verde
(Using our own wild garlic)
Vegetarian - Celeriac, Caper & Leek Gratin
Rowan Jelly made/supplied by the family
Roasted new potatoes with garlic & rosemary (hot)
Heirloom tomato salad
Green beans salad with hazelnuts & orange dressing
Dessert
Rhubarb Crumble, poached rhubarb & rhubarb coulis
with jugs of Vanilla Anglaise and single cream served on the table
"It was all brilliant. Thank you so much to you and all the team. There were so many compliments for the food, the service and everything. I am biased but people did really seem to have thought it was a memorable wedding. The weather helped of course - even on the Sunday. We found it all remarkably stress free. We are used to cooking, serving and clearing up for parties basically on our own so it was just lovely to relax and enjoy the party. It could be addictive. We were all so delighted that our vision of a "home-grown" meal worked out so well. The lamb was quite delicious and the rhubarb crumble was a great success. Thank you also for clearing up so well at the end. It made it very easy to prepare for the hog roast on Sunday."
Click here to watch our set up of the beautiful marquee overlooking the farm and countryside.
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