Game demo proves popular at Northampton College

Northampton College reported on 3rd November: We welcomed top chef Lee Maycock who performed a demo to catering students today as part of the Game-to-eat campaign, taking them through the whole process from buying, plucking and drawing feathered and furred game, through to butchery, cooking and finishing dishes. Among the game he brought in as part of the demo was a whole deer in fur, pheasants and partridges.

Lee said, "This is a fantastic opportunity for students as they are not taught these kinds of butchery skills as part of their course. Working with feathered and furred game requires specialist skills which will be lost if we are not careful. I want to encourage up and coming chefs to take an interest in game and hopefully today will have inspired them to introduce pheasants and partridges and other types of game into their dishes and menus. I have been really impressed with how well the students have picked up what I have taught them and with the facilities at Northampton College."

As part of the demo students were given some basic ingredients and asked to come up with an idea for a themed dish. Tantalising creations included pheasant with a mustard and Parmesan mash, white wine and garlic sauce, mushroom pancetta and honey glazed carrots; and a partridge with a 'partridge in a pear tree' themed dish which incorporated some unusual ingredients.

Level 3 Catering student, Sorrel Bywater said, "Today has been really interesting. Seeing all the different game and learning what ingredients work well with the meats is inspiring. I had a lot of fun playing around with the different flavours and will definitely be trying out some of the techniques we have learnt."

Connor Darnell said, "I have never worked with game before and certainly not seen it prepared from scratch. I feel confident I could pluck, draw and butcher feathered or furred game now."

Charlie Berrill said, "I loved the practical elements of the demo and was particularly interested in the butchery elements as I have never seen anything skinned in real life before."