Western Morning News (Saturday)
Keep it simple if you want to make prize-winning bangers
A sausage maker has won gold at Britain’s biggest regional food awards MARTIN HESP reports
It can take 122 years to master the art of creating a truly great British banger. That is one theory being mooted by a Devon sausage-maker whose basic traditional pork bangers have been given the highest accolade by Taste of the West.
Charles Baughan’s grandfather started making sausages in 1898 and the family has been making them ever since - a tradition which continues at Westaways in Newton Abbott where butchers produce a classic sizzler that has just been awarded a Taste of the West gold…
“We wanted to make a sausage that was well behaved,” commented Mr Baughan, who made national headlines recently when his company became the first meat producer in the UK to use eco-friendly non-plastic packaging. “We wanted a sausage that browned nicely in the pan, which held together well and so could be served in all its juicy, savoury, glory.
“We put a lot of thought into it when one of our retail customers said we ought to make a really traditional English pork frying sausage. It reminded me that we had a classic seasoning that we’d always liked and that the Baughan family has used in its sausages for a very long time.
“And, hey-presto: we call it pretty good sausage!”
Delighted that Westaways has won it’s first prestigious Taste of the West Gold Award, Mr Baughan added: “In modern times some sausage-makers have been tempted to over-egg things. You hear people say things like, ‘Have you tried our badger and parsley sausage?’ But sometimes the gold standard comes from keeping things simple.
“My grandfather, Charles Ernest Baughan, started making sausages in 1898 and the family has been making them ever since. He’d have been proud to see the family name attached to this award. We put time and care into our products – Westaways is not the world’s biggest sausage company – I still drive the forklift and do everything around the place. Because we like to remember where our roots are.”
More than 700 products are entered into the annual Taste of the West Awards, and only a small handful are given the much-sought-after gold accolade.
John Sheaves, chief executive of Taste of the West, commented: “This year we are particularly pleased that given the difficulties the sector has faced with the Covid-19 crisis, the level of innovation in product development has been higher than usual.
“Through our experience of running the UK’s largest regional food and drink awards programme, our aim is to raise the bar in terms of excellence. In this way, we know that we can offer a product to a discerning consumer market which has been thoroughly tested and evaluated.”
Judged by chefs, restaurateurs, retailers and food specialists, Taste of the West is widely regarded as being the most respected accreditation for artisan producers, cafés and restaurants in the UK. The unmistakable logo is a clear signal for an outstanding product that has met rigorous judging criteria on texture, appearance, quality ingredients and flavour. The awards celebrate quality, integrity and provenance of food in the West and promote local produce that goes above and beyond in terms of quality and taste.
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