Butchers faggots
When I was a kid I used to love Brains Faggots that came in a try with gravy, served with a fluffy mash. They weren’t very good quality, but at the time I used to quite happily polish off a tray, thankfully things have moved on for me with food, and I’m fortunate that I can now get proper butchers Faggots as the traditional butcher skills and products seem to be more readily available. I spied these beautiful faggots on a trip to Cox & Laflin a lovely butchers on the edge of Dartmoor.
Butchers faggots
Winter Warmer
AleGar
I wanted to recreate the thick onion gravy that used to smother the faggots of my memory, but using some wonderful flavours, to make an epic gravy. I had a bottle of a new product called AleGar, an amazing Ale based condiment, with a huge flavour, wonderful caramels and spice, that Alan Coxon has raised from obscurity. Think, a British version of an aged Balsamic, but with a wonderful depth of flavour that the ale gives. I thought this would be perfect in the gravy.
Onion Gravy
I caramelised 2 sliced medium onions in a pan with a little knob of butter over a medium heat for 20 minutes until, becoming dark and sticky, I then added 2 heaped tbsps plain flour and cooked for another 5 mins before adding 4 tbsps of the AleGar. I then added 600 ml of beef stock, a couple of bay leaves, and seasoned with salt and pepper and stirred through a tsp of English mustard. I allowed to bubble away for 10 mins on a low heat.
I placed the beautiful faggots in a cast iron dish, and cooked in the oven for 20 minutes at 180c, before pouring the onion gravy over and returning to the oven for 20 more minutes. I served mine with a light fluffy mash, and some lovely English Mustard.
I was seriously impressed with the depth of flavour the AleGar added to the gravy, which worked so well with the faggots and onion gravy. Definitely an ingredient to have handy.
Butchers Faggots
