An award-winning Cumbrian butcher has come out of retirement to teach the next generation of chefs in his local area.
Stuart Higginson, founder of Higginsons of Grange, delivered his first masterclass to a small group of students last month at Kendal College.
During the class, Mr Higginson demonstrated a number of butchery and meat preparation techniques as well as sharing valuable insight into meat production, benefits of sourcing local meat, traceability and seasonality.
The classes were the brainchild of apprentice lecturer Andrew Salt, who approached the veteran butcher in the hope that he would be willing to use his years of experience to educate and enthuse their young chefs.
“Our apprentice chefs and NVQ Level 2 students are eager to learn from industry professionals,” Andrew said. “Stuart kindly agreed to come in and share his butchery expertise and his knowledge of farming practices with the class.
“It has been invaluable for the learners to learn first-hand about how to minimize wastage when breaking down the whole animal. We looked at the different cuts including what you can do with some of the lesser-known cuts and about the costings involved.
“Overall, it was a fantastic experience for the learners. Not only did the learners have the opportunity to observe a true professional, but they also learnt about what it takes to start and maintain a successful business.”
Students were each given some minced lamb and asked to design their own dish. After a cook off, Mr Higginson was asked to pick a winner.
He said: “It was lovely to be invited by Kendal College to give a talk to their student chefs. For me, it was a great opportunity to be able to give something back into the local community.
“I was very impressed with professionalism of the students and the whole operation. They demonstrated lots of creativity, showed plenty of interest and asked lots of good questions.”
