COOKING FOR THE RED MEAT INDUSTRY
Beef + Lamb Ambassador Chef Cameron Davies with Te Pae Executive Chef Desmond Davies
One of the tasks often assigned to a Beef + Lamb Ambassador Chef is cooking for the red meat industry. For chefs, this comes as an opportunity to shine in front of perhaps their harshest critics. Being the final link in the paddock to plate chain it’s down to chefs to showcase the products that farmers have worked so hard to produce.
We recently caught up with Ambassador Chef, Cameron Davies who is the owner/operator of The Fat Duck in Te Anau. Cameron was in Christchurch working with the kitchen team at Te Pae developing a menu for the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Awards.
We asked Cameron how he felt about cooking for red meat producers on such a large scale and were impressed with his sense of pride and how he took on the challenge.
How does it feel to be cooking for the red meat industry on a large scale?
“It’s a real privilege and an honour. It's a huge opportunity to be able to put something amazing in front of them. It comes with a fair amount of pressure to get it right, but I certainly love the challenge and found it to be an awesome experience. As a chef I feel a massive sense of pride showcasing New Zealand beef and lamb, especially in my role as a Beef + Lamb Ambassador.”
How does it feel to be cooking for a large audience as opposed to being at the Fat Duck cooking for your locals?
“There's always a little bit of pressure as you've got a different sort of environment to get used to. Back home at The Fat Duck we're normally getting ready for 20 covers of lamb rather than 280! So things are a little bit different, but I just loved the challenge and the opportunity to be able to go out there and showcase a wonderful lamb dish to the New Zealand farming community – it was just fantastic!”
What dish did you create?
“I was briefed to create a main course and immediately thought of using lamb. I decided on a duo of Lumina Lamb to showcase a prime and secondary cut. Because I was feeding the red meat industry, I thought it would be cool to recreate the humble Shepherd’s Pie but with a modern twist. I used braised Lumina Lamb Supreme Shoulder with a crispy potato top for that element of my dish. For the prime cut I used a Lumina Lamb Loin and because the Spring vegetables are so good at the moment, I created a colourful terrine to go with the lamb. The dish was finished with pom puree and some Pecorino and herb oil.”
How was it working in collaboration with the chef at Te Pae?
“One of the best things about being an Ambassador Chef is being offered opportunities to collaborate with other chefs. Working with Desmond and his team at Te Pae has been amazing. They have a great set up in their kitchens and we all worked well together. I took charge of the main course and Desmond built the rest of the menu in and around that. On the night everything went really well – it was a great team to work with.“
Beef + Lamb New Zealand are currently on the hunt for the next group of chefs to be their Ambassadors in 2024. If you know a chef who loves cooking with New Zealand beef and lamb, you can nominate them here.
Find out more about the Beef + Lamb Ambassador Chefs here.