Meet Stephen and Sarah Burchell, the farming couple behind Annanwater. (http://www.annanwater.co.uk/) They have farmed near Moffat in the Southern Uplands south west Scotland for 25 years. All their sheep are born and bred on their farms of Upper Minnygap, lying in the foothills of Queensberry and overlooking the Moffat Hills, and Meiklholmside near the famous Devil’s Beef Tub in Annan Water, Moffat.
They started Annanwater in 2007, selling home bred blackface and blackface-cross lamb, hogget and mutton direct at farmers markets and to local restaurants. And in case you were wondering, lamb becomes hogget after its first Christmas and mutton after it is two years old.
Stephen and Sarah allow all their sheep to graze freely on open hill land and upland meadows enjoying high welfare standards and maturing naturally. This produces exceptional meat, so good its won a few Good Taste Awards!
Conventional lamb is farmed to be ready when only months old. Annanwater hogget is over a year old before it is ready to eat. Feeding on a variety of grasses and herbage, clover meadows and herb-rich uplands allows them time to mature at a gentle pace. Their customers often comment that the hogget and mutton has a flavour of the herbs and hill grasses in it.
Their method of farming, combined with their practice of hanging the meat for 10 days, produces hogget and mutton that is generally a leaner meat with a full, rich taste and a wonderful succulence. Find out for yourself by visiting them at the farmers market on Castle Street. They are there on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th weekends of each month except in March and September when they will do the fourth instead of the third weekend.
Try the recipe below!
Hogget Lamb Henry
Preparation Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 2hrs 30mins- 3hrs
Serves: 2 to 4
Ingredients: Lamb Henry Hogget Shoulder joint, 2 tablespoons chopped rosemary, 2 tablespoons honey, or enough to coat the joint thinly, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, Salt and pepper.
Instructions:
- Coat the lamb joint with the honey.
- Sprinkle all over with the rosemary.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Wrap loosely in foil.
- Place in a roasting tin and add 250ml water and the vinegar.
- Cook until the meat is very tender and falling off the bone, removing the foil for the last 20 minutes.
- Remove the meat and keep warm and, if necessary, reduce the liquid to make the sauce.
