0:00:02 > 0:00:06- The best British produce is under threat.- At the mercy of foreign invaders, market forces...
0:00:06 > 0:00:09- ..and food fashion.- Produce that has been around for centuries...
0:00:09 > 0:00:12..could die out within a generation.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14So together, we're on a mission...
0:00:14 > 0:00:19- ..to save it.- We'll give the best tips how to find it, grow it and cook it.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22And, crucially, how to put sensational British produce...
0:00:22 > 0:00:24..back on the food map.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00My name's Clarissa Dickson Wright and I'm going to introduce you to
0:01:00 > 0:01:07an ingredient that you may very well never have tasted, rare-breed British pork, and you are going to love it.
0:01:07 > 0:01:14From the humble bacon sandwich to the glorious Sunday roast, pork is one of the most popular meats in Britain.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16That looks lovely.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20I'm passionate about pork, so join me on a sumptuous odyssey
0:01:20 > 0:01:24through the forgotten world of our traditional British breeds.
0:01:24 > 0:01:30As part of my revival, I'll be meeting one of our rarest pigs, the British Lop.
0:01:30 > 0:01:35Our breed secretary described them as being more rare than the giant panda.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41I'll be finding out what you think of some of our traditional pork dishes.
0:01:41 > 0:01:46- Can I offer you a piece of Lincolnshire chine?- No, that's all right.- "I'm a vegetarian!"
0:01:46 > 0:01:52And I'll be using pork lard in the revival kitchen to make a wonderful pudding for Sunday lunch.
0:01:52 > 0:01:55You only get pastry like this using lard.
0:01:55 > 0:01:59As well as revealing my secret for the perfect crackling.
0:01:59 > 0:02:00CRACKING
0:02:00 > 0:02:04Hear how lovely the crackling is.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07Hey! Off we go!
0:02:10 > 0:02:17I first fell for pigs when I was really quite small and I came to love pigs,
0:02:17 > 0:02:21both for the pleasure of their company and the joy of their flesh.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24Here, piggy, piggy, piggy. I'm not going to eat you yet.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28Yes, I love pigs. Pigs are wonderful. Piggy, piggy, piggy.
0:02:28 > 0:02:36Go out and meet the pigs, look at the pigs, talk to the pigs, but eat them, by all means eat them.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43There is no question that we are a nation who loves our pork.
0:02:43 > 0:02:48But 98% of all the pork we eat is from commercial pigs,
0:02:48 > 0:02:51bred to suit the demands of the supermarkets.
0:02:51 > 0:02:57In our drive for profits, have we forgotten our heritage?
0:02:57 > 0:03:03Some of these handsome, traditional breeds have been brought back from the edge of extinction
0:03:03 > 0:03:09by a few brave farmers. And now it's up to us to safeguard their future.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15For the first stop on our revival of rare-breed pork,
0:03:15 > 0:03:20I want to discover a little more about our rich pig heritage,
0:03:20 > 0:03:22so I'm meeting Richard Lutwyche,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25a wonderful pig historian.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28You've got to think that everything was dominated by the
0:03:28 > 0:03:31local lord of the manor, the squire,
0:03:31 > 0:03:35and he would be the only one who kept a boar for breeding purposes.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Whatever boar type he had, if he had a black pig, then gradually in that area,
0:03:39 > 0:03:45all the pigs were dominated by the genes and they became black. And so it spread out.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47But everybody kept pigs, didn't they?
0:03:47 > 0:03:53Oh, they did, certainly in the country. I mean, people had a very close relationship with pigs.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58And that shows up in our folklore and our English language, very much so.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03My father kept pigs in St John's Wood on a bit of land in Hamilton Terrace.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05People said, "Who killed them for you?"
0:04:05 > 0:04:07and he said, "I'm senior surgeon of St Mary's, Paddington.
0:04:07 > 0:04:11"Who the hell do you think killed them?" So they're our heritage.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13We should be proud of them.
0:04:13 > 0:04:19'It was a government publication in 1955 that would change the fate
0:04:19 > 0:04:21'of our traditional breeds forever.'
0:04:21 > 0:04:24Ruddy government, interfering again.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26I mean, this...
0:04:26 > 0:04:28the Howitt Report,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31makes me so angry. Listen to this.
0:04:31 > 0:04:36"In the first place, we have formed the view that one of the main handicaps facing
0:04:36 > 0:04:40"the British pig industry today is the diversity of the type of pig
0:04:40 > 0:04:42"which is found throughout the country.
0:04:42 > 0:04:50"The pig industry will, in our view, only make real progress when it concentrates on a few main types
0:04:50 > 0:04:56"and, if it were at any time found possible, on a single type of pig for commercial production."
0:04:56 > 0:04:58Absolutely.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01How angry does that make you?
0:05:01 > 0:05:05The sort of pigs they were going for are the ones that
0:05:05 > 0:05:07we've now been blighted with in our commercial life,
0:05:07 > 0:05:11which are very fast growing, very, very lean and taste of nothing at all.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15A single type of commercial pig!
0:05:15 > 0:05:19All our heritage, all those delicious pigs. That's what they're asking for.
0:05:19 > 0:05:24That's what they wanted. Just one dull, dull type of commercial pig.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26Makes me so angry.
0:05:26 > 0:05:31After the Howitt Report came out and there was all this move to intensification,
0:05:31 > 0:05:35we actually lost four unique, distinct breeds from this country.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Once it's gone, it's gone. It's extinct.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40Gone forever. There are people who say you can recreate them,
0:05:40 > 0:05:43but it is really just science fiction, it will never happen.
0:05:46 > 0:05:48So that was lesson number one.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52A history lesson. How we got to where we are now.
0:05:52 > 0:05:58If you're still not convinced, stick with me and watch this space.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02One of the best ways to get rare-breed pork back on our food map
0:06:02 > 0:06:04is to cook it.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08For my first recipe, I'm going to cook...
0:06:11 > 0:06:19The great thing about rare-breed pigs is the fact that they have a good covering of fat on them.
0:06:19 > 0:06:24Between the skin and the fat there is a little line of muscle
0:06:24 > 0:06:29which raises the skin and just gives the most perfect crackling.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33And you won't find that in a commercial, numbered breed pig.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Start by making the walnut and caper stuffing that will soak up
0:06:37 > 0:06:42any extraneous fat and really bring out the flavour of the pork.
0:06:43 > 0:06:48Put the garlic and onion onto a gentle heat until they are soft.
0:06:48 > 0:06:54I'm now going to add these morsels of bread, day-old bread, so they're not too fresh.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57Otherwise it just falls apart.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01For texture, I also use walnuts in the stuffing
0:07:01 > 0:07:05and then, for flavour, some capers and lemon juice.
0:07:05 > 0:07:11These ingredients will offer a sharp contrast to the sweet meat.
0:07:12 > 0:07:18Then take the pan off the heat and bind the stuffing by mixing in two eggs.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23Leave it to cool and start to prepare your meat.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28In order to get the crackling to crackle, you need to score it,
0:07:28 > 0:07:33and for that you really need a craft knife.
0:07:33 > 0:07:41The whole point of scoring your skin is so that it can rise up into crackling.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44If you were doing this with a commercial pig,
0:07:44 > 0:07:48you'd be straight through to the meat because there's not enough fat.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Once scored, rub the fat with oil and salt.
0:07:55 > 0:08:00And then take your stuffing and put it into the pocket in your meat.
0:08:00 > 0:08:05Then tie up the shoulder as tightly as possible.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11So not only will you hold your stuffing in, but you will also
0:08:11 > 0:08:19form a cohesion in the meat, so that when it's cooking, it'll be tightly bound together.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21You may say, "Oh, it's too much trouble!
0:08:21 > 0:08:25"It's too much trouble to go out and find rare-breed pork.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28"It's a little bit more expensive."
0:08:28 > 0:08:35Well, put your children in expensive trainers and watch them grow up without the benefit of good food,
0:08:35 > 0:08:40and the better the quality of the food we eat, the healthier we will be.
0:08:40 > 0:08:47Good food takes effort and time, and this shoulder will roast in the oven for almost three hours.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51But the results are spectacular.
0:08:51 > 0:08:57Remove the crackling to reveal one of the many advantages of rare-breed pork.
0:08:57 > 0:09:02You see the little ridge of muscle that runs under the fat
0:09:02 > 0:09:06and raises the crackling up so you get really good crackling?
0:09:15 > 0:09:20And there again you see how lovely and crisp the crackling is.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23And let's have a little bit of kale on this
0:09:23 > 0:09:24for colour.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28And there you have it.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Really nice stuffing, too.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37That's very satisfactory.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45I don't only want you to enjoy the taste of rare-breed pork.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48I want you to fall in love with the pigs themselves.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52So I'm taking you to Oakham in Leicestershire.
0:09:52 > 0:09:59Here we are at Northfield Farm and I'm here to meet a dear friend of mine, Jan McCourt,
0:09:59 > 0:10:03who is almost as passionate about saving rare-breed pigs as I am.
0:10:03 > 0:10:08Jan McCourt was once a high-flying City banker, but now he invests in
0:10:08 > 0:10:11one of our rarest breeds of pig, the British Lop.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14I'm really excited about seeing the Lops.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17We've got quite a few more from the last time you saw them.
0:10:17 > 0:10:23We've had a couple of litters born and we've brought in a few from the rare-breed sale at Melton,
0:10:23 > 0:10:25including a very smart, young, new boar.
0:10:25 > 0:10:26Oh, very exciting!
0:10:26 > 0:10:30'So it's all aboard as we start our rare-breed safari.'
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Hey! Off we go!
0:10:38 > 0:10:41When you took over the farm, presumably,
0:10:41 > 0:10:46it would have been a lot easier for you just to have ordinary breeds.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50When I left the City, I was made redundant and I decided this was
0:10:50 > 0:10:54an opportunity, so I opened the farm shop within a very short time.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58And the biggest challenge was finding pork, rare-breed pork.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02So I thought the only obvious thing to do was to start them ourselves.
0:11:02 > 0:11:04There's a couple of our Saddlebacks.
0:11:04 > 0:11:06- Yes.- Good old girls.
0:11:07 > 0:11:15'It's wonderful to see these pigs in so much space, a world away from most commercial pig farms.'
0:11:17 > 0:11:19- Look, British Lops, surely. - There you go, yep.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24There's our new boar in with one of his girlfriends. Do you want to have a look?
0:11:24 > 0:11:26Yeah, why not?
0:11:27 > 0:11:29Ah! Look at them.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32You can see why they're called "Lop". Look at the ears on her.
0:11:32 > 0:11:33Yeah, they're absolutely fantastic.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35- Amazing.- Some of them have even bigger ears.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38They'll end up the size of the average, decent-sized kitchen table.
0:11:38 > 0:11:43And his ears will be probably twice the size of that.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47How rare is the British Lop? I know it's one of the very rare ones.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50Well, our breed secretary, in the latest newsletter,
0:11:50 > 0:11:54he described as them as being more rare than the giant panda.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56More rare than the giant panda!
0:11:56 > 0:12:01- Think of it.- A colourful character in his own right, I don't know whether that's statistically correct,
0:12:01 > 0:12:05but when you think that this breed was saved from extinction by just three families in Cornwall,
0:12:05 > 0:12:07it's still very delicate.
0:12:07 > 0:12:12You're talking in the hundreds of breeding females, not thousands or tens of thousands.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17If people understood that the most simple way to save these breeds
0:12:17 > 0:12:21is to encourage and support the farmers that are rearing them.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25And you do that by saying, "I want to eat rare-breed pork,"
0:12:25 > 0:12:28and taking as big an interest as you possibly can.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31This is all about passion first. Because one of the things...
0:12:31 > 0:12:32- it certainly isn't making money.- No.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37What a lovely rub.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40That's a fantastic image of a happy pig, isn't it?
0:12:42 > 0:12:46'If I can get you to eat more rare-breed pork, then together
0:12:46 > 0:12:49'we will be safeguarding the future of these beautiful animals.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53'But before you eat it you need to buy it
0:12:53 > 0:12:58'and for that you will need to find a good butcher or farm shop.'
0:12:58 > 0:13:02Most people will never see this. They're afraid of this.
0:13:02 > 0:13:07They are afraid of it, and I think the simplest way to distinguish it,
0:13:07 > 0:13:09go and buy a piece of pork,
0:13:09 > 0:13:12particularly a leg of pork from a supermarket.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14You might as well chew on that block.
0:13:14 > 0:13:17You might as well chew on cardboard or a paper bag
0:13:17 > 0:13:20for the comparison.
0:13:20 > 0:13:25Once people discover quite how good it is, do they mind the extra cost?
0:13:25 > 0:13:28No, I've found they don't, because people that understand,
0:13:28 > 0:13:30what they can't afford, they'll reduce the amount.
0:13:30 > 0:13:35Because eat less and eat better is fundamental to the whole thing.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39You can see the marbling that runs through and that is all important.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41No fat, no flavour.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43If you cook it with the fat on,
0:13:43 > 0:13:49cut the fat off and give it to me, if I happen to be sitting at the same table,
0:13:49 > 0:13:51it's the flavour, it's the taste.
0:13:52 > 0:14:00'Pig fat has a variety of uses, not least in pastry and, in particular, pork pies.'
0:14:00 > 0:14:05This is the hand-raised Melton Mowbray pork pie with our own pork
0:14:05 > 0:14:11and, of course, with lard, which is the pig ingredient as well, even in the pastry.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14Very good.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16It's delicious.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20So there you are, the end of lesson two.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22What have you learnt from this?
0:14:22 > 0:14:30Passion and good husbandry make perfect pigs and farmers make food for you.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32You must be convinced by now.
0:14:34 > 0:14:38For my second recipe I'm going to make...
0:14:41 > 0:14:43Now, this type of pastry
0:14:43 > 0:14:49is made by heating together lard and water to a rolling boil.
0:14:53 > 0:14:59As the lard and water begin to boil, add a pinch of salt to the flour
0:14:59 > 0:15:02and then pour in the boiling liquid.
0:15:02 > 0:15:10Begin by stirring the mixture, but as soon as it is cool enough to handle, it is time to knead the pastry.
0:15:10 > 0:15:15It cools quite quickly and it's quite important to do it as soon as you can,
0:15:15 > 0:15:18so that the fat doesn't cool too much,
0:15:18 > 0:15:21otherwise it won't mix in well with the flour.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28Now do you see? It's a very soft, malleable crust.
0:15:28 > 0:15:33And what I have here is a dolly.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35This is a traditional implement.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39It comes in all sorts of different sizes for raising a pie crust round.
0:15:39 > 0:15:45You just want to mould your pastry up the dolly.
0:15:46 > 0:15:52As well as the pie crust, it is vital to remember to shape a lid for the pie at this point.
0:15:53 > 0:15:58Once the pastry has been prepared, allow it to cool in the refrigerator.
0:15:58 > 0:16:04The lard solidifies and it will help the crust to hold its shape for the damson pie filling.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08So here is a ready-chilled raised pie.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11I'm something of an authority on raised pies,
0:16:11 > 0:16:16because I have judged the Great Yorkshire Pork Pie contest on three separate occasions
0:16:16 > 0:16:21and, I have to say, it was one of the most terrifying things
0:16:21 > 0:16:27I ever had to do in my life, because I could have lost all my reputation in Yorkshire if I'd got it wrong.
0:16:28 > 0:16:35Layer the pie with quince paste, a thick jam that will turn to liquid in the heat of the oven.
0:16:35 > 0:16:36Then the damsons.
0:16:36 > 0:16:41These have been stoned and frozen to give them a delicious texture.
0:16:41 > 0:16:48A sprinkle of sugar will help to sweeten the filling, but the pie should still have a sharp kick to it.
0:16:48 > 0:16:54And finally, all I have to do is put the lid on and crimp it.
0:16:54 > 0:16:59And then make a little hole in the top to let the steam out.
0:16:59 > 0:17:06It takes only 25 minutes for the ingredients to melt together and make the perfect pie.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09So the "moment critique".
0:17:09 > 0:17:12You see how it's sunk down on itself
0:17:12 > 0:17:17and has gone into this rather nice sort of medieval look really, hasn't it?
0:17:17 > 0:17:20And...
0:17:20 > 0:17:24See, look at that. Look how lovely and gooey and sticky.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28And you only get pastry like this
0:17:28 > 0:17:30using lard
0:17:30 > 0:17:36and you only get really good lard from old-breed, rare-breed pigs.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45Mm. Lovely acidity with the damsons.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48The real crunchiness of the pastry.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50There you are, you see? Terribly simple.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Nice little pie for your pudding.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54What could be more delicious?
0:17:59 > 0:18:06The great tragedy of my revival campaign is that we are too late for some our rare-breed pigs.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08They have already died out.
0:18:08 > 0:18:16I'm heading for Louth in Lincolnshire to find out about a massive beast of a pig that is sadly extinct...
0:18:16 > 0:18:19the Lincolnshire Curly Coat.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23Is it true that you remember the Lincolnshire Curly Coat as a boy?
0:18:23 > 0:18:25Yes, I do.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29When I was a lad, almost everyone kept a pig down the garden
0:18:29 > 0:18:31and traditionally
0:18:31 > 0:18:34they were unhappy unless the pig reached 40 stones at least.
0:18:34 > 0:18:3740 stone!
0:18:37 > 0:18:39And the fat on the back would be that deep.
0:18:39 > 0:18:45It's sad, isn't it, that today's youngsters will never have the chance to sit on the back
0:18:45 > 0:18:48of a Lincolnshire Curly Coat and never see a pig like that?
0:18:49 > 0:18:56Although the Curly Coat has gone, its legacy lives on through the work of local butchers like Jim Sutcliffe.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01In Lincolnshire, we used to butcher our pigs very differently,
0:19:01 > 0:19:06because the Lincolnshire Curly Coat was so fat that they couldn't get in
0:19:06 > 0:19:09very well with a saw to cut down the middle of the spine.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11So they had to go through the rib bones,
0:19:11 > 0:19:16and that then produced a cut that is exclusive to Lincolnshire.
0:19:17 > 0:19:23This exclusive cut follows the line of the pig's backbone and includes the meat on either side.
0:19:25 > 0:19:31The chine, when it is released, is a long meaty cut, perfect for curing.
0:19:31 > 0:19:37Jim uses the cured meat to make Lincolnshire stuffed chine, a traditional regional dish.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43Given that this was a dish that was associated with the Lincolnshire Curly Coat,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47was it ever in danger of going out because there wasn't a suitable pig?
0:19:47 > 0:19:52I think there was a possibility that it would have done
0:19:52 > 0:19:56had certain people not carried on curing a chine no matter what.
0:19:56 > 0:20:02And, luckily, there's been quite a good number of rare-breed pigs in the county
0:20:02 > 0:20:04to fall back on a substitute.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07But I'm quite sure that the stuffed chine probably
0:20:07 > 0:20:12isn't a patch on what it used to be when it was made from a Curly Coat and matured for months.
0:20:12 > 0:20:19'The pork is stuffed with fresh parsley, before being steamed in an oven for eight hours.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22'Only then is it ready to eat.'
0:20:22 > 0:20:24That's lovely, really lovely.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29I think you should cut me a few slices and I can take it out
0:20:29 > 0:20:33- to the people of Louth and see what they think about it.- Certainly.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37And if you can give me a meat cleaver in case they don't like it.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Hello. Can I offer you a piece of...
0:20:44 > 0:20:47Chine! Do you know, we were teaching this to children the other day,
0:20:47 > 0:20:49all the products of Lincolnshire.
0:20:49 > 0:20:52Yes, please. My mother always used to buy chine. Thank you.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56I would offer you a piece of chine but I think you've got your hands full.
0:20:56 > 0:20:58I've got a spare hand now.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01- Well done. - Oh, that's lovely.- Isn't that good?
0:21:01 > 0:21:03It is. Chine's lovely.
0:21:03 > 0:21:08- Can I offer you a piece of Lincolnshire chine?- No, it's all right.- "I'm a vegetarian!"
0:21:08 > 0:21:10Yes, I can do that with this.
0:21:10 > 0:21:17It's great to see that most of the people of Louth still have a healthy appetite for their traditional food.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Before I leave, I want to investigate one farm
0:21:23 > 0:21:28which claims to have brought back the Curly-Coated pig to Lincolnshire.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32- Good morning. Brian Codling.- Hello. - And this is my wife, Sylvia.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36- Welcome to the Old Rectory, Clarissa. It's lovely to meet you. - Lovely old rectory.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40So this property would have known the Lincolnshire Curly Coat?
0:21:40 > 0:21:45They used to have some here and just at the farm, across the road. Do you want to see some?
0:21:45 > 0:21:47I'd love to see some of your pigs.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52- Walk this way.- Thank you.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54Well, they're certainly curly coated.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58- Hello.- These three are very good examples of Curly Coats.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00They've got lovely thick coats.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02So what are these pigs?
0:22:02 > 0:22:04These are pure-bred Mangalitza curly-coated pigs.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08They're native to Austria and Hungary.
0:22:08 > 0:22:13And you have a theory that they are related to the Lincolnshire Curly Coat?
0:22:13 > 0:22:16There's some of the Lincolnshire Curly Coat genes in.
0:22:16 > 0:22:21We don't know how much, but definitely Lincolnshire Curly Coats
0:22:21 > 0:22:28were exported from this country to the Austro-Hungarian area and cross-bred with the Mangalitza.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33- And so now you think they've come back to Lincolnshire? Well, they have come back to Lincolnshire!- Exactly.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36It's nice to have curly-coated pigs back in Lincolnshire.
0:22:36 > 0:22:38Yes. Very good.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41- Delilah's next door to these... - Oh, right.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43Oh, look.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45Now, there's a magnificent pig.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47Hello, Delilah.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49My, my, my, Delilah.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52Wonderful, and look at the size of her. Magnificent.
0:22:52 > 0:22:57Like the Lincolnshire Curly Coat, the Mangalitza is bred for its fat.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01It's a tallow pig, but it produces a very agreeable meat.
0:23:01 > 0:23:07Although, technically, not a British pig, it is interesting to see them where the Curly Coats once stood.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13For my third and final recipe I'm going to cook...
0:23:18 > 0:23:24Start by pouring some anchovy oil into a baking tray with a dash of olive oil.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Into this, place chopped onion and garlic.
0:23:28 > 0:23:35The trick with not crying when you peel onions, or chop onions,
0:23:35 > 0:23:42is to leave the pointed end intact, cos that is where the gland is that causes you to weep.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49There you are, not a tear in sight.
0:23:49 > 0:23:54Once the onions begin to simmer, crush the garlic.
0:23:54 > 0:23:59One of the advantages of being my sort of weight
0:23:59 > 0:24:02is that when you lean on a garlic clove...
0:24:03 > 0:24:05..it stays leaned on.
0:24:05 > 0:24:12There was a time in my life when I used to get rugby forwards to come and roll out my pastry for me.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15I don't need to do that any more.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17One met a lot of nice rugby forwards.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22When the onions have softened, add the anchovies
0:24:22 > 0:24:24and the chestnuts.
0:24:26 > 0:24:28Then score the meat.
0:24:29 > 0:24:36The secret to good crackling is to rub salt and oil deep into the fat of the belly.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38As Fanny Craddock used to say,
0:24:38 > 0:24:43rub it as if into the face of your worst enemy.
0:24:43 > 0:24:48And then take your piece of pork and just put it on top
0:24:48 > 0:24:50of everything that's in there.
0:24:50 > 0:24:58Then add some beer to the bottom of the pan, making sure not to cover the skin.
0:24:58 > 0:25:04This is providing some liquid just to help cook the pork and to stop things
0:25:04 > 0:25:07sticking to the bottom, cos it's going to cook for quite a long time.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11It's going to have half an hour in a hot oven just to
0:25:11 > 0:25:16set the crackling and then it's going to have about three hours
0:25:16 > 0:25:21in a cooler oven just to gently cook away and bring out the flavours.
0:25:22 > 0:25:28This pork belly is so simple to prepare, but the results are magical.
0:25:31 > 0:25:34Look at that. Doesn't that look lovely?
0:25:34 > 0:25:38The extra fat, the texture of the meat
0:25:38 > 0:25:42and that indescribable sound of Sundays.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44CRACKING
0:25:44 > 0:25:47Hear how lovely the crackling is.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Look at that. You see how soft and lovely it is now? See that?
0:25:55 > 0:25:58The knife just goes straight into it as though it were butter.
0:25:58 > 0:26:04And, of course, the advantage with rare-breed pork is that it will hold together
0:26:04 > 0:26:11until it's soft as butter, rather than just fall apart as it would if it was a horrid commercial pig.
0:26:12 > 0:26:19Excellent accompaniments to this delicious meat are celeriac puree and wilted spinach.
0:26:19 > 0:26:25The final touch is to flambe the sauce with a ladle of brandy.
0:26:25 > 0:26:31Brandy, of course, will not ignite until it's hot enough, as those of you who've failed
0:26:31 > 0:26:34to ignite your Christmas pudding will have learnt the hard way.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36So there we are, you see?
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Just pour it into the pan
0:26:39 > 0:26:47and it burns off not only all the alcohol but any extraneous fat that you might have.
0:26:47 > 0:26:52A few chestnuts and the beer sauce with melted anchovy
0:26:52 > 0:26:54complete the plate.
0:26:54 > 0:26:59So there we have it, belly of pork with anchovies and chestnuts.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02And what more could you ask in life really?
0:27:05 > 0:27:08Mmm. Scrumptious.
0:27:14 > 0:27:21I would hope that you are now ready to jump up from your sofa and hunt down your local rare-breed supplier.
0:27:21 > 0:27:27Of course, you could always keep rare-breed pigs yourself, like these pig fanatics.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31As long as you register with Defra, anyone can do it.
0:27:31 > 0:27:36Tony York runs a one-day pig-keeping course for the hobby farmer
0:27:36 > 0:27:41and he thinks there will be a big increase in the number of us keeping pigs.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44I think over the next five to ten years
0:27:44 > 0:27:47we're going to see such a dramatic increase in rare-breed
0:27:47 > 0:27:51pig keeping and people keeping pigs on a small scale that we will almost
0:27:51 > 0:27:58be getting back to those days around the end of the Second World War when so many families had their own pigs.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00It's not difficult to keep a pig.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04It's very easy. Probably almost the easiest farm animal to keep.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07But don't think you have to work alone.
0:28:07 > 0:28:13You could form a co-operative, like this group of friends in Staines.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17We were all a bit fed up with the quality of the pork we got in supermarkets
0:28:17 > 0:28:23and, for me, the biggest benefit of keeping my own pigs is knowing the provenance of the meat.
0:28:23 > 0:28:30I know exactly what they've eaten and I know therefore that the meat is going to be good quality.
0:28:32 > 0:28:36So there we are, the end of the journey,
0:28:36 > 0:28:40and I hope you are now convinced to eat British rare-breed pork
0:28:40 > 0:28:46and that you will save lots of species from extinction and enjoy the journey. Have fun.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:28:53 > 0:28:57E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk