Pâté: the perfect posh starter. But if you can't be bothered to make your own, invest in a pot from one of our top five artisan pâté producers, located all around the country.
The Rustique Pâté Company, Dorset
Set in old farm buildings in Dorset (and incidentally opposite Bournemouth International Airport), The Rustique Pâté Company is ‘the true taste of tradition’ and produces everything from Dorset Pâté (an everyday coarse pork and pork liver pâté with spices and herbs) to New Forest Game Pâté (venison and game liver with red wine and spices) and Queen’s Pâté (‘pâté with nobility’, made from smooth smoked chicken and chicken liver pâté, with ginger and orange).
All are freezable, and the folk at Rustique will happily cut their pâtés down to a smaller size if required – normally they are sold at 500g and 1kg pots.
Patchwork Pâté , Wales
Patchwork was established in 1982 by Margaret Carter, a talented home cook who began selling her homemade pâté to pubs in nearby Llangollen, Wales. Now the business runs from a purpose-equipped factory in Ruthin, although everything is still hand-made in small batches without artificial colourings, additives or preservatives, to Margaret’s original recipes.
Patchwork, who also sell ice cream and soup, have won over 80 taste awards, and include four vegetarian pâté s in their range (sun dried tomato with welsh mead, for example). They make at least four different types of pâtés for eight different categories (game liver, fish, fish mousse, chicken liver, veggie, cheese, limited edition and pâté -in-a-jar), and flavours range from the simple – duck liver pâté with apricot brandy – to the experimental, including Stilton and Guinness Pâté , and Partridge and Pear.
They also sell ‘guerilla picnics’ online – a collection of some of their produce, for you to enjoy al fresco. Two types of pâté, home-made hummus, some spelt crackers and a little chocolate for afters – what could be better?
Kate’s proper pâté
“When I couldn’t find a pâté that tasted as good as the one I made at home, with locally sourced fresh free range chicken livers and English butter, I decided to sell one myself…” says Katie Thornton, pâté-maker extraordinaire. Katie’s pâté is made fresh every week by her mum, and it only needs some good bread and a glass of red to really shine.
She uses local ingredients wherever possible, and even the oranges are squeezed by hand for her Cointreau pâté. You can buy online – pick from Chicken Liver Pâté with Armagnac, fresh cream and thyme, or Chicken Liver Pâté with Cointreau and orange – for just shy of £5 a pack, and they are sent in insulated boxes to ensure that there’s no pâté damage en-route.
The Suffolk Pâté Company
Only local ingredients go into this pâté, which is made in very small batches in the Suffolk countryside. Available at farm shops and markets across the county, The Suffolk Pâté Company focuses on only three flavours: Chicken Liver with Port and Brandy (made with 80% chicken livers); Blue Cheeses with Parsley and Lemon (made with Suffolk Blue farmhouse cheese, and is suitable for vegetarians); and Chickpea and Coriander with Lemon and Chilli, also suitable for veggies.
It’s some of the cheapest pâté around (less than £4 a pot) and is also sold on The Suffolk Providore website.
The Homemade Pâté Company
Karen and Richard Kemp set up The Homemade Pâté Company in Staffordshire together, and Karen makes everything from scratch, including a new range of potted meats and shrimp. “Our pâtés and terrines are highly addictive,” they say. “Once you've tasted them you'll be at the top of a very slippery slope!”
Flavours range from Stilton and Port to Tuscan Bean and Duck Liver and Port pâté, all of which come in sealable pots. “Quite the most wonderful stuff we’ve ever tasted in the world of pâté,” says one reviewer on the website, and “sheer heaven” says another.
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