Jean Edwards
Our Suppliers: Deli Farm Charcuterie
Name: Jean Edwards
Job Title: Co-founder / Partner
Nickname: Back in the days when we did food shows I was always known as “Mrs Salami
Time in Role: 15 years
Favourite part of the Job:
New product development, we aim to introduce a new product each year, the fun part is thinking about what meat to use and spicing etc. Other things to consider is what’s trending at the present time…….another good part is being in charge of quality control as I get to taste everything!
Favourite Food:
All seafood.
Favourite Place:
Difficult, as I haven’t been everywhere I can’t really say as there might be somewhere I haven’t yet been that could be my most favourite place……so at the moment, in the world I would say “New Zealand”, in the UK I would say Cornwall and in “Cornwall” I would say at home.
Why I like Veggies &More:
They look after their suppliers as well as their customers.
Unusual fact about me:
I did try to be a vegetarian many years ago….it lasted about 3 months, I missed meat!
Dream Job?
Being retired.
Which of your products best represents you and why?
Our Spicy Chorizo as it is a bit fiery.
What inspired you to produce artisan charcuterie in Cornwall?
Ummm, it was on the back of a flippant comment……Cornwall does produces really good meat, so it seemed like a good idea.
What obstacles did you have to overcome in the early stages?
As there was very little information about preserving meat in this way in this country we had to do our own research, it was a very interesting time and a huge learning curve….we experimented and used family and friends as guinea pigs, the rest is history.
Where do you source your raw ingredients & what do you look for to ensure consistent quality?
We source 90% of our meat from Cornwall, the balance is from our neighbouring county, Devon. Animal welfare, provenance and low food miles are our main consideration.
Which varieties have you found the most challenging?
Once you have established the basic techniques the rest is just imagination and flavourings, keeping it interesting and subtle so you don’t lose the flavour of the meat is important.
You’ve won some prestigious awards, did that give you the confidence to experiment with other flavours?
We are very proud of the achievements of our products and yes it does give confidence to know that we are doing something right.
If you knew then what you know now what would you do differently?
Not start……I don’t mean that really, but in the beginning we just thought it would be a fun thing to try, not realising that it would be as successful as it has been. We have no intention of becoming huge and our aim is to stay small enough to keep it manageable and fun
Quick recipe for your favourite variety of charcuterie?
Add a little bit of chopped Coppa to scrambled egg on toast, don’t add any extra seasoning as there will be enough flavour from the Coppa…….and another really easy one is a little bit of our Cornishman’s Relish on top of a Cornish Sirloin steak.
If you knew then what you know now what would you do differently??
Its been a very challenging year for everyone, we have been one of the very fortunate business that have been very busy throughout this whole time. I am in awe of how quickly some of the business that were closed down rethought what they were doing and have turned it around for themselves.