Salt-aged Pastrami launched by Northern Irish producer
Gourmet beef producer Quail's Fine Foods in Northern Ireland has developed a salt-aged beef pastrami as a key product for marketing in Britain.
The family business, based at Banbridge in county Down, is sourcing the beef from its own 100-strong grass-fed herd for ageing in its own Himalyan salt chamber for the new pastrami and other beef products including steak.
Quail's also sells the beef in its successful deli which is member of the Guild of Fine Food and secured a series of UK Great Taste Awards last year for its steak.
Managing director Joe Quail says: "While the success of our steak in the Great Taste Awards has attracted great interest in Britain, I wanted to develop a different product for what could become an important market. I wanted to showcase the quality and taste using beef dry-aged in our own Himalayan salt chamber for a market which, I believe, offers significant growth potential for us."
The brisket of beef for the new pastrami is aged in the salt chamber for two weeks then slow cooked for around 10 hours and peppered.
In addition to its steak, the small company has won awards for its baked ham and chicken liver and shallot parfait, and chorizo sausage.
Quali's is now a fourth generation family business that's developed from a farm in the area. Experience in preparing and marketing beef and especially lamb underpins Joe's plans to develop the company's product portfolio and he proposes to seek new channels to sell these in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Mr Quail adds: "Success in competitions like the Great Taste Awards has helped to establish the company as a producer of innovative gourmet foods.
"I believe there is scope to expand and grow the business through wider distribution of our branded gourmet foods like our new pastrami. There are certainly opportunities for us in developing new added value products in particular using our quality and grass-fed beef from the farm. This ensures provenance and complete traceabilty.
"Winning recognition for quality from the UK Guild of Fine Food has been a tremendous boost for us and has encouraged us to look at ways to develop the business."
The business is already a significant employer in the town and has more than 30 people on the payroll.
The original butchery business was founded in 1898 by Matthew Quail, a dealer in property and livestock in the Banbridge area. The family farm was acquired in 1923 and remains the primary source of beef in the shop.
The deli was developed in the eighties and quickly gained an impressive reputation for products made on the premises including honey baked ham, pies, lasagnas, quiches and many and varied salads and desserts.