The secret to finding a great bit of beef is to look for a free range pedigree native beef breed, such as Hereford, Dexter, Aberdeen Angus, Galloway, Devon or Highland . It takes approximately 6 months longer to raise a native beast this way (compared to a diet of cereals) but the beef is so much more tender that the cheaper cuts become seriously enjoyable. The cuts needs to be well marbled, with ruddy coloured lean and creamy coloured fat (Bright red meat and white fat tends to be hard fed and so has a higher water content). Hanging for 2 weeks+ makes a difference, but leave it too long and it can become gamey. Routine steroid and hormone injections aren’t allowed in any British beef, so that’s not an issue. Combine this with a continental style of seam-cutting and it opens up a whole range of  amazing eating experiences, particularly with the steaks.

(Seam-cutting means cutting along the muscle rather than down the bone in order to produce steaks of superb eating quality from the shoulder, fore-leg and flank (usually used for mince or casseroling); they’re every bit as good as traditional steaks and at a fraction of the cost).

We use pure bred Aberdeen Angus slow-grown on grass for our beef. Admittedly this is partly for historical reasons, but this means we've had three generations to get things right. Fortunately for us others seem to think the same, - it's not every day you get invited to tender to provide the beef for the Finals of the Bocuse d'Or World Cuisine Contest!

We've listed the cuts that we do below. Take care to read the descriptions though, as the same cuts have many different names and the same name often applies to different cuts depending on where you are in the country.