Tomato Ketchup and Real Mayonnaise - it's a question of taste

Taste = 'Stokes' = Taste

For Rick @stokessauces it became a personal mission to make tomato ketchup that tastes wonderful and lifts everything you eat with it. Also a mayonnaise as delicious as your best ever home made version, but available instantly in a jar.

His drive was his passion for 'taste'. Our reward is the full flavoured Italian tomatoes in Stokes Award-Winning Tomato Ketchup and a velvety smooth Mayonnaise as 'Real' as Stokes Real Mayonnaise.

To give our taste buds something to really test their sensory receptors, Rick and the team focused on the quality of the ingredients, the recipes that combine them and the expert production skills that create them.


Rick didn't want to make a brown sauce because - basically - he didn't like it. But Pete (a crucial part of the Stokes team) told Rick he'd make a sauce worthy of Stokes that would change Rick's perception of this fine old English relish.

Pete was right, Rick was impressed and the divine Stokes Brown Sauce was born.

Ours is a rich and spicy brown sauce with a deliciously fruity finish. It is rich in date purée (9%) and made with black treacle (8%) along with our unique blend of spices.




 Ingredients

Our tomatoes are grown by a number of carefully selected farmers on the sun drenched foothills of southern Italy. They are plump, sweet and juice and we use lots of them, in fact a full 200gms are simmered gently to satisfy the flavours of 100gms of Award-Winning Tomato Ketchup.

The extra virgin olive oil that makes our Real Mayonnaise so special, comes from the Koroneiki olives that grow in abundance on Crete. Its deep green colour adds the final extra smooth luscious depth to both its flavour and creamy texture.

The sensations of our Creamed Horseradish Sauce come from using half wild and half cultivated horseradish.

A lovely chap in Essex grows, picks, shreds and supplies both from which we create the intense flavour without the over fiery finish. It's warm and fulfilling.

We mix julienned 'shards' of beetroot (including the skins for that earthy flavour) for our Beetroot Relish. The beetroot simmers in Claret to intensify this juicy, freshly processed preserve - no pickling, pure cooking.

Take the taste test

People who 'love Stokes', love the taste. People who don't 'love Stokes' just haven't tried it yet.

We have recently started taking a bottle or two of Stokes Ketchup, Chutney or Mayonnaise instead of a bottle of wine when we visit people. Last year my cousin David and his wife Jane were the recipients of a Stokes Tomato Ketchup and a Real Mayonnaise.

Now, David is one of those chaps who eats at Le Manoir when in Oxfordshire and Tom's Kitchen in Edinburgh.

I did the taste test with him against something else in their cupboard and now he buys Stokes products as 'kitchen essentials' from his local, Thorncliffe Farm Shop.

Another 'Stokes lover'. Another 'lover of taste'.

Recycling - don't just recycle, re-use your Stokes glassware. For some facts about recycling and 10 fun ways to re-use your glassware, click here.

Pancake day, or 'Stokes Lemon Curd Day as we call it. Some tasty ideas here.

A medley of marvellous mustards - flavoursome recipes for flavour packed mustards here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

Don't just recycle, re-use your jars and bottles from Stokes.

Recycling Stokes glassware

 
Stokes glassware - bottles and jars - are as much a part of the Stokes distinctive brand as the logo and the delicious taste.

We share the growing concern to ensure that bottles and jars are either recycled or re-used. Put the glass back into new glass and a little fun back into the jars.

From the recycle bin, glass is taken to a glass treatment plant where it is sorted by colour and washed to remove any impurities. 

The glass is then crushed and melted, then moulded into new products such as bottles and jars. Or it may be used for alternative purposes such as brick manufacture, road building aggregates or decorative uses.

5 facts about recycling

• Glass is 100% recyclable and can be recycled endlessly without loss in quality or purity.
• Glass is made from readily available materials such as sand, soda ash, limestone and 'cullet', - the industry term for furnace-ready recycled glass.
• The only material used in greater volume than cullet is sand. The materials are mixed, or 'batched', heated to a temperature of 2,600 to 2,800 degrees Fahrenheit and moulded to the desired shape.
• Recycled glass can be substituted for up to 95% of raw materials.
• Over a ton of natural resources are saved for every ton of glass we recycle. 

  10 fun ways to re-use Stokes glassware 

• Put coloured sand or beads into your jar with a tea light to create a lantern.
• Make a 'happiness jar' to store happy memories, tickets, notes concert passes etc.
• Serve drinks to friends and family in your glass jars. Cocktails look great.
• Use your jars to pickle vegetables.
• Create a stained glass effect using Sharpies for a beautiful tea light lantern. 

• Use it as a salad jar for packed lunches. Put the dressing at the bottom and layer the salad items on top.
• Use them to store bathroom items such as cotton buds (without the plastic stem).
• Use empty jars as a piggy bank - perhaps one for each value of coin.
• Paint and distress your jar to create shabby chic effect vases.

Pancake day, or 'Stokes Lemon Curd Day as we call it. Some tasty ideas here.

Stokes sauces, ketchups, mayonnaise, relishes and chutneys are all a question of taste. Take the taste test here.

A medley of marvellous mustards - flavoursome recipes for flavour packed mustards here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

Pancake Day or 'Stokes Lemon Curd Day'

Shrove Tuesday - it's pancake time !

Did you know: long ago Shrove Tuesday was a day for fun and feasting before the 40 days of Lent. Christians went to church to confess their sins and would be 'shriven' or forgiven.

As rich foods such as eggs were forbidden during Lent, one way of using them up would be to make pancakes on this day.

The ingredients for pancakes have been seen to symbolise four points of significance at this time of year: Eggs - Creation; Flour - The staff of life; Salt - Wholesomeness; Milk - Purity ... and now Stokes Sauces - Deliciousness.


It's on 13th February this year.


Do you make your own or buy pre made ?

Either works with these tasty filling ideas, but here's a simple, foolproof recipe for the the perfect pancake.

This is all you need:

• 100 g plain flour
• 2 large eggs
• 300 ml milk

Here's how:

• Put the flour eggs and milk in a large bowl and whisk to a smooth batter. Set it aside to rest for at least half an hour.
• Put a medium frying pan on a medium heat and rub it thoroughly with an oiled piece of kitchen paper.
• When it is hot, stir the batter and use a cup to ladle one cupful into the pan. Swirl it gently to thin out the batter and cook for one minute each side until it resembles a brown lunar surface. 
• They'll stay warm layered in a warm oven.

 Did you know - if you leave them to cool, you can layer your pancakes between baking paper, wrap in cling film and freeze them for up to 2 months.

Pancakes for the sweeter tooth

Enhance the simple lemon and sugar pancake by adding Stokes Lemon Curd to intensify the flavour with its velvety coat. Spread the curd with a little mascarpone cheese for a grown up twist.

For a simple twist on a classic crêpes suzette, melt equal portions of Stokes Cranberry & Orange Sauce (with Port) and Stokes Seville Orange Marmalade in a saucepan and pour over the pancakes.

Gently sautée apples (eating) in butter with brown sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and a splash of dry cider. This browns into a treacly apple filling for pancakes. Add a couple of spoonfuls of Stokes Bramley Apple Sauce when the apples soften in the pan to focus the succulent apple flavour. Serve with ice cream or crème fraîche.


Try these savoury options

This is a great idea for a gorgeous savoury pancake with Stilton cheese melting through mushrooms and spinach - a feast crowned by two beautifully soft eggs.

The only decision now is whether to use Stokes Brown Sauce or Tomato Ketchup - or both!


Ham, egg & cheese pancake - it's another brunch in a crêpe. Put the ham on a warm pancake and sprinkle grated cheese over it, pressing a well into the middle. Carefully break a small egg into the well, fold in the pancake edges to make an envelope for the egg.

You may need to put a lid on it to help cook the yolk, then choose - Stokes Brown Sauce or our Award-Winning Tomato Ketchup.

Chicken & chorizo, chilli pancakes - stir fry chicken pieces, red onion slices and slices of chorizo until cooked. Add natural Greek yoghurt to moisten (not drown) the mixture, then flavour it with two tbsp Stokes Chilli Jam (to taste). Now fold in a couple of good handfuls of baby spinach and spoon into a wrap of fresh pancakes.

Mediterranean Magic - a medley of colour and flavour.

Simply take a tub of marinated antipasti from the supermarket including sun-dried tomatoes, roast peppers and olives.

A few anchovies and capers add a salty dimension. Mix in a couple of good spoonfuls of Stokes Chilli Jam and pop it in a pancake - it's truly delicious.




Recycling - don't just recycle, re-use your Stokes glassware. For some facts about recycling and 10 fun ways to re-use your glassware, click here.

A medley of marvellous mustards - flavoursome recipes for flavour packed mustards here. 

 Stokes sauces, ketchups, mayonnaise, relishes and chutneys are all a question of taste. Take the taste test here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

Our medley of Mustards

Marvellous mustards

Classic English.
It's a smooth and strong mustard but without the "burn". If you like mustard, you'll love this!

Cider & Horseradish.
Made with cider vinegar, British dry cider, horseradish and a blend of yellow and black mustard seeds this mustard has everything. You'll find it is sophisticated and deliciously layered in flavour.

Try coating cocktail sausages in a mixture of it and honey for a party hit; or revitalise cold cuts of ham with warming mustard flavours and tangy bursts of mustard seed heat.

Dijon.
A strong, smooth mustard made with finely ground mustard seeds in the Dijon area of Burgundy, France. It's great with cold meats and the perfect addition to a mature cheddar sandwich.


Apart from spreading some in a ham sandwich 
                             or spooning some on the side of your plate...


...what else can you do with Stokes mustards

 These are a few simple, tasty ideas to help you get even more value from your Stokes mustard range.

• BBQ Mustard Chicken - mix 2 x parts Stokes Original BBQ Sauce to 1 x part Dijon Mustard (adjust the balance to taste) in a food bag to marinate your chicken joints before grilling or oven roasting.
• Fired up sprouts - slice your sprouts into 3 or 4 and soften in rapeseed oil with finely chopped red onion for 2 or 3 minutes with fresh thyme leaves. Add 2 tbsp of hot chicken stock, 2 tbsp of Stokes Cider & Horseradish Mustard and a good squeeze of runny honey. Cook through and enjoy your sprouts.

• Devilled eggs - take 2 x parts Real Mayonnaise to 1 x part Classic English Mustard mixed to a paste with the egg yolks and pipe the filling back into the scooped out egg whites. Dust with paprika to finish.
•  Honey Mustard Sauce - Use 2 tbsp Stokes Real Mayonnaise, 2 tbsp Greek yogurt, 2 tbsp Stokes Dijon Mustard and 1 tbsp of honey. Combine and serve with grilled chicken or pork chops.
• Honey Mustard Dressing - for a dressing version of the sauce above, just thin it out with rapeseed oil.
• Chicken & Leek Casserole - for a tasty lift to an ordinary casserole, add 1 tbsp of Classic English Mustard to the roux before adding the stock.

Click and order: For our Mustard Range

and for our Real Mayonnaise

  

The Classic Croque Monsieur

Glam it up all you want but this is basically a posh toasted ham and cheese sandwich - but oh my, a good one is amazing. As with the key to delicious Stokes sauces - quality is all about ingredients. The better you choose, the better the end result.

Use good slices of a lovely grainy loaf for texture and flavour. The French use 'jambon blanc', but you'll get more from generous slices of English dry cured ham. And a mixture of a strong Cheddar with the oozily melting qualities of Gruyère is delicious.

It's crowning glory is the Béchamel sauce 

For the Béchamel sauce, melt 40g of butter until foaming. Remove from the heat and stir in 20g of plain flour to form a roux. 

Add 2 tsp Dijon Mustard (more can be added later to taste) and a light grating of nutmeg. Over a gentle heat, gradually stir in 425 ml of milk and cook for 3 or 4 minutes.

 

Preheat to a hot oven. Spread the bread evenly with Béchamel and place the slices (dry side down) on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Layer ham and cheese onto the sauce and top with the other slices, sauce side up. Sprinkle more cheese on the top and bake until the cheese browns and bubbles.



Pancake day, or 'Stokes Lemon Curd Day as we call it. Some tasty ideas here.


Stokes sauces, ketchups, mayonnaise, relishes and chutneys are all a question of taste. Take the taste test here. 

Recycling - don't just recycle, re-use your Stokes glassware. For some facts about recycling and 10 fun ways to re-use your glassware, click here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

Turmeric - healing powers or sensational Piccalilli ?

Turmeric 

Turmeric is the gentle, earthy spice that gives a wonderfully golden glow to just about anything it touches or in which it is mixed.

It has been used in India for many thousands of years as both a spice and medicinal herb. In the streets of the Punjab if a child falls and scrapes their knee, mum will reach for the turmeric to rub onto the wound.

Recently, science has started to back up what Asia has long known. To some degree, it really does contain compounds with medicinal properties.

These compounds are called curcuminoids, the most important of which is curcumin which is the main active ingredient in turmeric. It has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant.

It's powers have been linked to reflecting benefits in research studies associated with Cancer, Diabetes, Liver Damage and Alzheimer's Disease.

Whilst heralding great news on the health front it would be very difficult to reach sufficient levels of curcumin just using the turmeric spice in your foods.

Piccalilli 

This is a wonderful old English preservation of fresh, crunchy vegetables in a thick mustard and turmeric pickle.

The word 'piccalilli' dates back to the mid-seventeen hundreds reflecting Indian picked vegetables.

The Oxford English Dictionary traces the word to the middle of the 18th century when, in 1758, Hannah Glasse described how "to make Paco-Lilla, or India Pickle".

The more familiar form of the word appears in 1769, in Elizabeth Raffald's 'The Experienced English Housekeeper' as: "To make Indian pickle, or Piccalillo".

James Herriot's book Vet In Harness includes an amusing experience in which Herriot uses a particularly spicy piccalilli to make an unsavoury meal more palatable and avoid offending his well-meaning hosts.

Stokes Piccalilli 

Offers crunchy garden vegetables in a sweet, tangy, mustard sauce spiced with turmeric. A traditional favourite with cold meats and fantastic with cheese.

Our vegetables are Individually Quick Frozen (IQF)  immediately after harvest to retain their freshness, taste and crunchy texture.

Our Piccalilli is packed with crunchy vegetables and other key ingredients including Cider Vinegar, Cauliflower (16%), Onions (14%), Unrefined Raw Cane Sugar, Courgette (8%), Dijon Mustard (7%), Green Pepper (4%), Red Pepper (4%), Cornflour, Gherkins (3%), Yellow Mustard Seeds, Turmeric and other specially blended spices.

Piccalilli is a particular friend of pork in all of its culinary guises. One of it's best buddies is the Ham Hock or Ham Hock Terrine. The particular sweetness of the slow cooked meat is offset deliciously by the tart spicy pickle.

Try this delicious Ham Hock

Relax the meat with a comfortable slow cook which releases its juices for a full round flavour and mouthwatering texture. Boil the hock for an hour to an hour and a half, then remove and skin it - it will just peel off.

Now the extra Stokes effect - rub the meat well with a mixture of runny honey and Stokes Cider & Horseradish Mustard. Put the smothered joint in a roasting tray, sitting in about an inch of dry cider. Roast on a medium low heat for another hour until the skin crisps and the meat is tender. it should just fall off the bone.

Use the juices to make a gravy and serve with horseradish mashed potatoes and Stokes Piccalilli.

Piccalilli - it's great in a sandwich too...




Simple suppers with fantastic flavours. Read here for some tasty ideas including Smashed Avocado from Australia.

For Burns Night celebrations and a Tomato & Whisky sauce, click here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

O' Rabbie Burns' Scot's sauce so sweet, and haggis you must this night eat.

Burns Night Suppers, whether grand or small, celebrate the birth of Robert Burns who was born on 25 January 1759.

Since not long after his death on 21 July 1796, Burns enthusiasts around the world have been celebrating his life and his genius with an evening steeped as much in history as it is in single malt.

More formal evenings get under way with the Selkirk Grace, which is often attributed to Burns but was apparently in use before he was born.

Some hae meat and canna eat,
   And some wad eat that want it;
But we hae meat, and we can eat,
   Sae sae the Lord be thankit.

The supper continues with a piper playing a stirring lament as he leads the haggis into the dining room to be paraded ceremoniously through the assembled guests as they applaud its arrival with a "slow handclap". Then the chosen member begins the address 'To a Haggis':

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
   Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
   Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye worthy o' a grace
   As lang's my arm.

 ...and on until the verse:

His knife see rustic Labour dight,
   An cut you up wi ready slight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
   Like onie ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
   Warm-reekin, rich!

...the haggis is cut open and the feasting begins

OR - you could enjoy a nice supper of Haggis, Neeps (swede / turnip) and Mash with...

Scottish Sauce 

Try this amazing sauce: 

•  ½ onion, finely chopped
• 1 tomato, finely chopped
• 30 ml (or more) good whisky
• 125 ml (½ cup) pouring cream
• 2 tbsp Stokes Bloody Mary Ketchup
• 1 tbsp Stokes Chilli Jam

 Soften the onion and stir for 2 minutes then the tomato for a further 2 minutes. Add the whisky, then ignite the alcohol. When the flames subside, stir in the cream, the Chilli Jam and Bloody Mary Ketchup. Reduce the heat, season to taste and simmer for 1 minute to slightly thickened (you might add a nob of butter here to help too). 

Here's a Haggis variation one of our Stokes' Friends introduced:

 Haggis Bon Bons with Whisky Marmalade

600g of haggis

2 eggs

150g flour

150g Panko breadcrumbs 

750ml vegetable oil

Salt and pepper

150g Stokes Seville Orange Marmalade

35ml good whisky

 

Mix together the marmalade and whisky and place in a small serving dish in the fridge. Roll the haggis into 25g balls (or bons bons).  

In three separate trays, place the flour (seasoned), beaten eggs and breadcrumbs Roll the haggis balls in one tray at a time, ensuring that you drain/dust off any excess before placing in the next tray.  

Heat the oil in a pan large enough so that it comes no further than half way up the side. You'll know it's hot enough when you sprinkle a few breadcrumbs in and they begin to sizzle). When the oil is hot, pop the bon bons in for around 2 minutes or until golden brown. 

Serve the bon bons with your whisky marmalade.

For the healing powers of turmeric and amazing Piccalilli, please click here.

Simple suppers with fantastic flavours. Read here for some tasty ideas including Smashed Avocado from Australia.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150

Swedish meatballs, smashed avocado and stuffed peppers - simple suppers.

Food for the family

We've pretty much made it through January now and the nights are already shortening. Food can become fun again. But why should frugal be a fruitless feast? Why can't simple suppers taste sensational?

That was, remains and will always be the basic premise of Stokes - food made better!

Here are three delicious tugs at the apron strings for something that couldn't be simpler and something that would seriously struggle to be tastier.

We hope you have a go and enjoy.


Quinoa stuffed peppers

• 4 pointed sweet peppers
• 1 courgette finely diced
• 1 aubergine flesh diced
• 250 gms ready cooked quinoa
• 100 gms crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tbsp chopped chives
• 2 tbsp Stokes Red Onion Marmalade
• 1tbsp Stokes Chilli Jam

Halve and de-seed the peppers, drizzle with rapeseed oil and roast on a medium heat for 15 minutes.

During this time soften the diced courgettes and aubergine. Then mix the cooked vegetables with the quinoa, feta, Red Onion Marmalade, Chilli Jam and chives. Stuff the peppers equally with the nix and return to the over to heat through for 5 to 7 minutes.


Swedish Meatballs

This is even easier that going to Ikea !

• 450 gms skinless pork sausage
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 1/2 tbsp Stokes Dijon Mustard
• 300 ml tub of half fat crème fraîch
• 1 tbsp Stokes Mustard & Dill Sauce
•  Mashed potato with Stokes Creamed Horseradish Sauce

 Roll the sausage meat into 2 cm balls and brown in some rapeseed oil for 7 minutes or so.

Add, stirring in the garlic, mustard, dill & mustard sauce and crème fraîch, bubbling gently to thicken the sauce for 10 minutes or so. Now for the mash, add a tbsp of Stokes Creamed Horseradish Sauce to buttery mashed potato to serve with the meatballs.

You won't even have to explain the hangers, vases and storage boxes you really didn't need.

Smashed Avocado

As Australian as a billabong or boomerang, but you don't swim in it and it won't come back.

This has become something of a phenomena down under where something quick, tasty and healthy is the order of the day for anyone enjoying their outdoor lifestyle.

The ingredients are really what you want them to be but the core is clearly ripe avocado(s). You literally crush them (they say smash, hmm) - don't slice them or blend them and layer as much as you like onto toasted bread of your choice.

Then it really is up to you.

We've tried it a couple of ways and enjoy folding some crumbled feta cheese and a good tablespoon of Stokes Real Mayonnaise into the 'smashed' avocado and spreading it thickly of toasted grainy wholemeal bread. Then add a couple of slices of crispy smoked streaky bacon topped with a beautifully runny poached egg.

Without the egg, try making a salsa of tomatoes, peppers, olives and Stokes Chilli Jam all tossed in oil to serve on the side. Also, try running a little Stokes Hoisin Sauce through the assembled 'smash'.

For Burns Night celebrations and a Tomato & Whisky sauce, click here.

For the healing powers of turmeric and amazing Piccalilli, please click here.

If good food makes you happy
...adding Stokes will make you smile ;)

 FOOD MADE BETTER 

www.stokessauces.co.uk

01394 462150