Take a Culinary Tour of Lincolnshire

Enjoy Fish, Sage Sausage, Plum Bread and Ostrich in Lincoln County

Nov 15, 2009

Famous for its sage seasoned sausages, Lincolnshire is also the home of a great plum bread and UK's most advanced fish market at Grimsby. It even has an ostrich farm.

Lincolnshire is positioned on the East Midlands coast and is home to the UK’s most advanced wholesale fish market at the Port of Grimsby. It is also the place where Lincolnshire sausage, packed with local pork, is traditionally made. The regional plum bread is delicious with a cup of tea and the ostrich farm at Moorby, near Boston, is also well worth a visit.

The Port of Grimsby’s Fish Market

The Grimsby Fish Market is said to be the UK’s most advanced wholesale fish market. It is where many fishing boats from the North Sea, Scandinavia and Iceland send their catch to be sold at auction. However, there are also several family run fish merchants in and around the docks that sell their daily catch in family sized portions.

There are also several smokehouses based in the area that supply all manner of smoked fish. Frozen Grimsby fish can also be bought online from several specialist websites and delivered to a home address. However, the internet shops generally only deliver fish within the UK because of the problems of preservation.

Try Traditional Lincolnshire Sausage

Traditional Lincolnshire sausage is made with local pork, breadcrumbs, sage and other seasonings then encased in natural hog skins. The manufacturers of this regional delicacy are currently trying to emulate the success of the manufacturers of Melton Mowbray pork pies by campaigning to have the name "Lincolnshire sausage" granted protective geographic identity status by the EU Commission. This will mean that only those sausages made in the county will be able to be named Lincolnshire.

In celebration of the sausage the local Rotary Club, along with other business and community groups, has organised an annual sausage festival over the last few years. Set in the grounds of Lincoln Castle which dates back to Norman times, the festival provides a showcase for local butchers to sell not only sausages, but other meats such as venison and beef as well as cheese.

Ostrich Burger and Plum Bread for Tea

Plum bread is a local Lincolnshire delicacy and is essentially a bread made with yeast and milk to which prunes, currants, sultanas and various spices are added before baking. It is delicious when lightly toasted then smeared with a generous dollop of butter and washed down with a strong brew of English tea.

The Oslinc Ostrich Farm is at Moorby, Boston, near to Horncastle and has a farm shop selling organically raised ostrich products such as eggs, steaks, fillets, sausages and mince. As well as using the livestock for meat, the farm also sells ostrich feather dusters and some cosmetics made using ostrich oil. These products are also available for purchase online.

Whilst taking a culinary tour of Lincolnshire, or if the idea of plum bread, ostrich meat, fish or sausages does not appeal, why not consider taking a gourmet look at the traditional foods available in the nearby counties of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire?

The copyright of the article Take a Culinary Tour of Lincolnshire in European Culinary Travel is owned by Elaine Findlay. Permission to republish Take a Culinary Tour of Lincolnshire in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.