THE GRILL
meat.” I snorted like an Old Spot and the
turkeys on London’s festive menus started
high-fiving, or rather three-toeing.
He explains his rationale. The influx of
cheap meat means something unsustainable
and unethical is going on. “If meat is that
cheap to produce and sell it is being bred in
a bad way in a bad place. You have to ask
where has it come from and how?”
Turner, who lives in Deptford, is mainly
ethically reared meat from British native
breeds on independent farms.
“We dry-age in house on the bone for
flavour; make our own sausages and
burgers and combine it all with a
contemporary knowledge of taste and
cooking,” says Turner.
“The best butchers will tell you what cuts
work best for what you are looking to cook.
At Turner & George we go to the farms. If it
says it is a purebred Longhorn carcass we
want to make sure it is – traceability and
tracking is difficult, but so important. We
want farms that stay with their animals,
know their names.”
We are having coffee at Hawksmoor in
Borough, the converted Victorian hops
warehouse opposite the Borough Market
kitchen – that wonderfully eclectic mix of
London street food epicures.
I don’t know why I made our meeting
morning coffee rather than blagging myself
some Old Spot belly ribs for lunch. But this
was just before Christmas and there wasn’t a
table to be had.
Then out of the blue Turner announces:
“We eat too much meat, way too much
Meatopia
in the carnivore business, but is an
omnivore. He recognises the importance
of “plenty of vegetables on plates”
advocating more of a “flexitarian’
approach to diet and gets hugely
frustrated by how the debate has been
hijacked by extreme views. Debates, like
diets, need to be balanced and informed.
Turner the trencherman was born to wear
a butcher’s apron. But just when you thought
you’d gone through the entire menu, you
realise there is more – much more.
Meatopia is now in its eighth year in the
UK. Held at Tobacco Dock in London’s
Wapping this festival of meat, drink, fire and
music was brought over by Turner from the
USA, having been founded in New York by
the late, great food writer Josh Ozersky.
The menu over three days (September
4-6) is curated and unique dishes cooked in
front of you by leading chefs from around
the world. For 72 hours the meatbuck is the
only currency worth trading in.
“The real hero of Meatopia is the fire,”
says Turner.
It is an extraordinary spectacle of live fire
cooking and all senses are assailed. In
American Pie Don McLean sings that ‘Fire
is the devil’s only friend.’ You suspect if
Lucifer got hold of a ticket and a plate of
clinched salt-aged shorthorn beef he’d be
in heaven.
Turner has written five books. As well as
Hog there is its beef equivalent Prime; the
Pitt Cue cookbook and he co-authored,
alongside founders Huw Gott and Will
Beckett, Hawksmoor at Home, as well as
contributing to the Hawksmoor Restaurants
& Recipes book.
Turner is plain speaking – the army
and running kitchens are not for
shrinking violets – but modest about his
achievements. So let’s leave the last word
to one of his mentors, the three Michelin
starred Pierre Koffmann.
“I would trust Richard with my trotters.
He’s the master of meat.”
BBQ | Spring 2020 | 07