Some time ago, we were sent a luxury Christmas hamper to review. We remembered that one of the highlights was the jar Tracklements condiment that was contained within. So we were very happy indeed to be sent a wonderful (and much larger) selection of Tracklements products to try out.
The Wiltshire-based company have such a fabulous array of small-batch, hand-made items on their website – mustards, relishes, jellies, fruit cheeses, sauces and the like. They have an ever-expanding range – currently over 60 products.
It was difficult to choose. However, we did manage to make our selections… eventually!
We love our food here at H is for Home headquarters and cooking and baking most days. Justin eats meat and Adelle is veggie. Some meals we share, on other occasions we go our separate ways. The Tracklements condiment range suits us both – in fact, they’re suitable for all kinds of dietary preferences and tastes.
Some of their flavours are punchy & robust, others are subtle & delicate. There are lots of different colours, consistencies and textures to experience… and experiment with! They match perfectly with a huge array of dishes, be it vegetables, meat or fish.
As you might expect, they’re particularly suited to serve on the side of cheeses, hot & cold meat selections, burgers, kebabs, sausages, tempura and the like. However, they can also be incorporated into the dishes themselves. There are endless possibilities.
Justin couldn’t resist getting stuck in after receiving the delivery, pairing his lunchtime pork pie with the aromatic medlar jelly. The box had been unpacked less than 20 minutes earlier! And, a bonus factor for this item, their medlar jelly is made using fruit donated by the local community. For every jar they sell, they donate 50p towards buying bee-friendly medlar trees via their Plant a Tree, Save a Bee project.
We then spent the following week dipping into our Tracklements condiment ‘hoard’ whenever the opportunity arose.
Sometimes we kept things very simple – crispy, salty home-cooked chips dipped into a pot of their proper tomato ketchup, for example – what a treat! It’s made with juicy Italian tomatoes and a subtle blend of spices. It’s intensely flavoured, yet so well rounded and smooth – non of that acidic sharpness of some other ketchups. Sometimes, the simple things are hard to beat!
At the weekend, Justin combined his Sunday morning Porcus sausages with the quintessential brown sauce. He doesn’t throw just any old sauce over his lovingly cooked sausages, however, this rich and tangy concoction made with herbs, soy sauce, tamarind and dates was very worthy of its place on the plate! He’s a complete convert to this one as well.
Then there was a classic cheeseboard. This was a good opportunity to test the sticky fig relish and quince fruit cheese. Notes on the jars said that the relish was good with all manner of soft cheese and that the fruit cheese worked well with Manchego. Fortunately, we had both – and the folks at Tracklements weren’t wrong – it was absolutely delicious!
On other occasions, we added products during the cooking process. A generous dollop of the piquant Original Wiltshire mustard (the UK’s first wholegrain mustard) worked so well in our devilled mushroom sauce.
…and a spoonful of the Thai spice jelly in Justin’s chicken & pak choi noodles was the perfect too – the chillies, ginger, garlic and lemongrass flavours adding real zing.
If you fancy the sound of of their condiments but aren’t sure what to do with them, Tracklements have a dedicated web page with a range of recipes and serving suggestions.
In addition to the amazing flavours, we love the packaging too. There are various sizes and shapes of container… with very cute, quirky graphics on the labels. Who wouldn’t want these lovely bottles and jars in their kitchen or larder? Clear some space in the cupboard for these “proud pioneers of the pantry”.
What are your ‘go to’ condiments to have alongside your favourite foods?
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