the key to success
Fergus Martin, Executive Chef of Wyboston Lakes and Craft Guild of Chefs Culinary Academy Team Manager gives us an insight to the people and products that ‘make it happen’ at Wyboston Lakes.
“I am the executive chef for Wyboston Lakes a 103-bedroom hotel with a conference suite and a new spa opening in September. While the 120-bedroom Wyboston Executive Centre focuses more on large conferences and training events the 183-bedroom Wyboston Training Centre caters for longer, more specialist training events. Each venue has dedicated delegate dining rooms capable of catering for 200-300 people in each venue.
An integral part of the three-star Wyboston Lakes Hotel is the AA rosette winning Waterfront Restaurant and Bar which serves an eclectic mix of meals with a day easy eating’ bar menu, a new daily lunch package and daily-changing specials to complement the à la carte menu. The new menus, which change quarterly, and the extra emphasis on casual dining reflects an increase in trade at the hotel.
Catering at Wyboston Lakes has to be diverse to cater for the different expectations of our clients, I use Major products in helping me meet the challenges posed by such a variety of outlets. Time is precious & having a great set of products that can be used in various ways and perform to a high standard is key to success.
Stocks and sauces are the backbone of any kitchen operation, adding depth and flavour to dishes, but, as every chef knows, making them from scratch is a time consuming process, especially if the catering operation is as large as Wyboston Lakes.
To assist in relieving the pressure, but without compromising on quality, we use a wide range of Major products. The mari bases, when used for marinating over night give a depth of flavour that is fantastic.
The meaty and vegetarian gravies have an incredible flavour used on their own but we tend to add a reduction of wine or fresh herbs to turn them from an excellent gravy into a sauce that will compliment other food ingredients .We just like to use it in our own way.
Major Demi-Glace is a great base from which to start creating with it’s texture, flavour and colour providing a great starting point. For example, to create a port sauce - sweat mirepoix of vegetable, add and reduce your port, add your made up demi then simmer & strain to get the rich colour & great shine of a good sauce.
We also use the Major Stock Base Concentrated Pastes with a range that covers everything from my favourite, Mediterranean Vegetable to Turkey for intense flavour during the festive season.
The glace range is great for that finishing touch. From vegetable glace to enhance sauces and add flavour to soups, through to shellfish glace to enhance a shellfish broth. For dishes such as chicken provincial a squeeze of chicken glace at the end lifts the flavour. The fact they are in squeezy bottles means no wastage and easy to control portions.
The use of Major products in my kitchens does not mean that we are compromising, as some chefs might think. The products are excellent and have a place in all elements of my operation”.
Fergus Martin Executive Chef, Wyboston Lakes
