Waikanae Butchery wins gold for its white pudding

TEAM EFFORT: The award winning Waikanae Butchery team, back left, Joe Newell, Mike Posa, Keith Wiseman, Mike Smith, Bredan Jervis, from left, Roy Marshall, Hinewai Fraserr, owner Andrew Stroombergen.

Waikanae Butchery has an impressive new award to add to its collection.

The butchery won a gold medal in the Great New Zealand Sausage Competition, run by Retail Meat New Zealand, held at Fresh Factory, Mt Eden, Auckland on Thursday October 13.

Butchery owner Andy Stroombergen, who attended the awards night with his partner Hilary Weber, was presented with a golden forked sausage trophy after his business won a gold medal in the black pudding/rounds category for its white pudding.

There was 500 entries in the competition in various categories, from about 75 companies.

"We're very happy," said Mr Stroombergen, whose company also entered its Italian farmhouse sausage and duck sausage in the awards.

"It's another accolade to go with the three gold medals we've got [in recent years].

"We got first in the pork section of the sausage competition two years in a row.

"And we got one for our white wine and fennel sausages."

Mr Stroombergen said the white pudding was traditionally known as a mealy pudding made from oatmeal.

"But we put chicken in our one with lots of cream, and fresh onion.

"From the lips to the hips it tastes real good.

"We've been doing the pudding for a good five years but it hasn't necessarily been a big seller, but I think it should be.

"People just don't know enough about it.

"They just think it's another derivative of black pudding.

"For cooking [frying], you want it crispy on the outsides, and soft in the middle."

Mr Stroombergen, 51, who has been the owner of the Waikanae Butchery for 10 and a half years, has been involved the butchery industry since he left St Patrick's College, Wellington at the age of 16.

He started work in a butcher's shop in Hataitai, then one in Newlands, then his own shop in Island Bay at age 22, then a shop in Petone, ran the meat section in Woolworths Crofton Downs, then a shop in Newtown, his own shop in Kelburn [where he won third prize for a venison sausage in the first sausage competition], a shop in Cannon's Creek, and now Waikanae Butchery where he employs a team of six.