An award-winning Middleton chippy has won no less than nine prizes at a prestigious national competition.
But the recognition wasn’t for their mouth-watering fish and chips on this occasion, but for their equally delicious homemade pies.
Middleton-in-Teesdale Fish & Chip Shop entered a selection of their savoury pastry treats in the British Pie Awards, which took place in Melton Mowbray last week.
Lydia Sunter and Amelia Scott, who make the chippy’s in-demand pies, attended the event in Leicestershire.
“We were shortlisted for the supreme champion prize,” said owner Lydia. “We didn’t receive the accolade but against 1,040 pies we were in the top 78 and, in total, received nine awards!”
Middleton’s hugely-popular chippy entered categories for specific pie recipes and for categories dedicated to pie-selling chip shops like theirs.
Awards won included a highly commended and a gold for their chicken curry pie; silver and bronze for steak and kidney in red wine, and bronze for their latest creation, curried goat.
Explaining the inspiration behind that recipe, Lydia said: “Every year we go to Jamaica for our holidays and they have a lot of curried goat there, so that’s where the influence has come for that.”
“I come up with the recipes myself,” she added. “Apart from the Hairy Bikers’ Cornish pie, they are all our own creations that we like to eat ourselves.
“Amelia and I make the pastry, which is my nana’s recipe and it was passed on to me by my mother.
“We pride ourselves on good quality, homemade food and the ingredients are sourced from my brother David’s farm over in Wensleydale.”
Including Lydia and Amelia, a dedicated team of six works at Middleton-in-Teesdale Fish & Chip Shop, which attracts lots of return visitors, especially once the weather warms up.
“We’re a destination point for people, I would say,” explained Lydia. “We have quite a few motorbike groups that come here on special trips and then there’s regular groups from places like Sunderland and Newcastle that come down.
“Generally, we get excellent feedback,” she added. “We have a lot that come back and say they’re the best fish and chips they’ve ever had, especially the older generation. And nothing’s too much trouble, if somebody wants something in particular, I will do it if I can.”
