THERE’S still gold to be found at Hill End, although now it comes in a slightly different format.
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Matthew Clarke, chef at the Hill End General Store, was awarded a gold medal for his Irish Stew Pies in the Great Aussie Pie Competition, which was held in Victoria earlier this month.
A chef by trade, Mr Clarke has only recently expanded into manufacturing pies, and 12-months ago established his pie company Vardo Pies.
This year he enjoyed success in the Commercial Bakery section of the Royal Bathurst Show, which gave him confidence to build on his product.
“For me [to win] at the Bathurst Show was huge, given I’m a chef, not a baker,” he said.
“The last time I won an award was for maths in Year 5,” he laughed.
“But this win gave me confidence to try my hat in the ring on a national level,” he said.
So he put his pies to the test and entered six of his best in the Great Aussie Pie Competition in Melbourne earlier this month.
He freighted six pies overnight to Melbourne including plain, curry beef, chicken and veg, beef bourguignon, Moroccan Vegetable hotpot and lamb Irish stew.
“For me [to win] at the Bathurst Show was huge, given I’m a chef, not a baker. The last time I won an award was for maths in Year 5. But this win gave me confidence to try my hat in the ring on a national level.
- Matthew Clarke
Much to his delight every pie placed with a medal, with plain, curry beef and chicken veg placing bronze, beef bourguignon and Moroccan Vegetable Hotpot receiving silver medals each and Lamb Irish stew receiving a gold.
Mr Clarke said he was rapt with the results.
“We are just a small pie company with myself, my wife and one employee and our six month baby son strapped on my back while we’re working.
“It’s so good to see these results, everyone just tries to do their best,” he said.
Mr Clarke said he loves to cook and every time he makes a pie he thinks about creating a meal and then wrapping it in pastry.
He said in the future he wants to continue his passion for cooking and continue to push new culinary boundaries.