The Backyard Picklery with Patrick & Francesca

Can you give us a little bit of the story behind The Backyard Picklery

The Backyard Picklery started a little over 2 months ago, but the idea of it started late last year.  After getting engaged we (Patrick & Francesca) wanted something we could do together to support our future family and which would be our creation and made through our own hard work.

Patrick has always been interested in food and you can definitely see where he gets his passion: his father building his own food industry business has been a great role model and a wonderful support to him.  Where Patrick is the major "brain" behind all our creations, I am more the quality assurance girl, second opinion person, and let's not forget work minion!

But we both love food and experimenting and we get to do all the things we love together and give people food they can enjoy!

Why pickling

(Patrick) Firstly, I love pickles & jams!  Everything about them is amazing: from the way they taste to the way you make them.

The fact that you can make something in Summer and be able to enjoy it in Winter is just great.  So I think we chose to do pickles because it's just something we both enjoy making AND it's something that lasts beyond a season.

Pickling traditionally were derived from the need to not "waste" anything.  What has been one of the more unusual experiments that you have done which despite/inspite of the odds works and is a seller for you

As we are only starting out we really haven't done much experimenting (yet). Everything we have tried so far has worked out.  Our chilli onion marmalade would have to be our most unusual product (so far) and it's our best seller!

Firstly because it's unusual and secondly because it tastes amazing.  It's absolutely packed with flavour and goes great in anything from salads to steak sandwiches.

So despite (or inspite perhaps) people saying it is different and "out there", it's loved and we have to make more every couple of weeks to keep the stock available.

What is it about market life that keeps it real for you

Selling at market is way more personal than selling to a name or a number over the internet.

You put faces to names, you watch customers return and tell you how they used the product they bought and how much they enjoyed them.

Market life isn't just about setting up early in the morning, selling your product and then packing up again.

You are part of a community, building relationships with everyone around you.  And we can honestly say if wasn't for the markets, we wouldn't have gotten to know the people we have in our lives now, or be open to the opportunities we have been able to be part of.

The markets are an eye opener to culture, peoples lives and others ideas!  We learned so much and been given so many ideas from simply having conversations with people about food!

No week is ever the same.  THAT and the relationships you build....that is what keeps it real!

How would you sum up the world of The Backyard Picklery in 5 words

Relationships
Exciting
New Ideas
Creative
Passion

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So now you've read it, we reckon it's time to get in and taste these wonders!  But where to find?  SIMPLES!  Just go in to the hall and there you are....they have insane samples, sensational packaging and if you know what's good for you, you'll not just sample you will buy up BIIIIG!

Huge shoutout and thanks to the crew from The Backyard Picklery for not only sharing some of their time with us, but for being soldiers and purveyors of all things jams, salts and pickles!