I recently met with Chris Smith. A decade ago he was asked by acquaintances of his late parents' (St John and Dolly) if he had the recipes for the Indian pickles his mother made (from her mother-in-law, Gertrude's recipes). They had quite a following amongst the alumni of the schools his father had taught at in India. Chris duly located the recipes and although he'd never made them before, he followed the recipes which had been perfected over many years and started producing the pickles of a standard his mother and grandmother would have been proud of. He initially sold them to those who had known his parents, then gradually expanded and is now producing pickles full-time. Still everything is made by Chris in small batches; using the finest ingredients, prepared and cooked by hand.
St. John & Dolly's pickles (as Chris named them) regularly receive awards, and have been joined by some hot sauces Chris invented himself. Chris is a fascinating chap and incredibly passionate about what he does. He is at least the third generation of his family to be following the same recipes. How many producers can claim that sort of heritage? His wonderful pickles are now on sale here at
Tastes Delicatessen in Eton.
