Unthank Hall Traditional Meats

Home
United Kingdom
Holmesfield
Unthank Hall Traditional Meats

Good, honest meat from our farm 🐄
Home-reared, grass-fed 🌿
Meat boxes delivered 📦
🌿 Free recipe booklet

19/06/2026

Quick question for you 👋

How much freezer space do you actually have at home?

We ask because we get a lot of people saying they'd love to order but aren't sure if they have enough room — and honestly it's one of the most common things that puts people off buying direct from a farm.

So we thought we'd help you figure it out 😊

As a rough guide:

🥩 Quarter Dexter beef (approx 22-25kg) — 2-3 standard freezer drawers
🐑 Whole hogget (approx 18-22kg) — 2-3 standard freezer drawers
🐷 Mixed freezer box (from £45) — fits in 1 drawer easily

If you're not ready for a big reserve just yet, our freezer boxes are the perfect place to start. From £45 and ready to order now.

Drop a ❤️ below if you've got a big chest freezer or a 😂 if you're working with two drawers and a prayer like the rest of us!

Charlotte & Daniel
Unthank Hall Farm, Holmesfield, Derbyshire 🌿

18/06/2026

This is the reality behind farming…

We often get asked about how we feed our pigs.

They’re outdoors, but they can’t live on grass alone — they need a balanced diet with the right vitamins and minerals to grow properly and stay healthy.

So yes, they are fed pig nuts as part of their diet.

The main cost here is for the growing pigs (£402), along with a couple of bags of sow feed.

There are also a few bits on there for other animals — chicken and sheep feed — as it all comes in together.

It’s not something people often see, but it’s a big part of producing pork properly.

Different animals have different needs, and getting that balance right is important — even when it comes at a cost.

We’re not sharing this to complain — just to show what goes into it.

It’s all part of doing things the right way.

Charlotte & Dan x

16/06/2026

We've just put together a free recipe booklet and we wanted to share it with you 🌿

Three recipes we actually cook at home using our own meat:

🥩 Beef Stifado — the one-pot slow cooker wonder my sister-in-law introduced me to. Even the boys love it.
🐷 Pork Tacos — 35 minutes, the whole family devours them every time.
🐑 Dukkah Roasted Hogget — if you saw yesterday's post you'll know this one already!

Completely free — no catch. Just pop your email in and we'll send it straight to you.

👇 Link in bio or go to:
unthank-meat.co.uk/free-recipe-booklet-from-our-farm-kitchen

Charlotte & Daniel

15/06/2026

One of you mentioned dukkah and hogget in the comments this week and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since 😍

So here's my favourite way to cook hogget shoulder — dukkah roasted hogget on a bed of aubergines with a Greek yogurt, mint and feta dressing, served on flatbreads. It sounds fancy. It really isn't.

You need:

For the hogget:
— Hogget shoulder (ours obviously 😄)
— Dukkah spice blend — I use the M&S one and it's brilliant
— 2 aubergines sliced into rounds
— Olive oil, salt, pepper
— Flatbreads

For the dressing:
— 200g Greek yogurt
— Good handful of fresh mint, finely chopped
— 100g feta cheese, crumbled
— Squeeze of lemon
— Pinch of salt

How to do it:
1. Preheat your oven to 160°C
2. Lay your sliced aubergines in a deep roasting tin — drizzle with olive oil, season well
3. Rub your hogget shoulder generously all over with dukkah and a good drizzle of olive oil
4. Sit the hogget on top of the aubergines
5. Cover tightly with foil and roast low and slow — 3.5 to 4 hours until it's falling apart
6. Remove the foil for the last 30 minutes to get that gorgeous crust on top
7. While it rests, mix together the Greek yogurt, chopped mint, crumbled feta and a squeeze of lemon
8. Pull the hogget apart and pile onto warm flatbreads with the roasted aubergines
9. Drizzle the yogurt dressing generously over the top

The aubergines soak up all the juices from the hogget as it cooks. The dukkah gives it this incredible nutty, spiced crust. And that yogurt, mint and feta dressing cuts through the richness perfectly — it's cool and creamy against the warm, spiced meat.

This is the kind of meal that makes people go quiet at the table. In a good way 😂

Our next hogget is available 6th July — pre-order now so you've got it ready:
https://www.unthank-meat.co.uk/rare-breed-hogget-boxes

Save this one 🙏

Charlotte & Daniel

14/06/2026

Sunday question for you 👇

If you came to Open Farm Sunday last weekend — what was your favourite bit? The animals? The burgers? Meeting the team?

And if you couldn't make it — what would make you come next year? We genuinely want to know so we can make it even better 🙏

Drop your answers below — we read every single one.

Charlotte & Daniel

13/06/2026

A little farm update for your Saturday evening 🐄

Been out checking the cows today and honestly they are absolutely loving life right now. The field they're on is like an all you can eat buffet — the grass is SO long and lush. They're doing brilliantly.

The virtual fence collars are working a treat — a couple of them are still testing the boundaries and getting the odd pulse when they push too far, but they're learning. The only thing we need to sort is the collars are getting a little tight as some of them have grown a bit since we put them on 😅 So we've got a day booked in to check and adjust them all. Growing cows — it's a good problem to have!

And then there's Raymond. 🐑

Raymond is our Ryeland tup — that's a male sheep for anyone not in the know. He lives with the cows at the minute because, well, he genuinely thinks he's a cow. Not a sheep. A cow. He can't go in with the ewes just yet so he's made himself very at home with the herd and honestly they've just accepted him.

Unfortunately poor Raymond has been hobbling about the last couple of days. Found him yesterday with a swollen leg — looks like an abscess. He's had anti-inflammatories and antibiotics and we're keeping a close eye on him. Fingers crossed he's feeling better today 🤞

This is farm life. It's not always pretty but we love every bit of it.

Charlotte & Daniel

11/06/2026

Can I ask — have you ever heard of hogget? 🐑

Because every single time I mention it, I get a blank look. And honestly I get it — most people have never come across it.

So let me explain.

Hogget is sheep that's older than lamb but younger than mutton. Ours are Ryeland sheep — and if you know your breeds, Ryelands are basically the Dexters of the sheep world. Renowned for incredible flavour, easy to keep, and a proper old British breed that deserves far more attention than it gets.

We keep ours until they're between one and two years old — two full summers on Derbyshire grass. That extra time makes all the difference. The flavour is richer and deeper than lamb, without being as strong as mutton. Right in the middle. And honestly it's our favourite thing we produce.

Here's something most people don't know — older, more mature animals like hogget are actually more nutritionally dense than younger animals. More omega-3 fatty acids. More conjugated linoleic acid. A richer, more complex fat profile. Because they've spent more time out on grass, their bodies have had longer to develop all those good things. You're not just getting better flavour — you're getting better food.

It's one of those meats that's almost completely disappeared from British tables — supermarkets don't stock it because it takes time and patience. Which is exactly why we love it.

We're expanding our hogget this year — planning small, half and full hogget boxes available monthly, just like our beef. Next hogget is ready 6th July and you can pre-order now.

Drop a 🙋 below if you've never heard of hogget before. And a ❤️ if you've tried it and loved it. I'm genuinely curious!

Charlotte & Daniel

10/06/2026

This weekend we sold a whole cow, a half cow, and a quarter cow 🐄

And today — before I'd even had chance to post about it — another quarter box pre-order came in.

From our little farm in Holmesfield, Derbyshire. Delivered nationwide. I genuinely love this.

This is our Dexter reserve. You reserve a share of one of our Dexter cattle — whole, half, or quarter. It's the best value way to fill your freezer with beef you know everything about. Which field it grazed in. Which farm it came from. Which farmers reared it.

And here's the bit people don't always know — you can tell us your preferred cuts. More steaks? Done. Extra joints for Sunday roasts? No problem. Prefer more mince and less braising steak? Just say. We work with our butcher to make sure your box is packed the way YOU want it.

That's us by the way. Charlotte and Daniel. Hi 👋

Pre-orders are open now for our 6th July run — and we don't take a penny from your card until your order is actually delivered. So there's no risk in reserving your share today.

Nationwide delivery, local delivery from us personally, or click and collect from the farm.

Link in bio to pre-order or just DM us — we're real people and we actually reply 😊

Charlotte & Daniel

09/06/2026

WE HAD THE BEST DAY ON SUNDAY 🙏

Open Farm Sunday at Unthank Hall Farm was everything we hoped it would be — and more. So many of you came out, met the animals, ate burgers and just made us feel so incredibly grateful for the community we've got around this farm.

Honestly. It means the world.

We'd love to see YOUR photos from Sunday 📸 Drop them in the comments, tag us, or send them over — we want to see all of them. The animals, the kids, the burgers, all of it.

And if you couldn't make it this year — we'll be doing it again. Watch this space 👀

Charlotte & Daniel 🌿

07/06/2026

Today’s the day — Open Farm Sunday is here 👍

We’re really looking forward to welcoming everyone to the farm today.

Come and have a wander round, meet the animals and see a little bit of what we get up to here day to day.

You’ll see Dan, Oliver, James & myself around the farm — so do come and say hello if you spot us 😊

We’ve got the farm talk running from **10am–12pm**, the BBQ will be on using our own beef and pork, and we’ll also have fresh grass-fed Dexter beef available, along with frozen mince deals to take home.

There’s free parking in the field on site, and all location details are in your booking information.

If you haven’t booked yet, there’s still time:
👉 unthank-meat.co.uk/openfarm

Looking forward to seeing you all today 😊

Address

Unthank Hall Farm
Holmesfield
S187WF

Telephone

+447921251634

Website

https://linktr.ee/unthankmeats

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Unthank Hall Traditional Meats posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Hotel

Send a message to Unthank Hall Traditional Meats:

Shortcuts

Want your hotel to be the top-listed Hotel in Holmesfield?