Sheffield's Secret Sauce
Story by Ellen Beardmore
More hyper-specific recommendation requests: anyone know the restaurant scene in Vashon and North Bend, in Washington state? Would love any tips! In the meantime, enjoy the story below by Ellen Beardmore, and the links to fun food stories. -Katherine
Sheffield's Secret Sauce
By Ellen Beardmore
Every time Petty Officer Christopher Hastings of Great Britain prepares for his next spell at sea, he packs one item first. That precious cargo is his 12-week supply of Henderson’s Relish, a dark, peppery table sauce synonymous with Sheffield, in northern England.
At first, one bottle of Hendo’s, as it is known, was enough for 12 weeks on board the HMS Enterprise. But as his knowledge of the sauce’s versatility grew, the more PO Hastings needed to take. And then he started mailing it out to shipmates too.
“I’m a bit of a Hendo’s dealer,” he joked.
Hendo’s story started in 1885, when Henry Henderson concocted his first batch using tamarind, cayenne pepper, garlic, and cloves. The precise recipe remains a secret, and today is known only to three people in the family business.
Throughout Sheffield, the gluten-free, umami-rich relish is splashed over pies, into sauces, and over ramen. Novelty 31-ml bottles are used as wedding favors, for holidays, and to promote Sheffield’s major music festival, Tramlines.
Scott Philliskirk, head chef at Sheffield’s upscale West 10, makes a bespoke ketchup out of the condiment to elevate cheese boards. “I use it in pretty much everything. It’s like Yorkshire blood,” he said. “Hendo’s is discussed in every kitchen I have worked in; there’s always a bottle there.”
Once a local phenomenon, the popularity of peppery Hendo’s is now spreading globally. That’s due to enthusiastic expats, cookbooks, and online shopping, yes.
But also because of an extraordinary Parliamentary row.
In 2014 then-MP Jim Dowd claimed to never have heard of the sauce and said that it was trying to mimic the rival (or enemy) Worcestershire sauce.
The backlash from fans was spectacular.
Dowd was forced to eat his blasphemous words, as well as some Hendo’s, on a reparative visit up north.
Of course, Henderson’s isn’t afraid of inviting comparison, when it’s done on its own terms. “Like Worcester sauce, but one million times better,” screams the website’s homepage. As the company grows, we’ll see if non-Sheffielders agree.
More Food Media:
Hummus disappeared from print for 500 years. That’s wild to me.
Jennifer Billock on the ACTUAL pizza styles of Chicago.
I like this. Not only is it good for the environment, but it will prevent a lot of hurt feelings. (Three sets of chopsticks for my solo sushi order? Screw you, man.)
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This newsletter is edited by Katherine Spiers, host of the podcast Smart Mouth.
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Thanks for sharing my pizza article! So many styles get overlooked in the city.
Oddly enough, a couple of years ago I ordered a pair of handmade tailors' shears from a company in Sheffield (William Whiteley) and it came (to the US) with a bottle of Henderson's Relish. I had never heard about it and neither had my born and bred British husband.