From Earth to Plate: Putting Our Principles of Living Thoughtfully, Responsibly, Well into Practice

This is the second in our series on living thoughtfully, responsibly, well — the principles that guide life and work at The Dysart Petersham.

They shape how we think, what we do, how we do it. For us, this way of living is the same as living sustainably, with an essential added dimension:

experience, enjoyment, and pleasure.

There is much to be said for linking sustainability and pleasure — for making thoughtful living not an obligation, but a joy. A way of life, lived pleasurably.

MD Barny Taylor

We summed up our approach in our first article on Living Well… Living Sustainably:

Purity – taste – touch – smell – sight
Traditional craft – passion – skill

In this second article, we begin to explore what that means in practice for our sourcing of our ingredients:

• finding the finest and freshest seasonal ingredients;
• respecting what nature provides;
• working with suppliers who share our values of ethical husbandry and care for land, plants, animals and fish;
• celebrating vegetables and herbs grown naturally, without additives — pure, healthy, and full of life.

ROOTED IN THE EARTH

Our simple ambition — to give pleasure and a wonderful experience responsibly — begins in the soil.

Why we choose our suppliers, our commitment to quality and flavour, our keenness to help in the protection of life in and from the soil are all rooted in one truth: that wellbeing of the earth leads directly to the wellbeing of everything that grows from it, including us.

Head Chef Kenneth Culhane

Science now reveals what was long understood intuitively: the soil is alive and precious. 

Within it, millions of organisms intertwine with vitality, in a dance of creation and renewal, at one and the same time: complex, elegant in their ingenuity and capabilities, intelligent in ways we are only beginning to understand, creating networks of communication it has taken humans thousands of years to approach, benign and ruthless.

When the soil is healthy, so is what it gives and food tastes as it should.

There is a direct link between the health of soil, water, and air, and the quality of what we eat:

• its flavour and freshness
• its balance and character
• that sense of “simple rightness” that feels both new and familiar, like remembering something almost lost.

Food and drink taste better; life is lived better — for all.

OUR SOURCING PHILOSOPHY

We seek out farmers, growers, and artisans who see themselves as custodians rather than owners, people with passion, patience and belief in the importance of the soil and the natural environment.

For too long over recent decades, that soil is an enduring resource has been taken for granted, but as extremes of weather and loss of biodiversity remind us, this is not inevitable. Respect for life, for the intricate, thrilling web of organisms in soil and water is essential.

Older cultures understood this without the aid of science. 

They gave honour to the arrival of Spring, feared its delay and gave thanks for renewal. Reverence for the earth was not superstition; it was gratitude and necessity, with an instinctive duty to give back as much as was taken, or preferably more.

That duty remains. Science now confirms what our ancestors knew without it: that moderation, balance and respect are essential to life’s continuity. Science has awakened a new curiosity, thrown light on the complexities of life in soil and its potential for many wider aspects of human life, at the same time deepening its mysteries.

At The Dysart Petersham, we apply these principles practically in how we source our ingredients. We build long-standing relationships with suppliers who share our philosophy — people who put belief into practice.

We look for organic and biodynamic methods, and for natural, responsible husbandry that restores as much as it takes. We value those who enrich their land, who understand the roles of hedgerows, weeds and wildflowers, who celebrate the return of flora and fauna once lost, who take care in the welfare of life on land and in the sea, espousing moderation.

“Putting back” is not a slogan. It is a principle, a way of ensuring flavour, nutrition, and the long-term health of the land.

Principles are universal; practice is particular. What matters is knowledge – local, intimate understanding of each plot, how the season effects it and of the part of the sea bed they fish.

“Our connection with suppliers is close and constant. We know where our ingredients come from and how they are grown, or nurtured. We accept only what feels right and shows the natural link between soil, nurture, responsible husbandry, flavour and health. 

The result – simple rightness of taste. How underrated ‘simple rightness’ is, how humble a concept, how important”.

Head Chef Kenneth Culhane

FROM EARTH TO PLATE

Convenience has broken the natural connection between wellbeing of soil and water, wellbeing of ingredients, our wellbeing – and pleasure. 

We live in a time when “fresh” food is often anything but, treated to prolong shelf life, losing the very vitality that gives flavour and nourishment.

The link between human beings, seasons, and nature has been weakened by the apparent ease of global supply, which carries its own disbenefits. We have been seduced by convenience and presentation, forgetting that true freshness cannot be wrapped in plastic, or delayed by chemicals and cold storage.

Reconnecting is a revelation. A potato still with soil clinging to it, herbs just cut, greens still cool from the morning; these small, apparently humdrum, details restore the immediacy of nature.

“All our ingredients come from small farms, smallholdings, gardens, fisheries, individual divers; from individuals with patience and pride, from people who understand land and sea and love their craft. They work in rhythm with the seasons and the weather. We speak with them daily to learn what is at its best that morning.

Head Chef Kenneth Culhane

By sourcing directly, we bypass the anonymity of standard food chains and ‘standardised’ varieties, in favour of a network of belief and care, where flavour is the natural outcome of thoughtfulness.

OUR COMMON GROUND

The essential link between the wellbeing of soil and our wellbeing and pleasure prompts the question: 

Where will our children be if the soil becomes impoverished, or lifeless?

Beneath us lies a world of astonishing abundance — teeming with life we barely comprehend. The soil is the foundation for everything that lives on land. Humanity is only one small part of that system, dependent upon it utterly, yet has seen itself triumphantly ‘above it’.

We must cherish it, learn from it, and give back to it. Too long have we acted as if improvement means domination, as if nature could be endlessly taken from, “enhanced”, or replaced.

Industrial methods, the ‘wrong’ fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides, the monoculture led by convenience, the loss of hedgerows have stripped vitality and diversity from so much of the land. In pursuit of abundance and ‘efficiency’, overproduction in the wrong places and waste have been encouraged, mistaking quantity for quality.

Just some of the results have been:

• flavour lost
• individuality diminished
• wisdom forgotten.

Happily, not everywhere.

REMEMBERING, HONOURING, APPLYING

Some farmers and artisans still hold fast to ancient understanding of balance and moderation, guided by instinct, respect and now by science and by growing experience of its benefits beyond just food. They remind us that we are not separate from nature, but part of it. There is real hope that the growing rediscovery of this will spread and spread.

At The Dysart Petersham, our task is to remember and apply that wisdom, to bring it into the present moment, to do our bit. It is about searching for the best, for the ingredients that express their place and season; for flavours, scents and textures that are alive, balanced and as we remember them.

This is not nostalgia for a rural past. It is a rational, principled and scientific necessity.

Although it merges beautifully with ancient practical and moral principles, it is forward-looking and full of optimism.

We cook simply, with restraint and respect, allowing natural flavours to sing. We waste nothing, using classical training and craft to let purity and joy shine through.

Purity – taste – touch – smell – sight
Traditional craft – passion – skill

So, let’s add:

Balance – restraint – responsibility – joy

These are not abstractions but the foundation of how we live, cook and serve. They reflect our belief that good food, well sourced and thoughtfully prepared, is one of the most joyful ways of living responsibly.

LIVING THOUGHTFULLY, RESPONSIBLY, WELL

In all we do, we look for shared values and good practice — for the present and for the future.

It all starts with the earth: healthy soil, treated with care, respect for what we put in and take out, moderation and responsibility.

From this comes flavour and fulfilment  and a deep sense of continuity.

“We and the team look forward with optimism, because living thoughtfully, responsibly, well is not just a philosophy, it’s a simple way of life, rooted in the soil beneath our feet, sustained by gratitude, expressed with joy and through the welcome we offer. 

MD Barny Taylor and Head Chef Kenneth Culhane