Farrington’s Mellow Yellow was founded in 2005 by the fourth-generation farmer Duncan Farrington. Born and brought up in the beautiful Northamptonshire village of Hargrave, following University, he returned to the farm to join his parents in the family business. However, it soon became clear that farming, driving tractors and growing crops would not be enough to sustain the family for a further four generations.
He returned to his University research into cold-pressed rapeseed oil, and a passion was awoken, which quickly turned into an obsession for the fantastic culinary and nutritional benefits packed into the tiny black seeds.
Following years of research, Duncan launched Farrington’s Mellow Yellow Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil in 2005 as the UK’s first seed-to-bottle rapeseed oil producer. With his mother’s help bottling the oil, he would drive around local shops trying to gain customers who still remain loyal to this day. Later, in their farmhouse kitchen, Duncan’s wife Eli expanded the range to include infused oils, such as our Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil and salad dressings, including a Honey & Mustard Dressing and Classic Vinaigrette. Today, the business has grown beyond anything Duncan could have imagined, being sold in shops and restaurants nationwide and abroad. Provenance remains as important as ever, with the same passion, attention to detail and quality going into every bottle.
Growing to the highest sustainable standards
Sustainability and the environment are at the heart of everything they do. All the rapeseed that goes into Farrington’s Mellow Yellow is grown to LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) Marque standards, a system designed to ensure environmentally responsible and sustainable farming methods. With solar panels, beehives, wildflower meadow margins, and beetle banks utilised on the farm to ensure that the environment is looked after, they ensure the countryside around them and the soil they grow their crops is nurtured and thrive.
In 2020, Farrington’s Mellow Yellow became the world’s first food producer to be certified as both carbon and plastic neutral. They are signatories of the United Nations Climate Neutral Now Initiative pledge and have achieved the Carbon Neutral Gold Standard verified by the United Nations. To become plastic neutral, they partnered with rePurpose Global and now fund the removal of the same amount of plastic from the environment as they use in all their packaging. In 2021, they were honoured to receive a Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development. This is the most prestigious business award in the UK.
Health matters
The Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil has half the saturated fat of olive and ten times the Omega 3, as well as naturally occurring vitamin E and plant sterols, making it a brilliantly healthy choice. Good fats (essential fatty acids) help reduce cholesterol levels and cold-pressed rapeseed oil is a fantastic source of these good fats.
In Your Kitchen
Mellow Yellow meets the high standards of professional kitchens. The versatility and exceptional cooking performance of the Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil is loved by chefs, allowing them to create delicious dishes time and time again. With a high smoke point and subtle, nutty, buttery flavour, our oil is ideal for all types of cooking and finishing.
With expertise that only years of experience can deliver, they pride themselves on producing the highest quality products, ensuring the best taste, versatility and performance. Farrington’s Mellow Yellow has led the growth of cold-pressed rapeseed oil in the UK for over 15 years, and their award-winning products have become kitchen staples. Their provenance, focus on sustainability and commitment to quality makes them the first choice for the most discerning chefs.
Available in 5-litre and 2-litre containers for foodservice, Farrington’s Mellow Yellow Rapeseed Oil, Oak Smoked Rapeseed Oil, Honey & Mustard Dressing and Classic Vinaigrette allow chefs and caterers to produce high-quality dishes with the finest ingredients.
Below are a few simple and deliciously healthy recipes you can create using this great tasting nutritional oil:
Frozen vegetables are almost like-for-like packed with just as much goodness as fresh. This is because they’re frozen at the optimum time, when they’re at their peak ripeness, locking in all the nutrients.
Vegetables are ‘quick-frozen’, a technique created by the captain himself, Clarence Birdseye. Way back in the 1920s, Birdseye decided to copy the Inuits in Alaska, who preserved their fish by freezing them quickly, which avoided large crystals from forming and damaging the cells and taste of the food.
Vegetables are between 70%-80% water, and once harvested, rapidly lose moisture. By quick-freezing vegetables it locks in the goodness and stops them from becoming soggy when thawed.
Nowadays, some vegetables are blanched just before freezing them, locking in goodness and killing any bad enzymes and bacteria. There are no chemicals involved, and there shouldn’t be anything added. If you do find added sugar, salt or preservatives, you’re buying the wrong frozen vegetables.
Why are they great for caterers? Well, they have a much longer shelf life, and in most cases, they’re cheaper. Fresh is great when it’s in season but in the UK, we’re only blessed with a short period of sunshine, and microclimates are hard to come by…
You can use frozen vegetables for so many different things, soups, risottos, mash alternatives, roasting, casseroles. Depending what you use them for will affect how you cook them. Steaming is always good and if you roast them, do so at a hot temperature, at least 200 degrees celsius, as this will help capture any excess moisture (just in case Birdseye’s technique has failed).
To give you a headstart on how best to use your frozen vegetables, here are a few ideas:
Halloumi Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 150g Halloumi
- 1 tbsp Farrington’s Mellow Yellow Rapeseed Oil
- ½ Small Red Onion, thinly sliced
- 125g Baby Plum Tomatoes, halved
- 150g Frozen Peas
- 250g Red & White Quinoa & Bulgar Wheat Mix (we use the pre-cooked pouches, but you can use your favourite grain and prepare according to package instructions)
- 2 tbsp Farrington’s Mellow Yellow Honey & Mustard Dressing
Method
- Take your peas out of the freezer and blanch them in boiling water to defrost. Cut your halloumi into thick slices, drizzle your Mellow Yellow Rapeseed Oil into a frying pan and heat up. Once hot, add your halloumi slices and fry on each side until golden. Remove from the pan and put to one side.
- Add your quinoa (or grain of your choice) to your salad bowl, add the blanched peas, sliced red onion, halved baby plum tomatoes and top with your fried halloumi.
- Drizzle with plenty of Farrington’s Mellow Yellow Honey & Mustard Dressing. Toss to combine and enjoy!
Chilli Aubergine Mozzarella Bake
Ingredients
- 2 large aubergines, cut into approximately 1cm thick slices
- 2 tbsp Mellow Yellow Chilli Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- 4 mozzarella balls, sliced into approximately 1cm thick slices
- 350g tomato pasta sauce (use your favourite jar of tomato sauce)
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Slice your aubergine into 1cm thick slices. Pour your chilli oil into a large roasting dish and add salt and pepper. Coat both sides of each slice of aubergine in the seasoned oil.
- Roast for 30 minutes, or until cooked through. Turn halfway through cooking.
- Slice your mozzarella balls.
- Assemble your Chilli Aubergine Mozzarella Bake in a roasting dish by layering a couple of spoonfuls of tomato sauce, aubergine and mozzarella. Continue building up the dish and finish with mozzarella on top.
- Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes until all the cheese is melted and the top is golden brown and bubbling.
Sweet and Sticky Sesame Chicken Recipe
For the marinade:
- 500g chicken breast, sliced into thin strips
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Chinese rice wine
- ½ tbsp white pepper
- 2-3cm chunk of ginger, peeled and very finely chopped
For the batter:
- 2 medium eggs
- 100g cornflour
For the sauce:
- 3 tbsp Mellow Yellow Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
- Small bunch of spring onions, sliced into thin rounds
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1¼ tsp salt
- 5 tbsp tomato ketchup
- 2 tsp cornflour
- 2 tbsp water
- 250ml Mellow Yellow Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil, for frying
Method
- Place your chicken strips in a large bowl. Pour over soy sauce, Chinese rice wine, white pepper and ginger. Make sure the chicken is fully coated in the sauce and leave to marinade whilst you make the batter.
- Gently whisk your eggs and mix in the cornflour, keep whisking until it forms a smooth and shiny, thick batter. Pour this over your chicken and mix to fully coat each piece of chicken.
- In a wok or deep sauté pan, heat up 250ml of Mellow Yellow Rapeseed Oil until it reaches 180°C. Fry your chicken in small batches for a few minutes until golden. Take care not to overcrowd the pan and turn the chicken half way through cooking to ensure it is cooked on both sides. Place the cooked chicken on kitchen roll or a cooling rack.
- Once all the chicken has been cooked, place to one side and make your sauce. In a clean wok or deep sauté pan, add Mellow Yellow Rapeseed Oil, sesame oil, garlic and spring onions. Fry for a few minutes and then add salt, pepper and sugar. Fry for a few minutes more until the seasoning has fully dissolved. Add tomato ketchup and mix together. In a small bowl, mix the cornflour and water together then pour into your sauce. Stir and keep on the heat until the sauce becomes thick and shiny. Pour the fried chicken into the sauce and stir until fully coated.
- Serve and enjoy!
For more information on Farrington’s Mellow Yellow, visit our website here.
