Swanndri & Pip Cameron

The Swanndri Summer range is all about getting back to basics. It’s about enjoying the simple pleasures of all the outdoors has to offer in sunnier seasons. We fell in love with Otematata when we shot our summer campaign there. With its lakes, bike trails, water sports and some epic local characters, not to mention a cheese roll or two….

With this in mind, we headed out to Otematata Station in the South Island’s Waitaki Valley, where Phillippa (Pip) Cameron is the Station Cook and creator of ‘What’s For Smoko’ – a place where Pip gives an insight into life on a 40,000 hectare sheep and beef farm, as well as sharing recipes, ideas and inspiration for hearty, delicious on-farm food.

As station cook, Pip’s tasked with feeding – and fuelling – the shepherds and workers. Keep in mind that Otematata is in the heart of North Otago High Country. It’s beautiful, but steep, expansive and exposed country. The workers here work hard and cover a lot of ground. So they need some serious fuel to keep them going. Practicality comes first. It’s much less about what the food looks like, and all about the fuel and flavour it provides to hard working shepherds while they’re out and about on the farm. Out there, there’s no cutlery, no condiment, no comfy seats. So the food needs to reflect that.

“It has to be practical at heart. Robust and rugged. The kind of food you can hold in your hand. Rip it apart and share it with your dog. Eat in on horseback or leaning against a fence. And of course it has to taste good.”

▶  download Picnic Pie recipe here

Working on such a large, expansive farm can also be quite isolating. Some of these workers can go days without seeing anyone. As station cook, Pip understands that part of her role is to bring people together.

“It’s important for the team to get together and reconnect. To stop for a chat and share what’s been going on. And there’s no better way to make that happen than a cuppa tea and some hearty homemade baking.”

Pip takes a particular pleasure in digging up old farming recipes and adapting them and updating them for today. She’s careful to create recipes that use local ingredients, grown in season. “It’s important to use what you’ve got. To make do and not waste anything.” This approach to food is an extension of the whole farm approach to minimising waste and improving sustainability at Otematata. It’s something the family has been working on and improving over the generations. And Pip’s keen to pass it on to her daughters too – the sixth generation to grow up on the farm.

“There’s a lot of work to do,” she says. “But it’s the little things that make all the difference. That’s what I tell my daughters. Just do one thing. Then you can do another. And before you know it you’ve done heaps. That’s how you make a difference.”

It’s great to know farms like Otematata Station are in such good hands – and raising such outstanding wool. It’s also nice to know that the people making it happen are so well fed.

Pip came up with some hearty recipes just for Swanndri, we just love the ‘robust biscuit’ that is the Station Gingernut, a biscuit designed to go the distance, just like our gear, and a picnic pie, just right for taking on a roadtrip to feed a crowd. You can find more of Pips recipes and farm life content over on Instagram at @whats_for_smoko.

▶  download Station Gingernut recipe here