The Traditional Cornish Pasty

The History | The Recipe | Vegetarian Pasty | Other Pasties

The Cornish Pasty

Cornish Pasty (or Tiddy Oggy) History and Folklore-Cornwall

THE Cornish pasty is the original hand-held convenience food with a pedigree that dates back to the Middle Ages. In the 13th and 14th centuries, pasties were filled with venison, beef, lamb, salmon and lampreys (eels), dressed with rich gravies and sweetened with dried fruits. It was a high table dish enjoyed almost exclusively by royalty and the upper classes.
The pasty became synonymous with Cornwall some 500 years later, thanks largely to the development of tin and copper mining in the county. Filled with beef, potatoes, onion and turnip, the pasty was a highly portable, well-insulated and nutritious meal ideally suited to the gruelling conditions underground. Some miners would have a pasty with a sweet course at one end - containing apple, jam or treacle.
When Cornish miners emigrated to work in the USA, Australia, South Africa and South America they took their pasty-making skills with them. The tradition continues to this day in many former mining boom towns and cities.
Three million pasties are produced in Cornwall every week with ninety per cent of them sold outside the county. Efforts are being made to give the Cornish pasty protected status under European law. It would prevent producers outside the county from calling their pasties 'Cornish'. Home bakers argue their pasties are vastly superior to their commercial counterparts. Opinions vary considerably however on whether to crimp on the top or the side of a pasty, to slice or dice meat and vegetables and to use glazed or un-glazed pastry. The debate all adds to the pasty's appeal and charm. Like the Scottish kilt, or the Welsh dragon it has become a strong symbol of Cornwall - an edible cultural icon famous throughout the world.

There is as much folklore around the Cornish Pasty as there are recipe variations. One such tale said it was bad luck for fishermen to take a pasty on board a boat, but then again I know a modern day skipper that 'loves his pasties'. A very famous photograph from the Nineteenth Century shows a group of tin miners at 'Crost Time', (meal time), tucking into very large pasties. Such pasties would have meat at one end and a fruit filling at the other.

Whatever the truth there is no doubt that the pasty formed an important part of many working Cornishman's diet, miners, farmers, or fishermen. With the decline of the mining industry in Cornwall many Cornishmen were forced to emigrate, as far a field as the USA, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa taking their pasty recipe's with them.

Though the recipe below uses short-crust pastry, many people prefer flaky pastry, being lighter on the stomach.

Cornish Pasty Ingredients - Recipe

For the Pastry ( This is for Short-crust)

One and a half Cups Plain Flour
Lard or vegetable fat
Pinch of salt
Water

For the pasty filling

Chuck steak
Two Large potatoes
Half large turnip (swede)
One large onion
Salt and pepper to taste
Water

Method

The Pastry
Place flour and salt in a bowl, rub in the fat, until the mixture is so fine that it falls through the fingers. Tip mixture onto a lightly floured table top. With your index finger make a well in the centre of the mixture. Add water a little at a time until it forms a pliable but stiff dough.

The Cornish Pasty Filling
Finely chop the steak. Dice the potato, turnip (Swede) and onion. You may prefer to slice them. Add seasoning. Mix all in a bowl or to be really authentic use your kitchen table top.

Using a floured table top roll out half the dough to a circle the size of a plate. Make a mound of the filling in the centre of the dough. Dampen round the edge of the dough with either water, or milk. Fold over the dough, to make a half moon shape, crimping the edges. Make a slit to let out steam. Brush with beaten egg to glaze.

Cooking your Cornish Pasty Place on lightly greased metal baking tray in the middle of a preheated oven, for around 40 minutes at 450 F . The pasty is cooked when their undersides turn brown and crisp.

Vegetarian Pasty Ingredients - Recipe

I should point out that if it was a vegan version of a 'traditional' Cornish pasty it would not have carrot in it - but I think it's tastier with it in there.

Ingredients to make 4 medium to large pasties:

The pastry:

10 oz/275g/2 cups plain flour (I use a mixture of 3 oz white & 7 oz wholewheat/wholemeal)
5 oz/130g/ 3/4 cup hard margarine (I grate it - it's easier to rub in!)
pinch salt
water to mix

The filling:

1 tablespoon oil or margarine
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 small Swede chopped (about 1/2inch dice)
4 medium/large carrots chopped as above
1 medium/large potato chopped as above
1 tsp yeast extract
black pepper to taste

Method

Pastry: Mix flours and salt together. Rub in grated marg until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add cold water a tablespoon at a time until the mixture holds together and a firm dough is formed. Knead lightly. Put in fridge

Filling: Melt the margarine or heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the vegetables and stir well. Put lid on saucepan and cook, on a low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are nearly cooked. Stir in yeast extract and add black pepper, and allow the mixture to cool. Remove pastry from fridge and cut into four equal pieces. Roll out each piece roughly into a circle of about 7 inch (this is very roughly - I never actually measure it!). Place 1/4 of the veg mix along the centre of each circle and wet edges, bring them together above the veg mix and seal and 'crimp'. Brush with soya milk.

Cooking Place in the oven (preheated) at 180C/375F on the middle shelf for about 40-45 minutes.

These are good hot or cold, and I sometimes add herbs to the mixture (fresh or dried whatever I have to hand) just for a change! Hope you enjoy them as much as my children have over the years.

Other Pasty Recipe's

Licky Pasty

This is a traditional Cornish recipe. The meat and potato varieties of Cornish pasties are the most well known, but traditionally all sorts of fillings were put in pasties, including vegetable ones. "Licky" is another word for "leek".

Ingredients:

shortcrust pastry
leeks
butter
salt and pepper

Method:

Prepare the leeks by removing the dark green heads, and slicing the remainder, then washing thoroughly in cold water to remove any grit.

Make the pastry and roll it out until it is about a quarter of an inch thick. Cut it into rounds, using a saucer or a small plate as a template.

Use the leeks for filling, placing an appropriate amount of filling on one half of each circle of pastry. Put a knob of butter on top and season with salt and pepper. Dampen the edges of the pastry with water, then fold over the other half of the circle, to form a pasty shape. Press the edges together with the fingers and crimp to seal.

Make 2 or 3 ventilating slits in the top of the pasty, brush with milk or egg if you want a glaze, and bake in a hot oven 450F until the pastry is pale brown, then reduce the heat to medium (350F) for about 40 minutes.

Herb Pasty

This is a traditional Cornish recipe. The meat and potato varieties of Cornish pasties are the most well-known, but traditionally all sorts of fillings were put in pasties, including vegetable ones.

Ingredients:

shortcrust pastry
parsley
watercress
spinach
shallots or leeks
butter
beaten egg

Method:

Chop and scald a quantity of well-washed parsley, watercress and spinach. Cut up finely either some shallots or leeks.

Make the pastry and roll it out until it is about a quarter of an inch thick. Cut it into rounds, using a saucer or a small plate as a template.

Use the herb mixture for filling, placing an appropriate amount of filling on one half of each circle of pastry. Put a knob of butter on top. Dampen the edges of the pastry with water, then fold over the other half of the circle, to form a pasty shape. Press the edges together with the fingers and crimping to seal, except at one point. Pour a little beaten egg in at this point, then seal that bit too.

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