by Billy Deakin
Proper Pasties
Billy Deakin
Published by Kernow Web
First published in the Cornwall in 2013
© Copyright Billy Deakin, 2013
All rights reserved
Acknowledgements
As many readers will know, this book was only made possible by the support and generosity of many people who backed my Kickstarter project. I wish to express my gratitude to everyone who pledged their support, however small. This book would not be a reality without your help.
In particular I'd like to thank, in no particular order, Simon Mosely, Meleri Pascoe, Hermit Games (Matthew Verran), Frank Blackwell, Oliver Ware, Skyler See, Dave Taub, Daniel Robins, Simon Boucher, Karen Macbeth, Rush, Marc Wylder, Michael La Posta, James Graham, Matthew Fernandes, Dave & Ella Wright, Jenny, Tim Stevens, Dr Buzz Palmer, and of course all of my family who helped out including my father, Cress, Fred, Tracy and Amba.
I really hope I've not missed anyone. For a full list of backers for the Kickstarter project, please see the “Wall of Thanks” page at ProperPasties.com
http://properpasties.com/wallofthanks.html
Please review this book!
As a self published, independent author, I rely on word of mouth advertising. If you enjoy this book, please take 30 seconds to rate it and optionally leave a review at Amazon. I read every single review, and they really do help! Thank you.
Disclaimer
I've done my best to keep the content of this book as accurate as possible. I've done considerable research, but there is no guarantee that all of the sources I used are 100% accurate. At the same time, some of what I've written is personal opinion, and not everyone will always agree with me.
I'm also not a professional writer. While I do spend an inordinate amount of time sat in front of a computer keyboard, I'm far more used to writing code in some obscure programming language, than in stringing actual words together into coherent sentences. For those reasons, I hope you'll forgive the odd spelling, punctuation or grammar mistake – it doesn't matter how much I proofread and check, there will always be a few that slip through. I'm also well aware that I sometimes start a sentence with “but”, and use far too many exclamation marks!! But, I assume that most people reading this are far more interested in the content than in the technical accuracy of my writing. However, if that offends you in any way, please feel free to write me a letter, and I'll file it in the bin without reading it but at least it might make you feel better. Thanks for bearing with me, and I hope you enjoy reading the book, and trying the recipes!
Contents
Foreward
Introduction
Part 1 – Proper Pasties
A Brief History of the Pasty
The Pasty in Cornwall Today
The Cornish Pasty Association
Fifty Shades of Pasty (PGI Status)
Pastygate! (The Pasty Tax Scandal)
The World Pasty Championships
Pasties Around The World
Part 2 – Pasty Making
Ingredients
The Crimp
An Award Winning Pasty Recipe
Pasty Pie
Pastry Options
Other Pasty Recipes
Steak and Blue
Steak and Ale
Chilli Beef
Spiced Oxtail and Sweet Potato
Lamb and Mint
Pork and Sage
Cheese and Bacon
English Breakfast
Chicken and Mushroom
Chicken and Chorizo
Roasted Mediterranean Vegetable
Roasted Squash, Ricotta and Sage
Mushroom and Blue Cheese
Tricolore
Cheese, Leek and Onion
Cheese and Marmite
2 Course Pasties
Apple Pasties
Mince Pie Pasties
Appendices
Top Pasty Shops in Cornwall
Tips for Making a Proper Pasty
Further Reading
About The Author
Foreword
There are a few things which are guaranteed to warm the heart of any Cornishman or Cornishwoman; the sight of a deep red sunset from the top of Carn Brea on a clear summer's evening, the sound of waves crashing on the rocks far below while walking along a cliff path in a wintery gale, a sea of black and gold wearing fans (Trelawny's army) supporting their team at a Twickenham final, and the smell of a proper pasty straight from the oven!
The pasty is as iconically Cornish as the chough, the flag of St.Piran, or the sight of an abandoned engine house on a lonely cliff top. Steeped in history, and forever associated with Cornwall's mining heritage, the pasty has been a staple of the Cornish for centuries. It began as a utilitarian food for working men, yet today it's enjoyed as a gastronomic speciality of the region, not only by the locals but also by the millions of tourists who visit Cornwall each year.
So what makes a “proper pasty”? How did they evolve, and what made them so popular? And most importantly, how do you make a really good one?
This book attempts to answer these questions, gives you a glimpse of the pasty's history and an idea of why it became such an important and iconic meal, before showing you how to make delicious pasties in your own kitchen.
I hope you enjoy reading the book, but more importantly I hope you try the recipes and make some proper pasties yourself – there's nothing quite like the smell of pasties cooking in the oven. Despite what you might have heard, pastry isn't difficult to make, you don't need “cold hands” or a “light touch” you just need to follow a simple recipe and be accurate with your measuring.
Introduction
“Makin’ em, or eatin’ em?”
Invariably, that’s the first question everyone asks when they learn that I’m a “pasty champ”. It’s a question which always amuses me - I’m 6’1” and about 150lbs, so surely I don’t look like I eat THAT many pasties, do I? At least it’s an easy enough question to answer though, and people always seem genuinely interested to know more. The next question I get asked however isn’t quite so easy to answer - “so what’s the secret?”
I’ve been asked that question more times than I can count over the past 12 months since first picking up the title of Amateur Cornish Pasty World Champion - what’s the secret to a great pasty? It’s a question I’ve struggled to answer concisely, yet it’s a question that I’ve thought about extensively and one I hope to address in this book.
Since a Cornish pasty is made in a specific way, using specific ingredients (more on that later!) you’d think that the differences between them really would be splitting hairs, yet I’ve had some cracking pasties in my time, as well as some absolute shockers! I’ve had pasties that melt in the mouth, and pasties that you need a hammer and chisel to get into. I’ve had pasties that tasted like they were crafted by the very hands of god, and pasties that tasted like a piece of warm cardboard. And I've seen pasties which wouldn’t look out of place on display in the Louvre, while others look suspiciously like Jackson Pollock's number 5!
In this book, I aim to share my passion for the pasty, delve into their rich history and the reason that they are so important to the Cornish, and of course share my recipes, tips and techniques. In the process, I’m hopeful that I can answer the question, and teach you the secret to making a great pasty.
A Note About Illustrations
While writing this book it quickly became apparent that including photographs of all of the recipes would become very boring indeed – pasties do tend to look rather similar on the outside, no matter what delicious treats they are filled with or how skilfully they are crafted. So, while I have included some photographs in the book where it seemed to add to the text, I have purposely not i
ncluded photographs of all of the pasty recipes. Instead, I've included some of my favourite snippets and quotes about food from other authors, cooks, and social narrators, which I hope you'll find at least as enlightening as any picture of a pasty!
Part 1
Proper Pasties
“Cornish lads are fishermen,
and Cornish lads are miners too,
but when the fish and tin are gone
what are the Cornish boys to do?”
A Brief History Of The Pasty
Fishing, and mining: Cornwall as a county (some would argue country!) was largely defined by these 2 great industries for centuries. Today, tourism is Cornwall’s most important industry, making up almost a quarter of the economy and being responsible for 1 in 5 jobs in the county, but you don’t need to go very far back in time to find fishing and mining as the dominant industries, with both being immensely important to the Cornish economy.
Fishing, in particular pilchard fishing, had long been important for the Cornish people, and up until around 1700 it was as important an industry as mining to the Cornish economy. It was, however, the start of the industrial revolution which put Cornwall firmly on the map, since with the dawn of the age of steam the miners could dig deeper and increase yields. The skill and ingenuity of Cornish miners and engineers enabled the development of techniques to massively increase yields, and the Cornish became world renowned for their mining expertise. Cornwall had an abundance of copper and tin ore, and the Cornish miners became experts at extracting it, putting Cornwall firmly on the map as the world’s biggest tin mining industry, and a vital component of the UK’s economy. In fact, the ore was so abundant that in the 1720s the Chacewater-Gwennap mining district near Redruth was dubbed “The richest square mile on earth”.
Ruins of the Poldice mine in Gwennap,
once part of the “richest square mile on earth”
Wheal Busy, now nothing more than a few old ruins just up the road from where I grew up, lies in that district and is just one example of how successful the Cornish miners were. During its lifetime, that mine produced over 100,000 tons of copper ore and 27,000 tons of arsenic. And of course, the Cornish landscape is covered in the remains of countless mines, crumbling towers that stand as memorials to that once proud industry.
But now the fish and tin are gone. The quote at the start of this chapter is from a Cornish folk song called Cornish Lads by Roger Bryant. The line was poignantly painted on the outside wall of South Crofty mine, soon after it closed in 1998. The closure marked the end of a 400 year history of the mine, and a 4000 year history of mining in the area, since South Crofty was the very last working mine in Cornwall.
Of course, nothing lasts forever and while many people were, and still are, sad about the decline and eventual collapse of the mining industry, it should also be remembered that it left a lasting heritage. Go anywhere in the world today where they mine tin or copper, and you’ll find Cornish miners and a Cornish influence. As the old saying goes - “anywhere you find a hole, you’ll find a Cousin Jack” (Cornish person). From Australia to Mexico, Canada to Brazil, and South Africa to New Zealand - there are mines all over the world, with communities of Cornish descent built up around them. They took their mining expertise, they took their language and place names (just check the map of any mining area and you’ll find plenty of Redruths and Cambornes!) and they took their music, but most importantly they took their food - saffron buns, cream teas, and pasties!
Pasty /ˈpæsti/ n. (pl. -ies) a pastry case with a sweet or savoury filling, baked without a dish to shape it.
The dictionary definition does nothing to convey the brilliance in design or exquisite character of this iconic dish, or why it’s so loved both within Cornwall and elsewhere. There are many reasons to love the pasty - the taste, the smell, that rush of hot steam that bursts out when you take your first bite! But the real reason for the pasty’s popularity is mostly utilitarian - they are practical.
A miner (or a farmer or fisherman for that matter) can take a pasty, wrapped in linen, to work with them and not only will it still be fresh and warm when they come to eat it, but tucked into a coat pocket it will keep them warm in the meantime! They are the perfect “portable meal”, coming in their own packaging and leaving nothing to waste. As Mary Wright puts in in her book Cornish Treats, “pasties provided a complete and easily portable meal for miners on long shifts underground”.
Now let’s clear one thing up before we go any further - contrary to what you might have heard, the Cornish tin miners didn’t invent the pasty. While there’s evidence of mining in Cornwall dating back to the early Bronze age, approximately 2150 BC, mining’s true heyday in Cornwall was in the 19th Century and there is evidence of pasty recipes dating back several hundred years before that. It was however mining which popularised the pasty, out of necessity, and to imagine the pasty today without Cornwall’s mining heritage would be impossible. As Stephen Hall puts it so well in The Cornish Pasty, “The pasty was the answer to every 19th century Cornish miner’s prayer. It had been waiting in the wings for hundreds of years; a solution in search of a problem: an invention yearning for an application.”
In fact, many of the earliest known recipes for pasties used venison, as pasties were then regarded as a luxury dish, fit to be served up at the grandest of banquets. Exactly when and where these early pasties were first adopted as a worker’s meal for miners is unknown, but during the 17th and 18th century the pasty became more and more popular as the Cornish miners discovered not only their practicality, but also the sheer satisfaction of eating a pasty.
Today, the Cornish pasty is worth over £65 million per year to the Cornish economy, and quite aside from the pasties eaten within Cornwall, almost 2 million are exported each week proving the pasty’s immense popularity. There can be few people in Cornwall who don’t have a pasty for lunch or tea on a regular basis, and I challenge anyone to find me a true Cornishman who hasn’t had a pasty for breakfast at least once (they are ideal as a “recovery breakfast” after a late night with one too many Doom Bars, or Betty Stogs - so I’m told!)
So you see, the dictionary definition really doesn’t do the pasty justice. I much prefer Angus Murdoch’s description, as penned in Cornwall’s Legacy to American Mining, Part III (1970):
Pasty /ˈpæsti/ n. “a portable beef stew, folded into a purse of a pie dough and baked to a rich golden brown. No one but a cousin Jenny could do a proper job.”
A selection of hand crafted entries, on display in the
judging area at the 2013 World Pasty Championships
The Pasty in Cornwall Today
W. Somerset Maugham once wrote that “if you want to eat well in England, you should eat three breakfasts”. I suspect that if he ever visited Cornwall, that famous line could well have been very different!
The Cornish are proud of our pasties, and rightly so. We've already seen how important the pasty was historically, and how they have been taken around the world by the Cornish miners, but now that the fish and tin are gone why is the pasty still so popular? Of course, it's not just popular in Cornwall. Over 100 million pasties are exported from Cornwall every year, and that number is increasing (according to Emma Mansfield's The Little Book Of The Pasty that's enough to stretch from Land's End to John O”Groats 18 times!)
Why is the Cornish pasty so popular? The reason dear reader, of course, is that they taste “bleddy 'ansum”!
At the Glastonbury Festival this year I counted not one, not two, not even three but four Cornish pasty vendors (there could well have been more, but the festival is massive and it's hard to count after your fourth pint of cider!) Glastonbury of course isn't in Cornwall, it's in Somerset, so 4 traders selling nothing but Cornish pasties for the entire week struck me as evidence for the pasty's enduring popularity (and of course it's the perfect festival food. You need 2 hands to eat a bag of chips, but with a pasty in one hand you have an entire hand free for holding a pint of cider!)
Cornish
pasty companies have expanded all over the UK. At the time of writing, Pasty Presto's website lists 27 pasty shops, as far away as Birmingham and Guernsey. The West Cornwall Pasty Company lists 73, including one in Glasgow, which I assume has to be the current record in the UK.
There are even pasty shops in other countries,
like this one in California, USA
Of course, if you want the real deal you need to ignore these mass produced pasties (even though some of them aren't too bad) and come to a proper pasty shop here in Cornwall. The point however, is that pasties are big business. In fact, it's estimated that 13,000 jobs in Cornwall rely on the pasty trade, and a survey by the South West tourism board found that one of the top three reasons people visit Cornwall is for the food, and that the pasty is the food most associated with Cornwall (I'm not sure how much they spent on that research, but I could have told them that for free!
The Cornish Pasty Association
In 2002, a group of pasty makers in Cornwall got together to form the Cornish Pasty Association (CPA) in order to protect the quality and reputation of this important product, and the pasty's contribution to the Cornish economy. The CPA consists of more than 50 pasty producers who together employ over 1,800 people directly involved in pasty production in the county.