Bridie

For the Scottish playwright, see James Bridie.

A bridie or Forfar bridie is a Scottish type of meat pastry, originally made in the town of Forfar, Scotland.

Content

Reputed to have been "invented" by a Forfar baker in the 1850's and to be found now in every Scottish baker's shop—those with one hole in the top are "plain" bridies and those with two holes include onions. (This may vary according to location.)

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Modern Ways with Traditional Scottish Recipes

A bridie is a savoury pie similar to a pasty, but is softer and made without potato, making it much lighter in texture. The filling is made of minced steak, butter, and beef suet seasoned with salt and pepper, and sometimes with an addition of minced onions. The filling is placed on rolled-out pastry dough which is then folded into a semi-circular or triangular shape and the edges crimped before it is baked in the oven.

Bakers in Forfar traditionally use shortcrust pastry, but flaky pastry is more commonly used in the rest of Scotland.

A Forfar Bridie is a horseshoe-shaped meat product. It has a shortcrust cover and the filling consists of beef, onions and seasoning. The Famous Forfar Bridie originated in the early part of the 19th century. One story of their origin is that they were made for wedding meals (the Brides' meal), hence the horseshoe shape (for luck). Another story is that they were made by Margaret Bridie from Glamis, who sold them at the Buttermarket in Forfar. James McLaren and Son have been making Forfar Bridies since 1893 and the present owner, Mrs Karen Murray, is the great, great granddaughter of the firm's founder James McLaren and the 5th generation of the family to run the business. In some establishments the contents of the bridie can be indicated by the number of holes in the top, one hole signifying that no onions are in the ingredients, and two holes indicating onions have been used. The classic description, often quoted by Alan Reid the local historian, was given by Jeems Stark, a one-time local character and frequenter of bakehouses. According ti James, a bridie was "juist a brodie - a big roons slap o' dough wi' the tap hauf spread wi' steak cut sma' an' chappit ingins." "Syne the boddom hauf's luftit an' laid ower the tap an' scolpit ee aidge." "Nick oot twa holes ee tap fauld an' there y'are - a brode pie - a brodie - a bridie."

Cultural references

• The bridie is the subject of the Dundee Scots shibboleth Twa bridies, a plen ane an an ingin ane an a (Two bridies, a plain one and an onion one as well).
• "The individual steak pies from Forfar, Angus, were immortalised by J.M. Barrie in Sentimental Tommy. They are the Scottish equivalent to the Cornish pasty."

See also

• Turnover (food)