Pasty

For other uses, see Pasty (disambiguation).

Pasty

A pasty
Alternative names	Oggin, Teddy Oggin, Tiddy oggin.
Course	Main
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Region or state	Cornwall
Serving temperature	Hot/Cold
Main ingredients	Shortcrust pastry, potatoes, onion and swede plus various other fillings
Variations	Multiple
Cookbook: Pasty   Media: Pasty

A pasty (/ˈpæsti/; Cornish: Hogen; Pasti), known in (West) Cornish dialect as tiddy oggy, and sometimes as pastie in the United States, is a filled pastry case, associated with Cornwall, in the south west of England, UK. It is made by placing the uncooked filling on a flat pastry circle, and folding it to wrap the filling, crimping the edge to form a seal. The result is a raised semicircular package. The traditional Cornish pasty, which has Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status in Europe, is filled with beef, sliced or diced potato, swede (also known as a rutabaga) and onion, and is baked. Today, the pasty is the food most associated with Cornwall and accounts for 6% of the Cornish food economy. Pasties with many different fillings are made; some shops specialise in selling all sorts of pasties.

The origins of the pasty are unclear, though there are many references to them throughout historical documents and fiction. The earliest recorded recipe is from Devon in 1510, though there is a possibility that people from Cornwall were making pasties for thousands of years prior. There is a popular belief that pasties were commonly made with a "sweet" end creating a two course meal and although these have been created by amateur cooks, there is little evidence that these were widespread. The pasty is now popular world wide, due to the spread of Cornish miners and variations can be found in Australia, USA and Mexico.

Description

A Cornish Pasty, defined by the Protected Geographical Indication should be shaped like a ‘D’ and crimped on one side, not on the top. It should include uncooked beef, swede (called turnip in Cornwall), potato and onion - keeping a chunky texture. The pastry should be golden and retain its shape when cooked and cooled. The pasty has been described as a "functional food" as it is appears to be designed with the purpose of being easily carried, retains its heat for a long time and can be eaten with the hands.

History

An old postcard from Cornwall

The exact origins of the pasty are unclear, despite the modern pasty's strong association with Cornwall. It became popular in Cornwall during the 17th and 18th centuries, where miners and other workers adopted it due to its unique shape, forming a complete meal that can be carried easily and eaten without cutlery. Traditionally, tin miners would keep their pasties hot in large ovens at the surface, each marked in pastry with the miner's name before baking. The miner could then eat the pasty holding the thick edge, which ensured that his dirty fingers (possibly including traces of arsenic) did not touch food or his mouth. Any excess pastry was left for the knockers, capricious spirits in the mines who might otherwise lead miners into danger. There is also a traditional belief that the pastry on a good pasty should be strong enough to withstand a drop down a mine shaft.

The pasty's dense, folded pastry could stay warm for 8 to 10 hours and, when carried close to the body, could help the miners stay warm. Traditional bakers in former mining towns will still bake pasties with fillings to order, marking the customer's initials with raised pastry. This practice was started because the miners used to eat part of their pasty for breakfast and leave the remainder for lunch; the initials enabled them to find their own pasties.

In 2006, a researcher in Devon discovered a recipe for a pasty tucked inside an audit book and dated 1510, calculating the cost of the ingredients. This replaced previous oldest recipe, dated 1746, held by the Cornwall Records Office in Truro, Cornwall. The dish at the time was cooked with venison, in this case from the Mount Edgcumbe estate, as the pasty was then considered a luxury meal. Alongside the ledger which included the price of the pasty in Plymouth, Devon in 1509, the discovery sparked a controversy between the neighbouring counties of Devon and Cornwall as to the origin of the dish. However, the term pasty appears in much earlier written records, for example the 12th century romance, Erec and Enide, written by Chrétien de Troyes, mentions pasties - eaten by characters from the area now known as Cornwall. Cornish historian, Les Merton, states that evidence could be found that the pasty was eaten in Cornwall as far back as 8,000 BC, passed down without written records.

"There are caves at the Lizard in Cornwall with line drawings of men hunting a stag and women eating a pasty. At that time it was wrapped in leaves and not pastry, but the leaves were crimped, so I would say there is positive evidence of pasties in Cornwall from primitive times."

— Les Merton

Other early references to pasties include a 13th century charter which was granted by Henry III (1207–1272) to the town of Great Yarmouth. The town is bound to send to the sheriffs of Norwich every year one hundred herrings, baked in twenty four pasties, which the sheriffs are to deliver to the lord of the manor of East Carlton who is then to convey them to the King. Around the same time, a 13th century chronicler Matthew Paris wrote of the monks of St Albans Abbey "according to their custom, lived upon pasties of flesh-meat" A total of 5,500 venison pasties were served at the installation feast of George Neville, archbishop of York and chancellor of England in 1465. They were even eaten by royalty, as a letter from a baker to Henry VIII's third wife, Jane Seymour (1510–1537) says ...hope this pasty reaches you in better condition than the last one...

Pasties have been mentioned in cookbooks throughout the ages, for example the earliest version of Le Viandier has been dated to around 1300 and contains several pasty recipes. In 1393 "Le Menagier De Paris" contains recipes for pasté with venison, veal, beef, or mutton.

Protected status

Following a nine year campaign, the term "Cornish pasty" was awarded Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status by the European Commission in 2011. The PGI status specifies the recipe and method by which Cornish pasties must be made, and means that only Cornish pasties prepared in Cornwall can be called a "Cornish Pasty". Pasties do not have to be baked in Cornwall – the PGI states "Assembly of the pasties in preparation for baking must take place in the designated area. The actual baking does not have to be done within the geographical area, it is possible to send the finished but unbaked and/or frozen pasties to bakers or other outlets outside the area where they can be baked in ovens for consumption." Pasties which conform to the requirements can be stamped with a new logo.

The application for PGI status was made by the Cornish Pasty Association, the trade organisation for pasty making in Cornwall. The Cornish Pasty Association noted that there are strong links between pasty production and local suppliers of the ingredients. Producers outside Cornwall have protested the PGI award, with one saying "[EU bureaucrats could] go to hell", and another that it was "protectionism for some big pasty companies to churn out a pastiche of the real iconic product". Major UK supermarkets Asda and Morrisons both stated they would be affected by the change, as did nationwide bakery chain Greggs.

Popularity

Pasties are very popular throughout the UK, with members of the Cornish Pasty Association (a group of about 50 pasty makers based in Cornwall) making about 87 million pasties each year. Sales of Cornish pasties amount to £60 million - about 6% of the food economy of Cornwall and accounts for 13,000 jobs. Recent surveys by the South West tourism board show that one of the top three reasons people visit Cornwall is the food and that the Cornish pasty is the food most associated with Cornwall. They are also popular in the northern United States, especially in Butte, Montana the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the Iron Range of north-eastern Minnesota, as well as in Australia and New Zealand.

Recipes and ingredients

A traditional Cornish pasty filled with steak and vegetables

The traditional recipe for a Cornish pasty, as defined by its protected status includes diced or minced beef, onion, potato and swede in rough chunks along with some "light peppery" seasoning. Due to a local colloquialism, swede can be referred to and advertised as turnip whilst in a pasty, but only swede may appear in a pasty. Pasty ingredients are usually seasoned with salt and pepper, depending on individual taste. The type of pastry used is not defined, as long as it is golden in colour and will not crack during the cooking or cooling, although modern pasties almost always use a short crust pastry. The use of carrot in a traditional Cornish pasty is regarded as a "no-no", though it does appear regularly in recipes.

Variations

Although the official pasty has a specific ingredients list, old Cornish cookery books show that pasties were generally made from whatever food was available. Indeed, the earliest recorded pasty recipes include venison - not beef. In modern usage, "pasty" has become a generic name for the shape and can contain a variety of fillings, including stilton, vegetarian and even chicken tikka. Pork and apple pasties are readily available in shops throughout Cornwall, with the ingredients including an apple flavoured sauce, mixed together throughout the pasty, as well as sweet pasties with ingredients such as apple and fig or chocolate and banana, which are common in some areas of Cornwall.

A part-savoury, part-sweet pasty (similar to the Bedfordshire clanger) was eaten by miners in the 19th Century, in the Copper mines on Parys Mountain, Anglesey. The technician who did the research and discovered the recipe claimed that the recipe was probably taken to Anglesey by Cornish miners travelling to the area looking for work. No two-course pasties are commercially produced in Cornwall today, but are usually the product of amateur cooks. Whilst that there is a popular belief that two-course pasties were produced, a Cornish Historian, Les Merton, has stated that this does not appear to have ever been a common practice.

Shape

Whilst the PGI rules state that a Cornish pasty must be a "D" shape, with crimping along the curve, crimping is variable within Cornwall, with some advocating a side crimp while others maintain that a top crimp is more authentic. Top-crimping is easier, but slower, and less likely to leak, while the side-crimping technique is quicker when learnt, and thus more likely to be commercially used.

A misconception has it that the difference between a Devon and Cornish pasty, is that a Devon pasty has a top-crimp and is oval in shape, whereas the Cornish pasty is semicircular and side-crimped along the curve.

In other Cornish-influenced regions

A "Cousin Jack's" pasty shop in Grass Valley, California

Migrating Cornish miners, (colloquially Cousin Jacks in the US) helped to spread pasties into the rest of the world during the 19th century. As tin mining in Cornwall began to fail, miners brought their expertise and traditions to new mining regions around the world. As a result, pasties can be found in many regions, including:

• Many parts of Australia, including Yorke Peninsula, the site of an annual pasty festival since 1973, which claims to be the world's largest. A clarification of the Protected Geographical Status ruling has confirmed that pasties made in Australia are still allowed to be called "Cornish Pasties".

• The Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In some of these areas, pasties are a significant tourist attraction, including an annual Pasty Fest in Calumet, Michigan in early July. Pasties in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan have a particularly unusual history, as a small influx of Finnish immigrants followed the Cornish miners in 1864. These Finns (and many other ethnic groups) adopted the pasty for use in the Copper Country copper mines. About 30 years later, a much larger flood of Finnish immigrants found their countrymen baking pasties. The pasty has become strongly associated with Finnish culture in this area, and in the culturally similar Iron Range in northern Minnesota.

• Mineral Point, Wisconsin was the site of the first mineral rush in the USA during the 1830s. After lead was discovered in Mineral Point many of the early miners migrated to this south-western Wisconsin area from Cornwall. Those Cornish miners brought their skills working in the deep underground tin mines of Cornwall. They also brought their recipe and appetite for the pasty.

• The Mexican state of Hidalgo, and the twin silver mining cities of Pachuca and Real del Monte (Mineral del Monte), have notable Cornish influences from the Cornish miners who settled there with pasties being considered typical local cuisine. In Mexican Spanish, they are referred to as pastes.

The pasty in culture

When I view my Country o'er:
Of goodly things the plenteous store:
The Sea and Fish that swim therein
And underground the Copper and Tin:
Let all the World say what it can
Still I hold by the Cornishman,
And that one most especially
That first found out the Cornish Pastie.

The Merry Ballad of the Cornish Pasty
- Robert Morton Nance, 1898

Pasties have been mentioned multiple literary works since the 12th century Chrétien de Troyes, from the Robin Hood tales in the 14th century to Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. The dish was even mentioned in three plays by William Shakespeare. A West Country schoolboy playground-rhyme current in the 1940s concerning the pasty went:''Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, ate a pasty five feet long, Ate it once, ate it twice, Oh my Lord, it's full of mice.

Pasties appear in many novels, used to draw parallels or represent Cornwall. In American Gods by Neil Gaiman, main character Shadow discovers pasties at Mabel's restaurant in the fictional town of Lakeside. The food is mentioned as being popularized in America by Cornishmen, as a parallel to how gods are "brought over" to America in the rest of the story. Another literature reference takes place in The Cat Who... series by Lilian Jackson Braun. Pasties are referred to as a cultural part of the north country, and Jim Qwilleran often eats at The Nasty Pasty, a popular restaurant in fictional Moose County, famous for its tradition of being a mining settlement. Reference to pasties is made in Brian Jacques' popular Redwall series of novels, where it is a staple favourite on the menu to the mice and hares of Redwall Abbey. Pasties also appear in the Poldark series of historical novels of Cornwall, by Winston Graham, as well as the BBC television series adapted from these works.

Oggy oggy oggy

Main article: Oggy oggy oggy

The word "oggy" in the internationally popular rhyme "Oggy Oggy Oggy, Oi Oi Oi" is thought to stem from Cornish dialect "hoggan", deriving from "hogen" the Cornish word for pasty. When the pasties were ready for eating, the bal maidens at the mines would shout down the shaft "Oggy Oggy Oggy" and the miners would reply "Oi Oi Oi".

Pasty superstitions

Cornish pasties in tin mines around Cornwall are associated with "Knockers", spirits which create a sounds similar to a knock to indicate the location of the veins of ore. Although they were supposedly helpful to the miners, they would also be mischievous when a miner was caught whistling or swearing. To appease the Knockers, and encourage their good will, Cornish miners would discard the crimp of the pasty within the mine, for the Knockers to eat. Sailors and fisherman would likewise discard a crust to appease the spirits of dead mariners. These crusts were usually snapped up by seagulls, popularly held in West Country superstition to be the souls of dead mariners.

Giant pasties

As the national dish of Cornwall, the pasty has been subject to several oversized versions. For example, a giant pasty is paraded from Poluran to Fowey through the streets during regatta week. Similarly, a giant pasty is paraded around the ground of the Cornish Pirates rugby team on St Piran's Day before it is passed over the goal posts.

World Record

The world's largest Cornish pasty was made in August 2010, measuring 4.6 metres (15 ft) and weighing 860 kilograms (1,900 lb). It was created by "Proper Cornish" bakers, using 165 kilograms (364 lb) of beef, 180 pounds (82 kg) of swede, 100 pounds (45 kg) of potatoes and 75 pounds (34 kg) of onions. The pasty was estimated to cost £7,000 and contain 1.75 million calories.

Gallery

Pasties

• 
  An uncooked pasty, crimped along the top
• 
  The cooked pasty, ready for eating
• 
  A modern replication of a two course pasty
• 
  A Mexican "paste"
• 
  Cornish Pirates players display a giant pasty

See also

• Bridie - Scottish equivalent
• Hoggan - Traditional Cornish alternative
• Paste - Mexican dish based on Pasty

Further reading

• The Cornish Pasty by Stephen Hall, Agre Books, Nettlecombe, UK, 2001 ISBN 0 9538000 4 0
• The Pasty Book by Hettie Merrick, Tor Mark, Redruth, UK, 1995 ISBN 978-0-85025-347-4
• Pasties by Lindsey Bareham, Mabecron Books, Plymouth, UK, 2008 ISBN 978-0-9532156-6-9
• English Food by Jane Grigson (revised by Sophie Grigson), Penguin Books, London, 1993, ISBN 0-14-027324-7

External links

• The Cornish Pasty Association - the trade association of the Cornish pasty industry
• The Compleat Pastypaedia - a web pasty resource