Traditional Cornish Pasty (2024)

The traditional Cornish Pasty dates back to the 13th century and is a pie that squeezes a great deal from pastry, beef, swede and potatoes!

Whether you serve them for dinner or stick them in your lunchbox, these treats are the ultimate British pie!

Homemade Cornish Pasties

Cornish Pasties dates back to the 13th century and unsurprisingly is the source of much discussion, when I say discussion I mean argument!

However, to call this dish famous in the UK would be an understatement.

Any foodstuff name-checked in classics like the Robin Hood Chronicles, the Canterbury Tales and no less than three works of Shakespeare is no shrinking violet.

In short, the humble Cornish pasty is nothing more than a ‘hand pie’ as I see them called on the web. The filling is with four very good things and some salt and pepper.

Those four things are Potato, Onion, Swede (rutabaga elsewhere) and finally beef. It is then seasoned and wrapped in a pastry.

Traditionally food of Cornish ‘miners’, if rumour is to be believed. The crimped crust serves as a handhold and was discarded, because, well mucky hands of course.

I’ll leave you with one final bit of pasty trivia. A pasty crimped by a left-handed person is called a co*ck pasty and a pasty crimped by a right-handed pasty is a hen pasty, because… Well because nobody knows but do some digging and you will find plenty of Pasty folklore!

Frequently Asked Questions

What pastry should I use?

Can I use store-bought pastry?

You can, store-bought shortcrust pastry is pretty good, but the sizes of packets are not ideal. However, you can freeze the leftover pastry and use it at a later date.

What cut of beef should I use?

Traditionally skirt or flank is used as the filling for Cornish pasties, however, I have used both rump and sirloin in the past and it works just fine.

Some recipes suggest using turnip and not swede, what is traditional?

Does the type of potato make a difference?

Yes, the potatoes for a Cornish pasty should be waxy so that they hold their form and texture. Although I must confess that I do have a weakness for occasionally using a floury potato like King Edwards or Maris Pipers.

How to Crimp a Pasty

Crimping pasties may seem tricky but with a bit of practice it is quite easy, here is a visual guide as to how I do it. The images are from my Cheese and Onion Pasty recipe but the process is identical:

1: Fill the centre of the pasty with your filling leaving around 25mm (1″) at the edges, then brush the edge with water. Using your finger is the easiest way to do this.

2: Fold over the pastry to form a half-moon shape.

3: Press the edges to form a seal.

4: Pick up the pasty in your “dominant” hand with one end of the half-moon shape pointed at you. Take the corner of the pastry between your thumb and forefinger with your thumb at the top and fold the pastry over at a 45° angle.

5: Move along the pasty and repeat the process. But this time squeeze to seal and pull back the finger at the bottom of the pasty to form a lobe, then fold over to create the crimp.

6: Repeat this process working around the pasty, turning as you go so that your hand stays in the same position.

7: When you get to the end, fold the final crimp under the pasty.

Serving Suggestions

I’d usually munch on a Cornish pasty for lunch and maybe add a big dollop of piccalilli or some other type of chutney or pickle.

However, as a kid, I would have them with chips… yes more potatoes and baked beans and I love it.

They are also fantastic as part of a picnic, throw in a couple of scotch eggs or some cheese and bacon turnovers and some salad and you are laughing.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But, if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

• Oven.
• Baking tray.
• Mixing bowl.
• Chopping board.
• Kicthen knife.
• Vegetable peeler.
• Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.
• Food processor to make the pastry, you can do this by hand if you wish.
• Cling film.

Yield: 4 Pasties

Traditional Cornish Pasty

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes

Additional Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes

A traditional Cornish Pasty is what Americans know as a hand pie, filled with very simple ingredients it is hard to believe just how much flavour these beef pies have!

Ingredients

For the Pastry

• 400g (3 Cups) Plain Flour
• 100g (⅓ Cup) Butter
• 100g (⅓ Cup) Beef Dripping
• 6-7 Tbsp Water
• Pinch of Salt
• 1 Egg for glazing the pastry
• Pinch of coarse sea salt

For the Filling:

• 250g (9oz) Beef Skirt or Flank
• 1 Small (75g or ½ Cup) Onion
• 1 Small (125g or 1 Cup) Waxy Potato
• 125g (1 Cup) Swede
• 1½ Tsp Coarse Sea Salt
• ¾-1 Tsp Coarsely Ground Black Pepper

Instructions

1. Weigh the flour into the bowl of a food processor and place it in the fridge.
2. Grate the beef dripping and butter, and place them in a bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes.
3. Add the vegetable fat and butter to the flour, add the pinch of salt and then pulse to create a breadcrumb-like texture.
4. Add the water little by little until a ball forms in the food processor, it is important that you do not overwork the dough.
5. Move the pastry to a work surface and form 4 hockey puck-shaped rounds (this will make it easier to roll them later), then wrap in cling film and let the pastry sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour. You can leave it for longer if you wish.
6. Cut the beef into 2cm (¾) long strips around 5-6mm (¼") in profile and place into a mixing bowl.
7. Top and tail the onion, then cut it in half and peel it. Cut the onion halves into 5-6mm (¼") thick strips from top to bottom and add them to the beef.
8. Peel the potatoes and then cut the potato into "chips" around 20mmx3-4mmx10mm (¾"x⅛"½") and add it to the pasty filling.
9. Peel and cut the swede into "chips" the same size as the potato and throw it in with the rest of the ingredients.
10. Add the salt and pepper, give everything a good mix and set aside.
11. Roll out the pastry so that it is 3-4mm (around ⅛") thick and cut each out 4 x 225mm (9") circles.
12. Add a quarter of the pasty filling to one half of the pastry disc forming a "rugby ball" shape leaving around 2.5cm or 1" of pastry at the edge.
13. Brush the edge facing you with a little water, fold over the pastry, and push down to seal the edges. Then crimp by pinching between your thumb and forefinger, pull and twist, then move on to the next crimp. There is a visual guide for doing this further up the page.
14. Beat the egg and then brush this over the pasties, then give them a sprinkle with coarse sea salt (this is not traditional but I love it).
15. Bake in the oven at 200°C or 390°F for 45 minutes.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 838Total Fat: 48gSaturated Fat: 21gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 22gCholesterol: 167mgSodium: 1108mgCarbohydrates: 68gFiber: 4gSugar: 7gProtein: 32g

Did you make this recipe?

If you made this recipe, I'd love to see what you did and what I can do better, share a picture with me on Instagram and tag me @krumplibrian and tell me how it went!