The Iconic Cornish Pasty - The ideal lunch for hard working miners

 You can't go to Cornwall without having a Cornish Pasty, can you?   It was somewhat ironic, though, that I had my first Cornish Pasty in Devon, on the Barbican in Plymouth to be exact. To be fair it was completely authentic because in 2011 Cornish Pasties were awarded a PDO, that is a Protected Designation of Origin.  This means that in order to be sold as Cornish Pasties they must have been made in Cornwall and the Barbican Pasty Shop is famous for selling spectacularly good pasties from Bodmin, Cornwall.

Pasties have a long history, King Henry V111 is said to have referred to them and Shakespeare also mentioned them in "All's Well That Ends Well" Act V1: Scene 111.  They evolved in the 1800s as a practical and hearty lunch for the hard working Cornish tin and copper miners and farm workers and today remain as a popular handy, portable meal. The deeply crimped edges were developed as a handle for the miners to hold as their  hands were dirty and often contaminated with arsenic.  After eating the pasty they would throw away the edge.  The crescent shape made them easy to carry in a pocket. Sometimes the pasties were baked as a whole meal with the meat filling at one end and a sweet fruit filling at the other.  

To be authentic the pasty must stick to the following rules:

* Must be made in Cornwall

* Contain only beef, onion, potato, swede (rutabaga) and salt and pepper - no other ingredients or seasoning

* The ingredients must be raw and uncooked, when filled into the pastry and then baked slowly

* The edges of the pastry must be crimped in the traditional Cornish style

Since we were in Plymouth for a lunch break it was my golden opportunity to enjoy this traditional lunch at the acclaimed Barbican shop.  Among their dazzling array of pasties there were all sorts of flavours and fillings but I was there to have a traditional Cornish Pasty because I think it's fun to try traditional foods from whatever country I happen to be in.  I bought a medium sized one and very tasty it was too, just too big and filling for me.  But, yes, perfect for someone who wants a good, handy and satisfying lunch. I can just imagine how much  those hard working Cornish miners and farm workers would have looked forward to this substantial and comforting lunch. 

My pasty.  It doesn't look big but, my, was it filling!

Every country has their version of this portable, quick, tasty meal.  New Zealanders  are big fans of Meat Pies with a wide variety of meat fillings, in South America it is the Empanada, in Greece the Kreatopita, in Russia the Pierogi and, of course the Indian Samosa, but there are many others all tasty and portable and ideal for a lunch box or picnic. If you would like to try baking a Cornish pasty there are plenty of recipes on line, you will find one here: 

www.thespruceeats.com   and type Cornish Pasty into the search box