Cornish pasties: not to be confused with pastis (because I’ve done that before); one massive portable pie that is about half the size of my face; a flaky, meaty, carby delight that tops my “to eat” list when I set foot in England.
It may seem a bit silly that I’m getting so excited about a hand pie. We do have them here in the U.S., after all. But look at the expressions of unbridled joy when I have a piping hot pasty in hand. It was love at first bite.
For all you history nerds out there, the pasty shop in the picture on the far right was one of the locations where William the Conqueror stayed in Winchester. Yes, 1066, Battle of Hastings, when a Norman-French guy conquered England. I geeked out at the pasty shop.
For the longest time, I wondered how the people of Cornwall laid claim over the pasty. Apparently, no one truly knows where pasties came from. The pasty somehow worked its way into the English diet hundreds of years ago, then made its way through some Robin Hood stories and Shakespearean plays, and then became popular among the working people of Cornwall. This flaky hand pie definitely has been around the block.
According to the Cornish Pasty Association (yes, there is one), a “genuine” Cornish pasty must have the following ingredients:
- minced or diced beef
- sliced or diced potatoes
- onions
- swede (or turnips)
- simple seasoning
Also, it can only be called a Cornish pasty if the filling was uncooked at when the pasties are sealed. Well, the pasties I made were not genuine Cornish pasties for reasons you’ll see very soon. But don’t let that deter you from making one of these half-moon pockets of gold.
To get the pasty experimentation started in my kitchen, I consulted Jamie. You know, the Naked Chef. I got a copy of Jamie’s Great Britain two Christmases ago, and it has taken me a while to crack open into this hefty book of bright and colorful British recipes. Many of the recipe names definitely caught my attention:
- Breakfast Butty: does this mean there’s a lot of butter in this sandwich? name also dangerously close to “booty”?
- Diamond Jubilee Chicken: being the Queen certainly has its perks.
- Legendary Clootie Dumpling: I misread this the first time and thought it said “Cootie Dumpling.”
- Bonnie Cranachan: I don’t even know where to begin.
Amidst this delightful cookbook was the recipe I was looking for: Early Autumn Cornish Pasties.
As I read the opening blurb and directions of the recipe, I felt like Jamie was giving me a a good pep talk about how I will conquer this recipe. My favorite part of the recipe is when Jamie tells me to “confidently fold the pastry over the meat and vegetables.” To be honest, as I lifted the edges of the dough to seal the pasty, I had serious doubts about whether it was all going to work. I had visions of dough ripping everywhere as the filling bursted through the seams. Then, I remembered what Jamie said and folded that baby with confidence. Success!
Chicken & Root Vegetable Pasties
Ingredients
Pastry
- 3 1/2 (500g) cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (250g) cold butter (2 sticks)
- 7/8 cup (200ml) water
- pinch of salt
Filling
- 12 ounces (350g) cooked chicken breast, cubed
- 3 shallots, diced
- 1 large yukon potato, peeled and diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
- 1 stalk of celery, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- generous pinch of salt
- black pepper
- a few sprigs of fresh rosemary and thyme
- 1 large egg, whisked
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Pour the flour into a large bowl and add a pinch of salt. Cut the butter into slices, and put it into the bowl. Using your hands, rub the butter together with the flour until the floured butter is in the shape of small peas. Add the water, and mix the batter up until the dough is just moistened. Don’t overwork the dough. You’ll get a crumbly dough. If the dough looks a bit dry, add 2 more tablespoons of water. Pat the dough into a ball shape.
- Prepare the filling by mixing the chicken, shallot, carrots, parsnips, and celery together. Make sure that the diced vegetables are cut pretty small, roughly 1/4-inch cubes. Take the rosemary and thyme and remove the leaves from the stem. Give it a couple rough chops. Mix the nutmeg, salt, rosemary, thyme, and pepper with the chicken and vegetables.
- Divide the dough into 6 pieces. On a well-floured surface, use a floured rolling pin to roll out the dough to an 8 1/2 inch circle. As you are rolling out the dough, make sure to turn it frequently to prevent the dough from being stuck to the surface. You can prepare all the dough at once, or work one pasty at a time. I chose the latter because I didn’t have much counter space.
- Take a small handful of filling and place it in the center of the rolled out dough. You want to make sure that there is about an inch of clear space around the edge of the dough. Brush the egg white along this empty space.
- Fold the dough over the vegetables to create a semi-circle shape. Do this with confidence! Seal the pastry. You can crimp the edges with a fork or fold it like I did. When I folded the edges of the pasty, I brushed some egg along the edge so that the folds stayed put. Brush some of the egg wash over the entire pasty. Repeat these steps for the rest of the dough.
- Place the prepared pasties on the baking sheets and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until the pasties are golden brown.
- Best served immediately!
Notes
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission when you buy products through those links. Thanks for supporting Healthy Nibbles & Bits!
Liz @ Floating Kitchen says
Oh my gosh! My mom used to make pasties all the time when I was a kid. I used to love them! I haven’t had one in a long time. But I think I’m going to need to fix this ASAP! YUM! Love seeing your happy face in these pics!
Lisa says
I’m jealous that your mom made these for you!! I’m going to gorge in soooo many of those when in a week!
Sarah | Broma Bakery says
Ahh, I’m loving you with all these pasties!! So cute. And those recipe names have me in stitches.
Lisa says
Hah! I might be taking a few more of those pasty photos this year!!
FoodieMum says
I loved making Cornish pasties when living in England. I haven’t made any since moving to the US but so going to try making them again. P.S. a bacon butty is just a bacon sandwich 😉
Simon says
Probably dumb question. Should I cook the potato and parsnip first before baking, or do they cook in the bake?
Simon says
Oops, didn’t mean to leave this as a reply to the above comment.
Kelly // The Pretty Bee: Cooking & Creating says
Pasties are AMAZING! They are a big thing in the upper peninsula, and we have a few pasty shops downstate as well. Yours look delicious!
Lisa says
I’ve never seen a pasty shop in California before, so I got very excited when I discovered these things in the UK!
Jodi says
Yes they are Kelly. I was born and raised in the UP of Michigan. I live in OKlahoma now. Sadly, no pasty shops here either. If I want a pasty now, I have to make it.
Melanie @ Nutritious Eats says
My Australian friend makes one similar. This looks delicious Lisa!
Lisa says
I bet your friend’s pasties taste scrumptious!
Sonali- The Foodie Physician says
These look amazing- such a great comfort food! Thanks for such a delicious and informative post!
Lisa says
Thanks, Sonali!
Connie @ Sprig and Flours says
Oh my goodness, these pasties are so pretty! *Almost* too pretty to eat. Pinned!
Lisa says
Thanks, Connie!
Sarah @ SnixyKitchen says
Wow – you did a gorgeous job with these, Lisa! I have to say, I had NO idea what a pasty was until I read this post – I was convinced you’d misspelled “pastry,” until you started describing the word itself as confused with pastis! So so impressed by the flavors and folds of these pasties!
Lisa says
Thanks, Sarah! It’s so funny because when I first heard about Cornish pasties, I got so confused. I remember asking what are “Cornish pastries,” and everyone in the room laughed. They were all British.
Arman @ thebigmansworld says
I LOVE Pasties!!!! And thank you for the correlation- I’ll never forget buying a SCONE in America and it NOT coming with cream and jam and was totally not a scone. Silly scone.
My mum makes a curried chicken pasty and now I really want one. Or two.
Lisa says
Hahaha….don’t order biscuits from the South either. You’ll be unpleasantly surprised!
Oh my gosh, I’m eating a curried chicken pasty in one of those photos. Tell your mom to make one for me!!
Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom says
I get excited too when it comes to savory hand pies!! love these chicken root vegetable pasties and yes to the all butter pastry crust!!
Lisa says
Yay! So glad I’m not the only one who loves a good savory hand pie!
Maryea {happy healthy mama} says
Ahhh this brings me back to my childhood! I grew up the in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where pasties are huge. My parents make the best homemade pasties! I have never had any kind of pasty other than the traditional, so your recipe looks really intriguing! I would love to try it. 🙂
Lisa says
Thank, Maryea! I had no clue that pasties are huge in the Upper Peninsula!
rachel says
yum this looks like total comfort food!
Lisa says
Thanks, Rachel!
Vinnie says
I totally love pasties ! When looking over the recipe for the pastry , it says 1/2 cup of butter or 2 sticks . A 1/2 cup butter is is 1 stick and 2 sticks is one cup . The ratio for the flour and butter seems like it would be 1 cup butter or 2 sticks . I really want my pasties to turn out as beautiful as yours .
Lisa Lin says
Hi, Vinnie! Thanks for your comment! You are right, the recipe should say 1 cup. Thanks for catching that! I have corrected my recipe.
Kasia says
I tried your recipe today. When I added the water, the dough became very wet. Is it supposed to do that? Also, the pasties came out HUGE. Next time I will make 8, instead.
Lisa Lin says
Hi Kasia, thanks for trying the recipe! When adding water, try to add only about 2 tablespoons at a time, until there’s just enough moisture for the dough to stick together. On some days, you may need only 6 tablespoons of water, and on other days, you might need 8 or more. It really depends on the conditions around your house on that day. So try not to throw all the water in at once.
And yes, the pasties are pretty big as one is meant to be eaten as a meal. Thanks again for trying the recipe!
Marla says
You mention 3TBS olive oil but you do not mention it is the recipe. Typo?
Lisa Lin says
Yes, that was a typo! Thanks for catching it!
Juliet says
I just made these. They are delicious, the filling is quite dry. Was expecting more of a chicken pot pie filling, but maybe this is how it’s supposed to be? Mine were wildly under seasoned. Both the filling and the crust. A pinch didn’t quite do it. But I’ll be making them again for sure!
Lisa Lin says
Thanks for the feedback, Juliet! It’s been such a long time since I’ve made these, I think I need to go back and rework the recipe!
Patrick says
I added a knob of butter to the filling before sealing them and it made them lovely and moist after cooking. Not quite a gravy but definitely not dry. I’m making these again today.
Mindy says
Thank you for the recipe! I will be making these for a Medieval day at my children’s school. I need to make 30 and there will be so many different dishes there, the kiddos really don’t need a big one. So my first question is, if I made these half the size, how would that effect cooking time? Also, could I make these the night before and then place them on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the fridge?
Axel says
Was looking for recipe and found these cool side, because you can’t buy pasty in switzerland. May be in the city but i am living in a small village. I am making it today and i am looking forward to it. thank you for the top webpage.
Alison says
For one Lisa Lin, a butty is a sandwich, I’m Welsh, it is the word we use. The other fact you don’t seem to know is that pasties, with their thick crusts for holding were made for miners for their sustenance underground , both Cornwall and Wales relied on them, kept the miners food clean!
Sheila B says
How is this considered healthy when there is 2 2/3 tablespoons of butter in each serving.
Simon says
Probably dumb question. Should I cook the potato and parsnip first before baking, or do they cook in the bake?