h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My friend Ruth is Cornish, and she makes wonderful pasties.

She says that the true Cornish pasty is made with lamb, rather than beef or pork...

Just thought I'd drop that snippet in!

In our part of Cornwall, West Penwith, Beef is the most common meat used , sometimes beef, but never lamb.

Ruth was from Truro - maybe it's regional, but I suspect that people really used what meat was available, if you were a tin miner you probably wouldn't be picky, would you!

This is interesting:

http://www.cornwall-online.co.uk/history/pasty.htm

I've heard mention of the 'knockers' down the mine somewhere. Maybe we should have a guide entry on cornish pasties too!

The knockers are little people who live in the depths of the cornish mines and cause all sorts of problems and accidents if the miners do not leave a piece of pasty for them after croust( meal break)
I am not sure there is enough information for there to be a guide on the cornish pasty.
My Ma in Law was renowned for her pasties, she kept a pub in West Cornwall and Thursday was pasty day for her and she would bake dozens of them to serve across the bar.
I meant to say in the other post, 'sometimes pork but never lamb,' but as you said often pasties had in them whatever was around.
I have my Ma in Laws' recipe if anyone would like it.

I'd like the recipe!

Could you put it up as a Guide Entry? I'd follow it through Peer Review.

Do you mean just the recipe?

Hi kifperran,

You could just put the recipe in, there are some Entries that are stand alone recipes in the guide. Including some of the myths around pasties would be good, it would add interest, like the knockers story for instance.

I am a graduate of the Camborne School of Mines in West Cornwall, I lived in Porthcurno, not far from Kif, we wre always told to leave a littel of our food down the mine to appease the knockers, the old miners left the crust, which was hard and grubby from handling.

The knockers themselves originated from the very real creaks, knocks and groans that blasted rock makes at depth, the older miners could tell just by listening whether a stope had settled in and was safe.

The best Cornish pasties in West penwith are made in Hayle. Though they have a little too much cabbage for my taste.

CABBAGE!!! AAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGG

This is the recipe for the pasties my Ma in Law made when she ran a pub and became renowned for them. My wife uses this recipe and we had pasties for lunch today.
To make two good sized pasties.
Make up one pound of shortcrust pastry and leave to rest in a fridge or cool place for an hour.
You need 12 ounces of good beef, skirt is good. take off any fat on the beef. Cut in pieces, bite size is best.
3 ounces of diced raw potato
3 ounces of diced turnip, (swede)
1 small onion finely chopped.
2 knobs of butter.
a liitle egg or milk to glaze.
roll out the pastry to a size from which you can cut two circles using a round dinner plate as a template.starting at the centre of the circle put a row of potato a row of swede a row of onion and a row of meat until a semi circle is nearly filled, dab a knob of butter onto the meat, you leave an edge of pastry to seal the pasty with. Fold the half of the pastry over the filling. Moisten the edge and seal. Crimp the edges with your fingers, cut a couple of slits in the top. Glaze with egg or milk. put into a hot oven, about450 F. when the pasty is pale brown turn the heat down to about 350F and bake for about 40 miutes.
Pasties when made this way are full of flavour and gravy, if the ingredients are mixed instead of being laid out in rows the flavour ain't the same!!

Pretty much what I was taught by my mum (A Curnow from Marazion), except the vegetables are chipped, like Crisps (Or Chips to American speakers), not diced. Apparently chipping them makes them cook better.

She was taught by my Grandmother, who I can remember making them in the same way, and she was taught by her mother (Her husband, my great grandfather, worked in the mines)

Another great delicacy from the area is marinated pilchards! Yum! Let's also not forget Heavy cake and saffron cake!