My favourite recipe that my mother made and which was previously made by my grandmother. I’d walk in the door from school and smell that smell and I just knew what she had prepared. Chicken Cornish pasties with beetroot salad and gravy
I was sooo excited to sit down and eat.
(Beef mince may be used as a substitute)
Ingredients
For the pastry
250 g butter
300 ml hot water
500 g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 large free-range egg, beaten
1 handful medium ground cornmeal or polenta
For the filling
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
olive oil
4 chicken breasts, cut into 2cm dice
½ small butternut squash, (approximately 250g) peeled and cut into 1cm chunks
1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 medium potato, peeled and cut into 1cm chunks
6 sprigs fresh sage or thyme, chopped
nutmeg
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
300 ml chicken stock
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon plain flour
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Bring your butter and water to the boil in a large pan, then take the pan off the heat. Stir the flour and salt into the mixture bit by bit with a spatula, until you’ve got a dough. Tip it on to a floured surface and use your hands to shape it into a smooth ball. Put the ball of dough into a floured bowl, dust the top with flour, then cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes while you make the filling.
Meanwhile, get a large pan and fry your chopped onion in a little olive oil for 5 minutes or until softened. Add the diced chicken and fry for 5 minutes until brown, then add the rest of the chopped vegetables and herbs. Fry for another 5 minutes, then add 3 or 4 good gratings of nutmeg. Season well with salt and pepper, then pour in the chicken stock and Worcestershire sauce. Stir in the flour and simmer on a medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until most of the stock has cooked away and you’re left with nice thick gravy.
Dust a clean surface and a rolling pin with flour, then divide your pastry dough in half and roll each half out until it’s slightly thinner than 0.5cm. Use a cereal bowl (about 15cm in diameter) to cut 4 circles out of each half, so you end up with 8 circles. Continue re-rolling any remaining pastry to make the rest. Dust the circles with flour, and spoon your filling into the middle of each one. Brush the edges of the pastry with some of the beaten egg, then fold each circle in half over the filling and crimp the edges with your finger and thumb to seal them. Or use a fork to crimp the edges.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper, scatter a handful of cornmeal or polenta over the paper, and place your pasties on top. Brush the pasties all over with more of the beaten egg and sprinkle over a little more cornmeal. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes.
Recipe adapted from Jamie Oliver
Prepared, tried and tested: Gail Haselsteiner