Cornish Vegan Steak Pasties
Some of my earliest memories are made up of watching my grandmother, in an incredibly hot kitchen, tirelessly baking a wide selection of Cornish treats for my family. There would be a bounty of delights to enjoy. Yeast and Saffron Buns were some of my favourites - these were as big as my head! - but nothing could come close to the almighty Cornish Steak Pasty. These recipes have been passed down from generation to generation; I learned how to make pasties from watching my Dad and he learnt from my grandmother and so on.
When I decided to become vegan over 12 years ago, the one thing I missed most was a hearty Cornish pasty. I made it a mission of mine to come up with a vegan Cornish pasty recipe that could closely resemble the real thing. Let’s be honest, as nice as a vegetable pasty is, it’s not quite the same, is it?
After tirelessly working on different recipes and taste-testing with my friends and family, I perfected it; the ultimate vegan cornish pasty! It’s worth noting, that I highly recommend using this recipe for the vegan steaks, but you can use store-bought if you are a bit tight for time. Also, do make sure to use white pepper and not black pepper when seasoning the filling.
Prep 3 hour + 30 min
Cook 55 min
Serves 3 people
Ingredients
Shortcrust Pastry
Filling
Glaze
Method
To prepare the vegan steaks, please follow this recipe or, alternatively, use store-bought vegan steaks.
Begin by preparing the pastry. Combine the salt with the flour and rub the vegan butter into the flour until it has the consistency of breadcrumbs. Slowly add the water and knead well until the dough becomes fairly elastic. This can take longer than normal but the elasticity ensures the pastry is strong enough.
Place the dough in a covered container and allow it to rest in the fridge for three hours.
Using a rolling pin, roll out the pastry and cut into circles roughly 20 cm in diameter. I find that a small serving plate is good to use for this.
Layer on the potato, onion, swede and vegan steak, making sure to season with salt and ground white pepper throughout. Place a small amount of vegan butter - half a teaspoon or so - on top of the mix.
Lightly brush the edges of the pastry with the glaze mix and bring it together by folding in half and squeezing together the edges of the pastry until they merge slightly. Using your index finger and thumb twist the edges of the pastry over to form a crimp and repeat this process along the edges until you have reached the end and tuck the end corners underneath.
Place the pasties on a parchment paper lined oven tray and pop in the oven at 165 degrees for about 50 – 55 minutes. After around 30 minutes, glaze the pasties with the vegan glaze mix and repeat until you have a nice shine on the pastry. Remove from the oven and let them sit for about ten minutes before eating.
Recipe and Photography: Lee Nottle