The Famous Forfar Bridie

The famous Forfar bridie is a meat and onion filled pasty, which originated in or around the town of Forfar, Angus. As is often the case with such creations, the Forfar bridie has undergone considerable transformation from its original form as its popularity has spread far and wide around Scotland and the version pictured above - sold (in Scotland only) by the UK wide bakers Greggs - even uses puff pastry instead of the traditional shortcrust.

Being raised in Lanarkshire, a considerable way from Forfar, it was the commercial variety of bridies such as those supplied by Greggs which I grew up enjoying, rather than the traditional. It was not actually until the year 2002 that I had the opportunity to visit the town of Forfar and try a bridie on what may be deemed to be home soil. I was in the town for a Scottish Cup match at Station Park, the home of Forfar Athletic. Unfortunately, due to it being a Sunday, I knew that the traditional outlets for purchasing bridies would be closed. I had no choice therefore to hope that the local bridies would be on sale inside the ground during the match.

A sports' ground or stadium is less than the ideal place to go in search of traditional food items but the circumstances gave me little choice and I duly waited my turn with fellow fans at the small refreshments' outlet. I bought my first ever Forfar bridie and was surprised initially by its appearance: it looked very different from the bridies I had previously eaten. Sadly, I then took one bite and that was more than enough! It was brick hard, it was bone dry and - frankly - it was totally inedible. I have little doubt that it was simply overcooked but regardless, in abject disappointment, I deposited my largely uneaten, first ever Forfar bridie in a convenient bin.



Above: A Greggs bridie

Very much on the other side of the coin, I have to say that the best bridie I have ever eaten was also in a football ground. Although it is far from being a traditional Forfar bridie, the steak bridies which are sold at the ground of Dunfermline Athletic in Fife are delicious and extremely satisfying. I remember on one occasion visiting East End Park for a night match, not having eaten all day, and attempting to eat two of these tasty creations. I almost managed it! The Dunfermline steak bridies are produced by Stephens Bakery in the town of Dunfermline.

I have made my own version of Forfar bridies many times in the past and details of the way in which I go about doing so can be found by clicking here. Just last night, however, I decided to have a go at baking my own version of a steak bridie and the recipe which I devised and followed is included below.

Ingredients

1/2lb Aberdeen Angus stewing steak
6oz puff pastry
2 pints fresh beef stock
Freshly ground black pepper
Small egg (beaten) for glazing
Butter for greasing baking tray

Method

The first step is to cook the steak and allow it to cool. This therefore has to be undertaken a few hours prior to actually making the steak bridie.

The steak is firstly seasoned with a little black pepper then browned and sealed in a large pot. The hot stock is then added and the steak is simmered very gently for a couple of hours or until tender. The liquid is likely to require topping up at some stage during this time and boiling water should be used for this purpose. When the steak is cooked, the pot should be covered and set aside to cool for at least an hour.



Above: Assembling a steak bridie

It is a common mistake made when rolling out puff pastry not to roll it thin enough. This will mean that the pastry doesn't cook as it should and will be overcooked on the outside while still uncooked inside. This 6oz of puff pastry is rolled out on a floured surface, thin enough to use a 10" dinner plate as a template for cutting a circle.

The cooled steak should include in it small amounts of congealed fat, as can be seen in the image above. It is important to include this fat in the bridie, or the meat will dry out in the oven. The steak and fat should be arranged on one half of the circle as shown, leaving a border of slightly more than 1", which should be lightly brushed with egg yolk. The empty half of the pastry can then be folded over the top and gently pressed down around the edges to seal.



Above: Steak bridie ready to be glazed and cooked

The steak bridie should then be placed on to a baking tray which has been lightly greased with butter. It should be lightly glazed all over the exposed areas with more beaten egg and a slit of around 1" cut in the top to allow steam to escape during cooking. It should then be placed in to an oven preheated to 375F/190C/Gas Mark 5 for twenty-five to thirty minutes until beautifully golden.



Above: Steak bridie removed from the oven

When the steak bridie is ready, it can either be served immediately or covered and allowed to cool. It can be served with chips, baked beans in tomato sauce, or any one of a number of accompaniments but a steak bridie of this size is fairly filling on its own and on this occasion I enjoyed it merely with a large dollop of HP Sauce.



Above: A steak bridie cut open

source: http://traditional-food-and-drink-scotland.blogspot.com/