Ginsters launches curry-filled Cornish pasty

One of Britain’s oldest snacks has been combined with the nation’s favourite foreign takeaway to create a new – CURRY PASTY.

Officials at Ginsters have introduced a Chicken Balti Pasty – blending the traditional Cornish treat with a new spicy filling.

The £1.99 meal is made up of chicken marinated in a spicy balti sauce with fresh potato and onion wrapped in light puff pastry.

Most experts believe pasties have been around since the 18th century when tin miners first took them underground for their lunch.

The recipe has remained largely unchanged ever since – a distinctive semicircular package of pastry filled with beef, sliced potato, swede and onion.

Ginsters’ new pasty retains the classic shape but is filled with curry – which several years ago over took over from fish and chips as Britain’s favourite takeaway.

Andy Valentine, head of brand marketing for Ginsters, says the new dish shows how far the humble pasty has come.

He said: ”The success we’ve had with our special edition pasties has driven us to find more tantalising flavours to meet the consumer appetite for a variety of tastes.

”A number of the previous recipes have been classic British combinations, but Chicken Balti, whilst not originally being a British flavour, is very much an indication of what has become a traditional British taste.

”With the nation’s palettes moving ever more towards the spicy end of the spectrum, we’re keen to embrace stronger flavours, infused with our own original Ginsters’ recipes and quality local ingredients, to create a contemporary flavour.”

The new pasty contains potato, wheatflour, chicken, vegetable oil, water, onion, red pepper, tomato, cornflour, salt, egg, tomato puree, jalapenos, balti seasoning, coriander, pepper, sugar, milk, garlic puree, basil, and oregano.

The seasoning is made up of coriander powder, turmeric powder, cumin seed, pepper, fenugreek powder, chilli powder, fennel powder, garlic powder, anise powder, salt, cumin powder, cassia powder, ground clove and cardamom.

Pasties are thought to have originated in Cornwall when it was made as lunch for tin miners who were unable to return to the surface to eat.

Experts say the iconic design was created so the workers could hold the pasty by the folded crust and eat the rest without touching it with their dirty hands.

But historian Todd Gray recently caused controversy when he claimed he found a recipe for a Devon pasty in 1510 – more than 230 years before the first Cornish written reference to the snack.

The neighbouring county later hit back citing the Official Encyclopaedia of the Cornish Pasty which claimed pasty recipes have been handed down by word of mouth in Cornwall since 8,000BC.