Step aside Cornish pasty, we all love you, that is without question, but let’s let this big boy get a moment in the sun. The Welsh Oggie is their version and its origins are not dissimilar but these pasties are bigger, much bigger and being from Wales, contain lamb and leeks.
Ingredients
Pastry:
One batch of shortcrust pastry to this recipe
Filling:
25g unsalted butter
25 grams leeks, cleaned and finely sliced
225g waxy potatoes (try a Maris Piper or similar)
225g lamb (cut into small chunks)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg (beaten)
Directions
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 220°C/ 425°F Gas 7 and lightly grease a baking tray.
Divide the pastry into two, roll each half into a round approx. 22cm across. Cover with a cloth and leave to one side.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the chopped leeks and cook gently for 5 mins, add the potato and cook for a further 5.
Add the lamb and cook for two minutes to brown the meat then pop a lid on and cook slowly 6 mins then season with salt and pepper and leave to cool.
Divide the filling into two and place on one side of the two pastry circles. Brush around the edges with egg and fold the circle over and press to create a tight seal, then, crimp the edges neatly and brush the Oggie all over with the beaten egg.
Bake on the greased baking sheet for 15 mins
Place the pasties on a greased baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, reduce the oven to 180 °C and cook for 30 mins more until the Welsh Oggie is golden brown. Serve hot or cold, it’s up to you.
The Welsh Oggie is all but a meal in itself and you can treat it as one as it needs little else except a few fresh vegetables and a little gravy. The Oggie comes into its own though as a lunch-on-the-go, which of course was its original purpose.