Alternative names | Starrey gazey pie |
---|---|
Course | Main |
Place of origin | United Kingdom |
Region or state | Cornwall |
Serving temperature | Hot |
Main ingredients | Pilchards |
Stargazy pie (Cornish: Hogen Ster-Lagatta; sometimes called starrey gazey pie, stargazey pie and other variants) is a Cornish dish made of baked pilchards (sardines), along with eggs and potatoes, covered with a pastry crust. Although there are a few variations using other types of fish, the unique feature of stargazy pie is fish heads (and sometimes tails) protruding through the crust, so that they appear to be gazing to the stars.
The dish traditionally originates from the village of Mousehole in Cornwall and is traditionally eaten during the festival of Tom Bawcock's Eve to celebrate his heroic catch during a very stormy winter. According to the modern festival, which is combined with the Mousehole village illuminations, the entire catch was baked into a huge stargazy pie, encompassing seven types of fish and saving the village from starvation. The story of Bawcock was popularised by Antonia Barber's children's book The Mousehole Cat , which featured the stargazy pie. In 2007 contestant Mark Hix won the BBC's Great British Menu with a variant of the dish.
A merry plaas you may believe
woz Mowsel pon Tom Bawcock's Eve.
To be theer then oo wudn wesh
To sup o sibm soorts o fesh!
Wen morgee brath ad cleard tha path
Comed lances for a fry,
An then us had a bet o scad
an starry gazee py.
Nex cumd fermaads, braa thustee jaads
As maad ar oozles dry,
An ling an haak, enough to maak
a raunen shark to sy!
A aech wed clunk as ealth wer drunk
En bumpers bremmen y,
An wen up caam Tom Bawcock's naam
We praesed un to tha sky. [1]
Robert Morton Nance (1873–1959) (c. 1930)
Stargazy pie is a pastry-based fish pie which, by tradition, is filled with whole pilchards. It is critical that the pilchards retain their heads, so they poke through the pastry top. The appearance of the fish heads makes them look like they are "gazing at the stars", hence the name. The position of the fish allows the oil that is released during cooking to drain into the pie, adding a fuller flavour and ensuring the pie is moist. [2] The celebrity chef Rick Stein suggested also poking the pilchards' tails through the pie crust to give the effect of leaping through water. [3]
In spite of the fact that the British Food Trust describes the dish as being fun as well as amusing to children, [2] it has been listed in "Yuck! Disgusting things people eat", a lifestyle feature by the New York Daily News based upon the book by an American author, Neil Setchfield. [4] [5] On Tom Bawcock's Eve it is served in The Ship Inn, the only pub in Mousehole, sometimes after a re-enactment of the legend. [6]
The pie originates from the fishing village of Mousehole in Cornwall. As with many parts of Cornish heritage, a legend has appeared about its origins. In this case, the pie is served to celebrate the bravery of Tom Bawcock, a local fisherman in the 16th century. The legend explains that one winter had been particularly stormy, meaning that none of the fishing boats had been able to leave the harbour. As Christmas approached, the villagers, who relied on fish as their primary source of food, were facing starvation. [7] [8]
On 23 December, Tom Bawcock decided to brave the storms and went out in his fishing boat. Despite the stormy weather and the difficult seas, he managed to catch enough fish to feed the entire village. The entire catch (including seven types of fish) was baked into a pie, which had the fish heads poking through to prove that there were fish inside. Ever since then, the Tom Bawcock's Eve festival is held on 23 December in Mousehole. The celebration and memorial to the efforts of Tom Bawcock sees the villagers parading a huge stargazy pie during the evening with a procession of handmade lanterns, before eating the pie itself. [7] [9] [10]
An older feast, held by the fishermen towards the end of December, included a pie cooked with different fish to represent the variety of catches the men hoped to achieve in the coming year. There is a possibility that Tom Bawcock's Eve is an evolution of this festival. [11] Since 1963, the festival has been run against the backdrop of the Mousehole village illuminations, where the entire harbour is lit up, along with many other displays. [12] One set of lights even represents the pie itself, showing fish heads and tails protruding from a pie dish underneath six stars. [13]
There was a rumour that the entire festival was a fabrication by the landlord of The Ship Inn in the 1950s. However, festivities had been recorded by Morton Nance, an author on the Cornish language, in 1927 in the magazine Old Cornwall. His description was regarding the festivities prior to 1900, though he doubted the reality of Tom Bawcock, suggesting it was in fact "Beau Coc". He also went on to confirm that the origins of the festival dated back to pre-Christian times, though it is unclear at what time the stargazy pie became part of the festivities. Morton Nance went on to restore the traditional song sung on Tom Bawcock's Eve, played to the local tune "wedding March". [14]
A legend surrounding stargazy pie, along with the other unusual pies of Cornwall, is that they were the reason that the Devil never came to Cornwall. In his book Popular Romances of the West of England; or, The drolls, traditions, and superstitions of old Cornwall, a collection of Cornish traditions, Robert Hunt explains that the Devil crossed the River Tamar to Torpoint. The chapter, entitled "The Devil's Coits, etc", reasons that the Devil discovered the Cornish would put anything in a pie and decided to leave before they took a fancy to a "devilly" pie, returning to Devon. [15] [16]
The original pie in the legend included sand eels, horse mackerel, pilchards, herring, dogfish and ling along with a seventh fish. In a traditional pie, the primary ingredient is the pilchard (sardine), although mackerel or herring is used as a substitute. Richard Stevenson, chef at The Ship Inn in Mousehole, suggests that any white fish will work for the filling, while pilchards or herring can be added for the presentation. Prior to putting it in the pie the fish should be skinned and boned (except the head and tail) to make it easier to eat. Along with the fish, the other traditional ingredients are thickened milk, eggs and boiled potatoes. [17]
There are many recipe variations around the traditional ingredients, some of which include hard-boiled eggs, bacon, onion, mustard or white wine. Other alternatives to the main fish can be crayfish and rabbit or mutton. The stargazy pie is always topped with a pastry lid, generally shortcrust but sometimes puff pastry, through which the fish heads and sometimes tails protrude. [17]
For presentation, one suggestion is that the pilchards be arranged with their tails toward the centre of the pie and their heads poking up through the crust around the edge. As it includes potatoes and pastry, the pie can be served on its own or with crusty bread, sometimes with vegetables. Other suggested accompaniments are Cornish Yarg cheese, rhubarb chutney, poached eggs or a slice of lemon. [17] [18]
Nancy Kerr and James Fagan recorded an album and track Starry Gazy Pie in 1997. [19] [20]
Jim Causley references "starry-gazey pie" on the track "My Young Man's a Cornishman" on his 2013 album Cyprus Well. The song comes from a poem by his distant relative Charles Causley (1917–2003).
The Silver Seas made an album called “Starry Gazey Pie” in 2004.
Cornish singer Brenda Wootton recorded an album Starry-Gazey Pie with Rob Bartlett in 1975 for Sentinel Records. [21]
A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients. Sweet pies may be filled with fruit, nuts, fruit preserves, brown sugar, sweetened vegetables, or with thicker fillings based on eggs and dairy. Savoury pies may be filled with meat, eggs and cheese or a mixture of meat and vegetables.
A pasty or Cornish pasty is a British baked pastry, a variety of which is particularly associated with Cornwall, but has spread all over the British Isles, and elsewhere through the Cornish diaspora. It consists of an uncooked filling, typically meat and vegetables, baked in a folded and crimped shortcrust pastry circle.
Quiche is a French tart consisting of a pastry crust filled with savoury custard and pieces of cheese, meat, seafood or vegetables. A well-known variant is quiche lorraine, which includes lardons or bacon. Quiche may be served hot, warm or cold.
A pork pie is a traditional English meat pie, usually served either at room temperature or cold. It consists of a filling of roughly chopped pork and pork fat, surrounded by a layer of jellied pork stock in a hot water crust pastry. It is normally eaten as a snack or with a salad.
Mousehole is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately 2.5 miles (4 km) south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies about 350 metres (380 yd) offshore from the harbour entrance.
Tom Bawcock's Eve is an annual festival, held on 23 December, in Mousehole, Cornwall.
Nickanan Night is a Cornish feast, traditionally held during Shrovetide, specifically on Shrove Monday.
Tom Bawcock is a legendary character from the village of Mousehole, Cornwall, England. He appears to have been a local fisherman in the 16th century. According to the legend, one winter had been particularly stormy, meaning that none of the fishing boats had been able to leave the harbour. As Christmas approached, the villagers, who relied on fish as their primary source of food, were facing starvation.
Fish pie, also known as fisherman's pie, is a traditional British dish.
Troyl is a colloquial Cornish word meaning a barn dance or céilidh, a social evening of dance, music and song.
Cornish mythology is the folk tradition and mythology of the Cornish people. It consists partly of folk traditions developed in Cornwall and partly of traditions developed by Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium, often shared with those of the Breton and Welsh peoples. Some of this contains remnants of the mythology of pre-Christian Britain.
Timballo is an Italian baked dish consisting of pasta, rice or potatoes, with one or more other ingredients included. Variations include the mushroom and shrimp sauce timballo Alberoni, named after Giulio Alberoni, and the veal and tomato sauce timballo pattadese.
Fishing in Cornwall, England, UK, has traditionally been one of the main elements of the economy of the county. Pilchard fishing and processing was a thriving industry in Cornwall from around 1750 to around 1880, after which it went into an almost terminal decline. During the 20th century the varieties of fish taken became much more diverse and crustaceans such as crab and lobster are now significant. Much of the catch is exported to France due to the higher prices obtainable there. Though fishing has been significantly damaged by overfishing, the Southwest Handline Fishermen's Association has started to revive the fishing industry. As of 2007, stocks were improving. The Cornwall Sea Fisheries Committee is one of 12 committees responsible for managing the corresponding Sea Fisheries District. The Isles of Scilly Sea Fisheries Committee is responsible for the Scilly district.
Cornish cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with Cornwall and the Cornish people. It has been heavily influenced by the geography of the county as well as its social history.
Squab pie is a traditional dish from South West England, with early records showing it was associated with Cornwall, Devon and Gloucestershire. Although the name suggests it contains squab, in fact it contains mutton and apples. The pie was eaten around the world in the 1900s, though outside South West England it generally did contain pigeon.
The Mousehole Cat is a children's book written by Antonia Barber and illustrated by Nicola Bayley. Based on the legend of Cornish fisherman Tom Bawcock and the stargazy pie, it tells the tale of a cat who goes with its owner on a fishing expedition in rough and stormy seas. The book has won awards, including the 1998 British Book Award for Illustrated Children's Book of the Month. It has since been adapted into a 1994 animated film, a puppet show and is being adapted as a stage musical.
Sardines ("pilchards") are a nutrient-rich, small, oily fish widely consumed by humans and as forage fish by larger fish species, seabirds and marine mammals. Sardines are a source of omega-3 fatty acids. Sardines are often served in cans, but can also be eaten grilled, pickled, or smoked when fresh.
Lamprey pie is a pastry dish made from sea lampreys or European river lampreys. Lampreys were a delicacy for the wealthy in medieval England and were often given as gifts to royalty as a means of seeking favour. It became tradition for the city of Gloucester to give the monarch a lamprey pie each Christmas. In 1200 the city was fined 40 marks for failing to provide the pie. The annual custom ended in 1836, but in 1893 it was revived when Gloucester mayor, John A. Matthews wished to send a pie to Queen Victoria during her Jubilee Year. The pie was made and sent annually by John A. Fisher and Sons, Ltd., Tudor House, Gloucester, until in 1917 King George V requested that the gifting be suspended until World War One had ended. It was never revived. John A. Fisher died at age 82 in 1929. A lamprey pie is still presented on special occasions such as coronations and jubilees.