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The Bedfordshire Clanger might be the county’s most well-known delicacy, but there aren’t that many places left where you can find this unique pastry, so after a trip to the region, why not pick up the ingredients you need to make your own?

The Bedfordshire Clanger is a pastry based snack with a savoury end and a sweet end, usually separated by a wall of pastry. Though the traditional ones are usually beef and strawberry jam, you can make them any flavour that you want and the few bakeries remaining that make and sell the clanger do so with a range of ingredients, so you can have a curry one, a vegetarian one… Anything you like! The real beauty of the thing is that it is two meals in one.
This recipe is for the traditional recipe, but you can substitute the ingredients for whatever you want.

Ingredients:
For the filling –

2tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, finely chopped
500g beef chopped
1 tin beef consommé
1tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 ripe pears, peeled, cored and roughly chopped.

For the pastry -


350g self raising flour
1 tsp salt
85g suet
60g butter, chilled and coarsely grated
1 free range egg
150ml water.

Method:

Make the meat section of the clanger first. Heat half the vegetable oil in a large heavy based frying pan and gently cook the onions for 2-3 minutes. Put them to one side.

Using the same pan, heat it over a high heat and add the rest of the vegetable oil, season and add the chopped meat. Cook the meat, turning until it is evenly browned. Remove from the pan and mix with onions.

Add the stock to the pan together with the Worcestershire sauce and boil until you have only 2-3 tablespoons left, then add the meat and onions back to the pan and cook over a high heat until the sauce has reduced. Remove from the heat but keep warm.

Preheat your oven to 200c. While the oven is heating, make a start on the pastry. Mix the flour, salt, suet and grated butter with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the water and egg and mix to a dough.

Using your hands knead the dough, once you are satisfied, cover a flat surface with flour and roll the dough out to 1cm thick.

Use a square of pastry to section the dough into halves. In one half spoon in the meat filling and then add the pears to the other. Roll the pastry over into a large sausage shape and place on a baking tray.

Bake for 45 minutes and enjoy!

If you make your own version of a Bedfordshire Clanger we’d love to know! You can tag us in your creations on Instagram!

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