Move over Bake Off – a new competition is being launched to find the world’s best speedy amateur pasty crimpers. The contest will take place during next year’s Cornish Pasty Week.
As any self-respecting Cornish person knows, crimping is the process of twisting and pinching the edges of the pasty together to seal it – and there’s a real skill to it. A series of heats will take place on the day, with contestants challenged to crimp three Cornish pasties as fast as they can against the clock to earn the title of world’s fastest crimper.
Cornish Pasty Week, the annual seven-day celebration of Cornwall’s culinary gift to the globe, will culminate with the competitions for adults and under-16s. Organisers the Cornish Pasty Association (CPA) have run a contest for professional pasty crimpers in the past but have now decided to relaunch the competition just for amateurs.
CPA chairman Jason Jobling said: “We’re thrilled to announce the launch of our first-ever open contest to find amateur world champions in the skilful art of crimping. Crowning the World’s Fastest Crimpers will be a great way to end a week full of activities, all designed to celebrate our favourite food, its history and those who make it the thriving Cornish industry it is today.
“Once again throughout Cornish Pasty Week we will be raising money for the Cornish Pasty Community Fund, which helps hundreds of children right across the county to learn about food and cooking.”
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Cornish Pasty Week has been running since 2018. Earlier this year the 2024 event raised £20,000 for the community fund, every penny of which is going to schools throughout Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly for cooking activities and food-learning initiatives they would otherwise not be able to afford.
So far more than 30 schools have received a share of the fund to buy equipment and ingredients for a wide range of activities – from growing vegetables to after-school cookery clubs.
Professional bakers and crimpers from CPA member bakeries have also led pasty-making sessions for more than 600 children in Cornish schools. They teach kids about the ingredients that go into a genuine Cornish pasty, before they get to make, bake and eat their own.
To raise money for the 2025 community fund, anyone making or selling genuine Cornish pasties can donate either a specific amount from every pasty sold during the week, or a fixed lump sum of their choice. Schools will be able to apply for a share of the fund by completing an online form, saying how much money they need and what it will be used for. The CPA will select the winning bids.
Another key aim of the week is to raise awareness of the Cornish pasty’s Protected Geographical Indication status, which safeguards its quality and reputation. The CPA says pasty-makers in Cornwall generate approximately £300 million of trade per year and employ more than 2,000 people – many in year-round, permanent positions.
Mr Jobling added: “Cornish Pasty Week is a great time of year when spring is around the corner and we all get together to showcase the love, care and talent involved in making a genuine Cornish pasty.”
How do you crimp a Cornish pasty?
Professional baker Jackie Tonkin of the Cornish Pasty Association shows how to crimp a Cornish pasty
(Image: John Hersey/Cornish Pasty Association)
The Cornish Pasty Association suggests the following method:
- Lightly brush the edge of the pastry with water.
- Fold the other half of pastry over the filling and squeeze the halfcircle edges firmly together.
- Push down on the edge of the pasty and using your index finger and thumb twist the edge of the pastry over to form a crimp.
- Repeat this process along the edge of the pasty.
- When you’ve crimped along the edge, tuck the end corners underneath.
- Now it’s ready to bake.
The World’s Fastest Crimper competition, which has been part-funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, will take place at the Great Cornish Food Store, Truro, on Saturday, March 1. To book your space visit www.cornishpastyassociation.co.uk
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