It first came into existence in the 19th century when the locals of Bedfordshire were trying local dishes from districts to come up with something new and thus Bedfordshire clanger was made.
From its early years, Bedfordshire Clanger intrigued the labour and working class in the area as everyone liked to hang out at a place where light food was served and since Bedfordshire Clanger was the newest and lightest of them all, it became an everyday staple of workers, specially labours.
Interestingly, the makers of Bedfordshire Clanger were women who first made this dish for their working-class husbands who, most of them, belonged to agriculture. In the 19th century, the mid-day meal was necessary for the working class as it came between their working hours or duty. Therefore, the wives were concerned about the diet of their husbands and thus brought this delicious dish to this world.
Today, Bedfordshire Clanger has become the symbol of recognition for Bedfordshire and portrayed as the ‘defining food of Bedfordshire’.
There are different stories that history reveals to us about the name of Bedfordshire clanger. Some historians say that the word clanger referred to a word describing the mistake of adding two different fillings one sweet one savoury, but no one has come forward to support it with facts.
The most prominent naming theory that is most likely true is that the ‘clang’ means ‘eating voraciously’ in Northamptonshire dialect. It fitted best to describe the likeness of the 19th-century workers and was called Bedfordshire Clanger.
A similar dumpling was known in parts of Buckinghamshire, particularly Aylesbury Vale, as a "Bacon Badger". It was made from bacon, potatoes and onions, flavoured with sage and enclosed in a suet pastry case, and was usually boiled in a cloth. The etymology of "badger" is unknown, but might relate to a former term for a dealer in flour. "Badger" was widely used in the Midland counties in the early 19th century to refer to a "cornfactor, mealman, or huckster". The same basic suet dumpling recipe is known by a variety of other names elsewhere in the country; "flitting pudding" is recorded in County Durham, "dog in blanket" from Derbyshire, and "bacon pudding" in Berkshire and Sussex.
A baked "clanger" featured as a signature bake in episode 8 of Series 8 of The Great British Bake Off.
Recipe
Ingredients
The filling
1 small gammon joint (around 750g or 1.5lb)
2-3 bottles of cider (around 600ml or 20 floz)
1 bay leaf
2 sage leaves
2 apples
1 white onion, finely sliced
25g (1oz) butter (for onions)
Pinch of salt (for onions)
1 ½ tsp brown sugar (for onions)
3 apples, peeled and quartered
3 tbsp brown sugar
10g (1/2oz) melted butter
¼ Lemon, juice
1 tsp cinnamon
10g Dijon mustard
The Pastry
400g plain flour
2 eggs, one for glazing
4g salt
130ml water
85 g suet or vegetable shortening
50g butter, chilled and grated
Method
Place the gammon in a deep pan with the cider, bay leaf and sage, so that the liquid is covering the joint. Put on a medium heat. Bring to a slow simmer and cook for 3 hours. Once cooked cut into bite sized pieces.
Place the butter in a frying pan and wait until it becomes frothy. Add the onions with a little bit of salt and cook until translucent. Once cooked through add the brown sugar and continue to cook on a low to medium heat until they are golden brown and caramelised. Turn off the heat and allow the onions to cool at room temperature.
Place the apples in a frying pan with the melted butter and the lemon juice and cook until soft on the outside but still hard in the centre. Add the sugar and the cinnamon and leave to cool.
Place the peeled and chopped potatoes into salted water and par boil. Then leave to cool.
For the pastry, sieve the flour and salt into a bowl. Add the suet and the butter and rub in with your fingertips until you have a breadcrumb-like consistency. Add in the water and one egg and bring together. Once formed, make the pastry into a flat circle, clingfilm and place in the fridge to chill (if you’re in a rush place the pastry in the freezer).
Preheat the oven to 180C (350 Fahrenheit) degrees.
Once chilled roll out the pastry, 2mm thin and cut 10cm by 15cm.
Like when making a sausage roll, you only want the filling to cover one half (length-ways) of your pastry, so that you have enough pastry to bring over the top to cover everything neatly.
For a Bedfordshire clanger you want the savoury filling to fill 2/3rd of the space and the sweet side to fill the remaining third. Place a thin wall of pastry at the two third point to prevent leakage between the two sides when you add the fillings.
For the savoury side, first place a thin layer of Dijon mustard on the pastry, then pile the gammon, caramelised onions and potatoes on top.
For the sweet side place the apples with some of the juices.
Egg wash around the three sides and pull the remaining pastry over the top and seal. Egg wash the top of the clanger and place in the fridge for 10.
Take the clanger out of the fridge, slash three times on each side, sprinkle with brown sugar on the sweet end and salt on the savoury and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Books with Patricia Fisher
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