There is one Bolton bakery you need to visit if you are hoping for a lesson in northern cuisine
The pasty barm, also known as a pasty barm cake or pasty flour cake, is a local delicacy and it's said to hail from the Greater Manchester area - specifically Bolton.
A delicious meat and potato pasty sandwiched in bread, oozing with butter - what’s not to love about that?
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But what is the history of the pasty barm? Are there any other varieties? And where should you try one?
The pasty barm is said to have been invented by schoolboys in the area in the 1950s who wanted a cheap dinner.
While we’ll probably never know for sure exactly whose bright idea it was first to stuff a pasty inside a barm, we think it’s pretty genius.
A bakery in Bolton that’s a must if you’re in the area is Carrs Pasties - it’s a family-run business that has passed through three generations since its humble beginnings in 1938.
And of course it sells the pasty barm, with prices starting from just £2.36.
The family business told 2Chill: “We've been selling them for a very long time (we don't know the exact date or year as it's been so long) but they're really popular.”
And it’s not only the classic pasty barm that Boltonians love, they also like to mix it up a bit.
The business added: “There are so many variations, some have them with ketchup, some with brown sauce, some with salad cream. Some even have two pasties!”
How do you have yours? Let us know in the comments or send a message to 2Chill on Facebook
You could really spice it up by swapping the classic pasty for a cheese and jalapeno or with a cheese or steak pasty.
10 miles down the road you’ll find the Wigan Kebab - it's similar to the pasty barm except that it’s a meat and potato pie inside a buttered barm.
The Wigan Kebab has been around for almost a century, dating back to the 1926 General Strike where hunger forced starved miners back to work and having to eat a large slice of 'humble pie'.
So you could say that whoever thought of the pasty barm likely took inspiration from their neighbours down in Bolton.
Whichever you prefer, these carb-loaded dishes also made eating a pie or a pasty laden with gravy on the go a lot easier.
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