Curry Puffs

Pastry Puffs with Diced Chicken Curry, Potatoes and Eggs

My mother served this as a tea-time treat, with hot Lipton’s tea. I can feel the warmth from
the frying just writing about this. She was very quick with her hands when crimping the
edges along the half-moon puffs. Nowadays, you can buy a plastic mould to do the trick.
You may use the same recipe for chicken curry to make the filling or recycle leftovers. If so,
remove the eggs and potatoes and dice them finely, individually. Debone the chicken meat
and dice finely too. Then recombine in sufficient leftover gravy to make a moist filling. For
the fastest way to delicious puffs, use frozen puff pastry and leftover chicken curry filling.

makes 20 servings

filling

230 g or 8 ounces minced beef or pork
2 tablespoons curry powder (page 44)
2 tablespoons lard or cooking oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
2 shallots, peeled and pounded
1 big onion, peeled and finely diced
½ tablespoon ground chilli
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon white pepper powder
1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

pastry

280 g or 10 ounces plain flour
15 g or 1 tablespoon butter

180 g or 6½ ounces margarine
or shortening*

1 egg, beaten
½ teaspoon salt
90 ml or 3 fluid ounces water

* The original recipe suggested suet which
can be hard to find and too rich in cholesterol.

filling

1.   Marinate the minced meat with the curry powder and
set aside for at least half an hour.

2.   Heat oil in a saucepan. When oil is glistening, fry the
garlic and shallots until fragrant, not burnt. Add the diced
onion, followed by the marinated minced meat.

3.   Add the ground chilli, salt and white pepper, adjust
according to taste. Sprinkle some sugar if desired.

4.   Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool.

pastry and puffs

1.   With your fingertips only, rub the butter into the flour
until you form fine crumbs. Then rub in the margarine.
Make a well in the centre and add the egg and salt. Knead
to form a pastry dough, pouring water a bit at a time to
moisten it. Make sure not to add too much water, as it will
make the dough too sticky.

2.   Form the dough into a ball and cover tightly with cling
wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Thaw

for at least half an hour before baking. This will soften the
dough and make it easier to form the puffs.

3.   Pull a door knob size of dough and flatten it into a disc.
Scoop 2 to 3 teaspoons of filling into the middle of the
disc. Dab some water along the edges. Fold over along the
middle to form a semi-circle puff. Twist along the edges to
crimp and seal.

4.   Alternatively, place the flat disc of dough into the
hollow of a plastic crimper. Spoon the filling into the hollow,
dab some water along the edges and fold the crimper over
to form the puff.

5.   Heat a deep fryer and add enough oil to fill half of the
pot. When the oil reaches a temperature of 180 degrees C
or 350 degrees F, drop in a few puffs at a time to fry. Do
not turn the puffs around for the first five minutes and not
too frequently thereafter. Otherwise, you may break the
puffs. When they float up to the surface, remove with a
strainer and transfer to a plate lined with absorbent paper
to remove the excess grease. Best served when piping hot.

166    Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen ~ Life of the Party