Curry Puff

Ramadan season gives me the luxury of time to explore the world, my schedule are filled with prayers, new adventures, books, and time for myself. I have a lot of time to think and do every single thing that I usually jump in too soon.

The late afternoon when everything is in place and the superb was simmering waiting to be served at the day end, I have time to stick my hands in the old snack recipe.

I love the smell of deep fry snacks fuming up the bubbling hot oil. The sizzling sounds and crispy snacks flies out the hot woks were invitations to culinary heaven.

Curry Puff is a deep fried stuffed pastry usually filled with spicy meat, potato and any imaginable deliciousness. Curry puff is a Southeast Asian delight served out of hot oil from the street. I learned how to make curry puff from my neighbor who sent off her fresh fries to several stores in the local market. It was a fun and rewarding process.

I made two types of fillings, the savoury spicy pumpkin and the sweet version made from split moong bean and coconut.

You can use any filling but make sure it is dry and firm enough to stuff in the soft pastry and suitable for deep frying.

Curry puff pastry starts of with two types of dough, water dough and grease dough. I used about 2 1/2 cup of flour, a tsp of baking powder, 2 tbsp of oil and 3/4 cup of lukewarm water for water dough. The grease dough has butter in it, cut 75 gm of butter in 1 1/2 cup of flour.

Roll out the water dough into the large sheet, place the grease dough in the middle and enclose the dough together.

Roll out the dough forward to create a long sheet. It should be about 1/2 cm thickness.

Roll the dough in tightly like swiss roll. Use the rolling pin to roll out the dough again. Now roll it back in again tightly.

Cut the dough with sharp knife about 1/3 cm thick into small disks.

Use the rolling pin to gentle press the pastry down evenly.

Add the filling in the middle. Be careful not to over stuffing so the filling are not exploded in the hot oil.

Fold the pastry in half. Make sure the puff is perfectly sealed.

Press and crimp the edge. I have to admit, one thing I forgot about this recipe is how to crimp the edge of the curry puff. It looks slightly messy.

The best part is, of course, the deep frying part. The oil has to be medium heat. Once you drop the puffs in, it should immediately sizzle with the tiny bubbles. Gently shake the puffs now and then until they turn golden brown.

Curry Puff

Ingredients (make 20-25 curry puffs)

Savoury Pumpkin Fillings:

2 cup cooked pumpkin

4 shallots- sliced

2 cloves garlic- finely minced

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp salt or to taste

1/2 ground white pepper

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

1/2 tbsp oil

Preparation

Sauté shallots and garlic until yellowish, add curry powder and fry until aromatic. Add cooked pumpkin, salt, white pepper, stir and lightly mashed together. Add coriander leaves, mix well and keep aside.

Sweet Lentil Fillings:

1 cup split moong beans- soaked over night and cooked until soft.

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup grated coconut

1/2 tsp salt

Preparation

Toasted fresh grated coconut in the pan with sugar and salt for few minutes, add cooked moong bean and mix well.

Curry puff Pastry

1. Water dough

2 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp oil

3/4 cup lukewarm water

Preparation

Combine all ingredients in the large bowl, knead well for 10 minutes and rest the dough for 20 minutes.

2. Grease dough

1 1/2 cup flour

75 gm butter- cut into small cubes

2-3 tbsp water

Preparation

Crumble butter in the flour until formed coarsely grains. Add water and knead until smooth and pliable.

Making Curry puff

1. Roll the water dough out into a large sheet and warp it around grease dough.
2. Roll in out into the long sheet and roll back in tightly like Swiss roll.
3. Roll the dough out again and roll it back in like the previous process. Cut the dough into 1/3 cm thick disk. Gently press it down evenly with the rolling pin.
4. Add the filling in the middle and fold the pastry in half. Press and crimp the edge.
5. Heat the oil in the deep fryer over the medium heat. Deep fry the puffs for few minutes or until golden brown.

My husband loved these hot bites. He was amazed by the spiral pattern on the pastry. It was crispy, crunchy, with beautifully oozing filling inside.

The sweet version was everyone’s favourite, but next time I am going to be more adventurous with Bavarian or chocolate fillings in the hot puffs.

Have a happy day,
Tes