Crunchy Curry Puffs!

My hubby has been bugging me to make curry puffs for several weeks, so last week he sort of ‘tricked’ me into making them by sneaking potatoes and curry powder into my shopping cart while we were at the supermarket.  I only realized that when we got home.  The thought of making the filling and the pastry seemed like a lot of work and put me off making curry puffs (been feeling lazy recently, hehe).

Honestly, I have never made curry puffs so I didn’t know it was not as really as tedious as it seems!  For a rather noob cook like me, I would probably rate it 2 on a scale 1 to 10 for difficulty (10 being most difficult) but perhaps cleaning up would be more work than making the puffs as I fried these delicious munchies so the kitchen was really oily. Luckily, this recipe allows you to bake these puffs for a easier and healthier fuss free option. And the best part? You can make a huge batch ahead and freeze them to store. So you can have fresh, hot and crunchy curry puffs whenever desired. You can also replace the potato fillings with anything you like. I have tried putting otah inside (my hub’s fav) and my favorite would be sardine. I am contemplating to make them into apple puffs as well because the pastry skin actually taste like the apple pies at MOS BURGER.

Ingredients for the puff skin

250 gram plain flour

50 gram tapioca flour (or corn flour)

50 gram rice flour

50 gram butter (omit the salt below if your butter is salted)

50 gram vegetable oil

130 ml icy cold water

1/2 tsp of salt

Instructions for the puff skin

1. Melt the butter in a pan with the oil. Do not let it bubble, but just to melt the butter. Leave aside.
2. Combine the 3 different flours and mix well with the salt in a large bowl.
3. Pour the butter/oil mixture in and stir. The resulting dough will be crumbly.
4. Slowly mix in the icy cold water bit by bit till the dough comes together.
5. Cover the dough with cling wrap and set aside for at least 30 minutes.
6. Divide the dough out into 12 or more depending on how big you want the puffs to be.

Ingredients for the potato fillings

3/4 medium sized potatoes, or 600 grams in total. Peeled and diced

1 onion, diced (i personally prefer to use red onion because they are sweeter but it is up to you)

2 tbsp curry powder (for seafood/chicken)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

some curry leaves (optional, I didnt add in during my first attempt)

1 cup water

salt to taste

Instructions for potato fillings

1. Heat oil in pan or wok, stir fry the onions and curry leaves. Stir fry till the onions turns translucent.
2. Add in the potatoes and cook till the edges of the potato changes colour.
3. Add in the curry powder. If you prefer a spicier filling you can add in chilli paste at this point.
4. Mix well, cook for 2 minutes. Add in water and let it boil.
5. Add salt and reduce heat and let simmer with the lid on, till potatoes are cooked through and soft.
6. Most of the liquid should have been boiled off as you do not want the filling to be too watery. The end result should be a little dry and paste-y. Leave to cool before wrapping.

Instructions for wrapping and frying

1. Roll the dough in a ball shape and flatten out using a small wooden roller or your palm. The dough should be around 1/2 cm thick or thinner, depends if you like a thicker or thinner crust.
2. Place the filling in the middle and fold the dough in half. Pinch the seams to seal.
3. Using your thumb and index finger, pinching one end, fold in and ‘crimp’ the folded area. Then move your finger to the next available space along the seams working through it.
4. The puffs are now ready for frying or freezing. Do not let the puffs touch each other at this point as they will stick together.
5. if frying immediately, heat oil up and when oil is heated slowly slide the puffs into the oil.
6. Fry till golden brown. Remove from oil and dap exceed oil off on paper towels.

NOTE

Do not let the puffs touch each other at this point as they will stick together. If freezing, place them apart on a tray or plate and place in the freezer for 1/2 hour – 1 hour, then remove them and place in ziplock bags. They should not stick together by then.

If you are frying frozen puffs, start placing them frozen in cold oil and then heat up the oil together with the puffs. This is so that the fillings will be warmed up while the external skin is being fried. When the puffs starts to brown, turn up the heat so that the skin will be crunchy and not soggy.