by 
Curry Puffs
A visit to most Chinese restaurants will reveal curry puffs on the appetiser menu and I always have a soft spot for anything wrapped in pastry. I could sometimes quite happily forego the main dish and just sit down to a huge serving of curry puffs!
But curry puffs are not just from the domain of Chinese restaurants – they are popular in Vietnamese cuisine too.
Curry Puff Recipe
Curry puffs can be wrapped in a variety of different pastries, such as filo pastry, wonton wrappers, spring roll wrappers (egg roll wrappers) or puff pastry.
The restaurants typically serve them deep-fried, but baking them is also an option, especially if you are using puff pastry.
Chicken Curry Puffs
Serves: 20 curry puffs
A simple recipe for baked Chicken Curry Puffs.
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- 500 g (1 lb) minced chicken, (ground chicken)
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3-4 teaspoons curry powder, see Kitchen Notes
- sea salt
- black pepper, freshly cracked
- 250 ml (1 cup) coconut milk
- 250 ml (1 cup) chicken stock
- 3 teaspoons fish sauce
- 2 large potatoes, cut into 1 cm (1/2 inch) dice
- 1 large sweet potato, cut into 1 cm (1/2 inch) dice
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons cornflour, (US: cornstarch) mixed in some water
- 1 lime, optional
- coriander, (cilantro) finely chopped
To assemble the curry puffs
- puff pastry, ready-rolled
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
Instructions
To prepare the filling
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over high heat.
- Cook the chicken until it has browned all over.
- Add the onion, garlic and curry powder.
- Cook for a few minutes until the onions have softened.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the coconut milk, chicken stock and fish sauce.
- Stir through the potatoes, sweet potatoes and frozen peas (no need to defrost).
- Cook for 20-30 minutes on low-medium heat, or until the potatoes and sweet potatoes have cooked through.
- Taste the sauce for seasoning.
- Turn the stove up to medium-high heat, and stir through some of the cornflour (cornstarch) slurry. You may not need all of it. You only need just enough to thicken the sauce so that you have a thick mixture. Alternatively, if your sauce is already too thick or too concentrated, add some boiling water.
- Taste for seasoning again, and add some lime juice to taste (optional).
- Once you are happy with the seasoning, stir through the coriander (cilantro).
- Transfer the filling to a bowl or plate, and set aside to cool completely. The filling will thicken more upon cooling.
To assemble the curry puffs
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F (without fan).
- Place a metal baking tray in the oven.
- Cut the puff pastry into squares, about 12 cm/5 inches in measurement.
- Place 1-2 tablespoons of filling in the centre of each pastry square.
- Brush the edges with the egg wash.
- Fold over one half of the pastry square to form a triangle.
- Pinch the edges together, either with your fingers or with the tines of a fork.
- Repeat until you have used all of your puff pastry.
- Place all of the curry puffs on a sheet of baking paper.
- Brush each curry puff with egg wash.
- Carefully transfer the baking paper with the curry puffs onto the hot baking tray.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until lightly golden.
Kitchen Notes
- INSTRUCTIONS FOR AIR FRYER
Follow the above instructions, but use the following baking guide:
* Bake at 180°C/356°F for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden.
* Re-heat at 180°C/356°F for 6-8 minutes, or until warmed through. - OVEN & STOVE TEMPERATURES
All recipes on this website have been tested on an induction stove and/or with a conventional oven (i.e. an oven without fan). All recipes on this website use temperatures for a conventional oven, unless otherwise mentioned. Convection ovens (i.e. fan-forced ovens) are typically 20°C/70°F hotter than conventional ovens, but please check your manufacturer’s handbook. - CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.
Did you make this recipe?
Please leave a comment below and share your photos by tagging @eatlittlebird on social media and using #eatlittlebird
Big mistake when I’m starving and decide to click through your amazing site. Great work Thanh!! x
Thanks, Anna! Hope you have a good appetite 😉 xxx
Hi Thanh, These are so much like ‘Indian samosas’ ( minus the minced chicken). The samosas are also deadly when fried. These days health conscious lot bake their samosa, though. I am sure you must have dig into a fried samosa, its yummy,isn’t it?? loving your intricate measuring cups!!
Ooh yes, I LOVE Indian samosas!! We always, always order a serving whenever we go to an Indian restaurant. I’m pretty sure that the Chinese copied their curry puffs from the Indians 😉 I have never made samosas at home, though, which is something I should rectify very soon. Off to look up recipes now …
Hey!!
I’m saving ideas to cook on Eurocup days, and this is one of those wich seems perfect!!
Easy to make, easy to share 😛 and delicious to eat.
And, even if in restaurants I also eat them deep-fried, I think that I’ll choose the opction of using puff pastry and oven, easier for making a big batch 😉 With ginger and a little soy sauce, as you suggest 😉
It’s funny because in Spain, you go to a Chinese restaurant, and they serve these with the name of Samosas, and no difference (I don’t find it) with the Indian one…
Thanks for the recipe, it has come the perfect day! 😛
Ah you’re welcome!
Snacks like these are definitely great for when you want to eat in front of the TV, especially with the football on this season 🙂
That’s quite funny that the Chinese restaurants in Spain call these samosas … maybe it’s easier than finding a new name for the Chinese versions?
This particular recipe is quite mild, especially if it is for kids in mind, but it would also be nice for anyone who doesn’t like really spicy food. Once you have cooked the chicken filling, taste it and see if it needs anything extra. I’m wondering if I should have added more curry powder to mine to give it more flavour? So that’s an idea for you. Enjoy!
Woah! This is amazing, do you have any recommended seasonings to do other than salt and pepper?
If you follow Bill Granger’s recipe closely, he doesn’t even mention salt and pepper! But I think you should always taste for seasoning to see if the flavour is right for you. As I mentioned in the comment above, I possibly should have added more curry powder for extra flavour – perhaps the brand I used was not very spicy or flavoursome. But a tablespoon of soy sauce would have probably lifted the dish for me, so that is definitely one suggestion.
They look so good Thanh, shame you thought there was something missing….
Oh it happens 🙂 Sometimes a recipe can work out really well, at other times you’re left wondering how that recipe got published in the first place! These curry puffs weren’t so bad – they just didn’t have the wow factor and were quite far off what I was hoping to recreate at home. There have been some other recipes from Bill’s Everyday Asian which I have really enjoyed, though.
Yum, looks delicious! I’ve never made puffs somehow but I saved this recipe that I find interesting because she uses roti parathas instead of puff pastry. I absolutely adore those roti parathas (roti canais) so I am sure that I would love the result:
http://www.mykitchensnippets.com/2007/10/paratha-puff.html
I need to try your puffs one of these days, they look so pretty!
I have also tried Indian samosas which were wrapped in something like a roti and then fried – absolutely delicious!! Probably much more authentic than using puff pastry too 😉 These samosas are much more filling with such a thicker pastry, but they work really well with the filling. Thanks for sharing this link – I will definitely look into it!
These look beautiful, I like to think of recipes that lack in the flavour department as an open invitation to add whatever you please to suit your taste. I would love to hear what you come up with! I have also nominated you for an excellence in storytelling award over at my blog (as per the email I sent you!) Have a good week!
Hi Anna,
Thank you so much for this award! I’m very flattered and humbled that you have nominated me 🙂 Off to see what I have to do …
I am a sucker for pastry puffs too 🙂 These look delicious, Thanh! FYI – when I do an Indian version of this, I usually add 2 tsp garam masala to 1 tsp tumeric and 1/2 tsp ground coriander powder instead of using plain curry powder …that definitely gives it more flavour!
Hoi Prits! Yeah, I think maybe the curry powder I used didn’t have much kick in it. I like the sound of your spice blend 🙂 Someone above mentioned samosas made with roti parathas … I’m wondering if this is how your mum makes them? I’m pretty sure it was you and your family who introduced me to samosas 🙂
P.S. It was me who ate most of the curry puffs at your farewell drinks … *blush*
This sounds like my kind of curry ! I’ve come across these in a book by someone with British Indian heritage too, though you won’t be surprised to hear I have never eaten them. I’m always surprised to see curry on a Chinese menu – I wonder whether the Chinese themselves actually eat curry, or whether it’s just the restaurants catering to all tastes to maximise profit ?
LOL!! Liz, curry puffs or samosas are usually not too spicy so you should give them a try next time. Most restaurants make them quite mild but serve a range of condiments alongside.
I think curry is quite authentic to Chinese cuisine, as it is to other south-east Asian cuisines (such as Thai and Vietnamese), though the tastes and spice blends vary greatly. I think the Chinese predominantly use curry spices to for satay-type dishes; they don’t exactly make curries in the same vein as the Indians and Thais, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Chinese restaurants offer a version to cater to all tastes!
There are certainly many restaurants that serve a wide range of Asian dishes under the umbrella of one cuisine, which can be a bit confusing and misleading! There are not so many exotic restaurants in Switzerland and I once saw a Chinese-looking restaurant serving “Oriental” cuisine, and the menu revealed everything from Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian, Korean, Japanese, etc! I’m always a bit suspicious of these places …
I share your adoration of curry puffs. But spice-packed samosas are my all-time favourite. I have a recipe that makes about 30 … and i must eat at least half myself (not in one sitting, of course). I feel a batch coming on!
Ooh, any chance you could share this recipe of yours?? Hint, hint 😉 😉
All of this talk about samosas has me feeling that I need to try my hand at making them … very soon!
I was intrigued by this thinking immediately that these were going to be complicated and difficult. Instead after reading over the ingredient list and your attentive post I think this is something I can tackle and in occasion of all the soccer games lined up these may be a definite try now recipe. Thanks for being honest about your vote on them and indicating the most probable theory that it may be a good kiddie recipe, as you well know something I need to take into consideration 😉
Oh this recipe is pretty easy-peasy 🙂 Although I found Bill Granger’s recipe to be a little lacking for me, they still tasted good. I think I was just expecting and wanting something with more punch, like the curry puffs you find in Chinese and Indian restaurants.
These curry puffs would definitely be great for snacking during the soccer, for both kids and adults alike. For the adults, I would recommend some sweet chilli dipping sauce on the side 🙂
Lol, good idea the sweet chili dipping sauce. 😀
Great! I love little savoury pasties with a variety of fillings and chicken curry? Always good! What a great idea to combine the two, delicious:)
Yes, whoever came up with the great idea of wrapping some curry in a layer of pastry and then deep-frying or baking them was a genius! I’ve been looking up a few recipes for samosas lately so watch this space 🙂
I love curry puffs, well anything wrapped in pastry too Thanh! What a shame you thought they lacked something though. I’m still looking for the perfect curry puff recipe too, although mine will be a vegetarian version 🙂
By the way, how do you get those gorgeous ruffles in the pastry so neat? I’m all thumbs when it comes to folding pastry.
I’ve had many delicious vegetarian curry puffs and I daresay they are probably better than the versions with meat 🙂
I grew up in a bakery and watched my mother hand-crimp a variety of pastries, but my crimping is nowhere as neat as hers! And as you can see from the finished product, there is no evidence of ruffles of any kind, LOL! I think sealing the edges with a fork is perhaps better and neater when using puff pastry.
I have never heard or eaten of these (red face), and feel like I have totally missed out on something utterly gorgeous! Another to the already bulging list!!! Every food post of yours is mouthwateringly inviting. 🙂
You haven’t tried curry puffs??? Well, I’m sure your Indian samosas are far superior but the Chinese versions are not bad 😉
Hey, its a spiced meat mixture, wrapped in pastry of some description. Wherever they hail from in the world, you KNOW it’s going to be good 🙂
Absolutely! 🙂
Hi there! I tired this recipe last night and loved it. Thank you for sharing! I just posted it here to my blog and gave you credit and added your link. . wanted to share my chicken curry recipe, which I used for the chicken breast. Thank you again!
Thank you for trying this recipe and for leaving your feedback 🙂 That’s great that you enjoyed this recipe and your curry recipe sounds delicious!
Looking forward to trying this recipe. What type of curry do you use for these puffs?
From memory, I think I used a Thai curry powder in this recipe, but any good curry powder should do. Hope you will enjoy this recipe!
Hi, I’m originally from Singapore, now I live in the States. My mum has a cookbook which we use to make curry puffs. I’m pretty sure the recipe calls for frying them, though we bake them to make them a little healthier. I’ll try to look for the recipe today. How do you want me to send it to you? Through email?
That would be wonderful if you could please share your recipe 🙂 Many thanks in advance! You are welcome to email me the recipe via the contact form here: https://eatlittlebird.com/contact/
Ohhh I can’t WAIT to try this! Thank you for this great recipe! So YUMMY!!! This looks sooooo good!