Thursday 25 November 2010

Kerala Puffs (Non-Veg)



Next week I am off to UAE for a couple of months to spend some quality time with my parents and siblings and let me share this wonderful recipe before I leave. I have never been a regular blogger during my stay in UAE, so I might not be able to answer your queries or respond to the comments promptly. UAE is going to have its best weather during this time of the year (December, January and February) and UK, it’s the worst. It has already started snowing today with temperature hitting minus 1. I am kind of fleeing away from horrible British winter at least this year and I think I should plan the same every year ;). Earlier I had plans to visit in June-July when it would be scorching hot there in UAE, and I had postponed my trip to a much pleasant time even though the wait was a bit long.


Anyways, let’s discuss about today’s recipe, shall we? Puffs and recipes using puff pastry is very popular all over the world and Kerala (A state in South India) is not behind at all. Puff is one of Keralite’s favourite snacks enjoyed by everyone. Puffs filled with spicy stuffing like egg, meat and vegetables have always been a favourite evening snack. Memory of having puffs date back to my early school days, where these were sold in school canteens during the breakfast break along with vegetable samosas and crisps. But to get hold of puffs, we had to reach the canteen as early as possible, as that was the only item that used get over in no time. Light and flaky puff pastry filled with spiced chicken is just mouth-watering and a must try one. I have been making these puffs for couple of years now and I think it’s high time to post it so that you can make it too. You may use minced beef or mutton instead of chicken here. I have used mutton and chicken and mutton mince was always the favourite.


I have used an unrolled block of puff pastry which had to be thawed and rolled for use. These days ready rolled puff pastries are also available and sometimes these are rolled and cut which makes the puff making even more easy. You just have to prepare the fillings and then the rest is all easy. Ideally you should get around 10 puffs with this amount of masala, but as I have over stuffed the pastries, I just got 8 of them.

On another note, One of my readers (I guess it is Jehanne) had asked me to share some tips on photography long back. If you are reading this, please pass me your E-mail ID once more. I have been searching for it for couple of days and I am sorry, I think I misplaced it. I know I am still a beginner in photography and I don’t know many things in photography. But I am more than happy to share the little things that I know. Please leave your E-mail Id here once more, so that I can send you the draft of a photography tutorial that I prepared to send you a while ago.
 Kerala puffs

Makes 8-10 pieces

Ingredients:
1 block of puff pastry sheets, thawed – 340g
1 ½ cups (300g) chicken/Mutton minced
1 large onion chopped (I cup)
1 teaspoon grated Ginger
2 Green chillies, finely chopped
1 medium size tomato (90g), chopped
2 large cloves of garlic, grated
1 1/4 tsp Garam Masala
1 teaspoon mild chilli powder
1 teaspoon Coriander powder
1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
3 Tablespoon coconut milk powder
water- as required
15 curry leaves finely chopped
Salt - As reqd
1 egg white
1 teaspoon water
Oil - 3 tbsp
little flour- to dust the work surface

Preparation:



1.Cook the minced meat in with salt and turmeric along with couple of tablespoon of water until almost done .
2. Heat a non stick frying pan and add oil. Keeping the lid open, fry the onions by adding little salt until they are golden brown.

3. Throw in ginger-garlic paste, chillies and fry until the raw smell goes off.

4. Add in tomatoes and cook till it turns soft and mushy and oil clears from sides..

5. Add coriander and chilli powder .Stir for a min for the spices to cook.

6. Add in the prepared meat, mix well and cook until the water evaporates.

7. Meanwhile, add enough hot water to coconut milk powder to make ½ cup of coconut milk (You can use any coconut milk here).
8. When the mixture is almost dry, add coconut milk and stir continuously until the mixture is well combined and slightly wet, not too dry and crumbly.

9. Stir in the garam masala and chopped curry leaves, cook for a minute and keep aside to cool.

10. While the meat is cooking, thaw the pastry sheets.

11. Flour the work surface lightly and roll out the pastry into a large rectangle. Cut it into 8 portions.

12. Divide the masala mixture into 8 portions. Add a heaped tablespoon of the stuffing to one half of the pastry leaving about a centimetre from the edges to seal the stuffing in.

13. Lightly beat the egg whites with water and brush the sides of the pastry sheet with egg wash. Fold over the pastry to cover the filling in and press firmly to seal the edges (This can be done with fork to get nice ridged edge). Lightly brush the top of the filled pastries with egg wash to give it a glaze once baked.

14. Place all the sealed puffs on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake it for 15-17 minutes @ 220 degrees Celcius until the top is nice and golden in colour and the puff has puffed up well. Serve hot along with a nice cup of tea.

Notes:

1. I make these puffs with chicken and mutton. I found it tastier with minced mutton than chicken. When using mutton, the masala is lightly brown compared to chicken where it is less brownish.

2. With this amount of masala, you can easily get 10 puffs, but I over-stuff the pastry to use up all the masala and I get only 8 pieces of pastry sheet from one block. You may use a bigger block of puff pastry to use up all the masala.

3. These puffs can be frozen before baking and then baked directly from the freezer. But the baking time will increase accordingly. For freezing, place them between parchment paper to avoid sticking.

30 comments:

Unknown said...

Crispy n yummy puffs....Looks super. I want to have it right away :)

Foodie Ann said...

Love puffs....I grew up eating puffs.... Its time to buy/make some puff pastry for me.....Pictures look so pretty....:)

Unknown said...

Hey,

Beautiful drootlworthy and yummy puffs dear...:)Enjoy time in the UAE...Dubai is good..other countries in the UAE are boring...:)

Dr.Sameena@

http://www.myeasytocookrecipes.blogspot.com

Priya Suresh said...

Absolutely delicious puffs, looks sooooo tempting..

Finla said...

4 months of wam weather, bliss.......... and a wonderful periosd to escape the bad English weather.
Love puffs andmy favourite.
Have a wonderful time with your parents and sibilings.

Suji said...

Pretty pretty puffs, I will have to make some today itself..

Unknown said...

Hey Shabs.. Sridevi here.. I'm sure there are many who admire ur photography, and i'm definitely top of the list, i cant decide if its the photography or the recipes which captivate me and make me come back to see ur site everytime i'm in front of the comp.. so pls do let me know the tricks of the art.. my id is sridevi.roshan@yahoo.com.. take care and enjoy ur stay in UAE..

Suja Manoj said...

Lovely crispy puffs..love it, superb

jehanne said...

Hi shabs
Thanx for remembering me! its good to hear from you, my email id is jehanne_ali@hotmail.com; I just started
my trial foodblog which u can visit at http://culinarytempation.blogspot.com..would b great if u could email me the photo tutorial, i could also use it to snap pics of my newborn baby!

Unknown said...

hi i would like to know about photography. plz send me the details to kmarazik@gmail.com

thx

vegetarianirvana said...

Hi, I found yor blog via PAB. Black forest is my favorite, I think it so for many who grew up in India. Yours looks absolutely stunning and curry puffs, another favorite of anyone who grew up in India. Infact we've had this particular combination for afternoon snacks so many times and remember the numerous visits to bakeries to get just these two.

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

HY Shabs,
First time here...awesome space you have..very interesting recipes...

Am your happy follower now..

Do drop in at my space sometime..
Tasty Appetite

Sushma Mallya said...

lovely puff shabs..everytime I visit ur blog I do fall in love with ur pics:)...looks perfectly baked:)

Nitha said...

delicious... ente all time fav aanu ethu..

Shah cooks said...

sorry shabs, i was way too busy to reply to u earlier. have a good well deserved month off. i am sad that u are not going to be uk to see the snow and cold frozen toes.:))
i like the addition of the coco milk and the tomatoes. i don't add that .. shud try that.
shaheen

San said...

Incredible puffs shabs ,enjoy your stay .

Dina said...

I love curry pufffs! The fact that I can't make it myself makes it more tempting! Still, thanks for sharing the recipe.

Olesya said...

фото отличные!!!

Afsal_ Alif said...

Viewing a Puff named after a province for the first time....Anyhow Puffs are something which should be consumed hot to enjoy itz real taste.
Nice Posting....!

Tommy said...

Awesome blog! If you're at all interested in music, you can visit mine at http://notesdaily.wordpress.com/

indianadoc said...

I stumbled upon this blog quite accidentally today searching for some recipes...and I should say that I regret that I didnt come here earlier..You have an awesome blog with gr8 recipes and superrrrrrrrrrrrrrrb photos!!...Good job!! Happy to know that u too are in UK...Hope to catch up with u some time..!! ;)

Lena Jayadev said...

sarikkum eduthu thinnan thonnunnu.. ippol evideyaanu?? no news!! we readers are missing the taste of kerala.. :)

Rose from Magpies Recipes said...

Wow these puffs just took me back to the bakeries of Kerala! Would love to have you over at Kerala Kitchen

http://magpiesrecipes.blogspot.com/p/keralakitchen.html

dirishani said...

Your recipes look irresistible, I must try them thus following you.

Soft Rain said...

Hi,

Let me tell you, I was amazed with your site. You are certainly passionate about your work. I've just tried out the puffs, and they came out amazing! I didn't know they were this easy to make! Thank you. Next on the list, The Hepburn Brownie!

Your photos are amazing! Which camera do you use?? Do you use any other lighting?? If possible, could you send me also a draft of the photography techniques? My email id is manju.bob@gmail.com

Cheers,
Manju

Malli's Mint and Mimosas said...

Extremely tempting and crispy puffs....motivates me to make some :)

alex said...

Very, very good!
http://sleep-ak.blogspot.com

Hasna said...

An award waiting for u shabs....chk ths

http://hasnasdelights.blogspot.com/2011/02/rasgulla-blackforest-cake-one-lovely.html

take ths as a reason to comeback ... :))

Hasna said...

hey...u didn't get ma comment?? pick ur award shab...

http://hasnasdelights.blogspot.com/2011/02/rasgulla-blackforest-cake-one-lovely.html

My Kitchen Antics said...

shab i must tell u that the stuffing recipe here is my fav now, i use it for almost everything n anything..made stuffed buns with it recently n loved it :)
pinne a photography draft enikku koodi ayachu tharoo pls :)

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