Chinese Curry Beef Puffs. Flakey, buttery puff pastries filled with a savoury curried minced beef with onion. A simple, delicious recipe that is great as a snack. They will keep you coming back for more as they are easy to make and scrumptious.
What do they taste like?
These beef curry puffs taste like flakey pastry packed with an oniony beef curry filling. It is incredibly good! To the point that you will not be able to stop yourself after just one. You will probably eat 3 in one sitting, easily.
Even my husband who isn’t a big beef person loves them! These are actually very similar to my Malaysian Curry Puffs made with chicken. However, those are deliciously deep fried and not baked like this one.
So if you’re trying to be health conscious, keep with this recipe and feel free to sub with minced chicken, turkey or pork based on your own dietary needs. If you’re vegan, you can try substituting with extra firm tofu! I haven’t personally tried that but if you do, let me know in the comments!
Growing up
I remember visiting the local Asian bakery across from our house with my mom. We would always walk there because it was so close and looking back, I think of how convenient that was.
At the bakery, I would help my mom grab a serving tray and a pair of tongs, and we would our favourite baked goods. These beef mince curry puffs were always a luxury to select if it was in mom’s budget!
Back at that bakery, they always came in little circular pies in an aluminum tin cup because they would still be sitting in a warming oven. Sometimes we would also pick up my other personal favourite, Curry Beef Buns.
When we got home, I would make sure to quickly grab my Chinese curry beef puff before my brother and sister could eat it! I devoured it quickly and I still remember how delicious they were.
Easy baked curry puff recipe
This baked curry puff recipe is almost identical to it but much easier to make because in this recipe, we’re going to use store bought puff pastry. Now if you want to make everything from scratch, feel free to do so. There are plenty of puff pastry recipes online.
But I wanted this Chinese curry beef puff recipe to also be EASY, accessible and I find that when recipes are too complicated with everything made from scratch it can almost deter people from cooking. I say this because I’m one of those people!
Tips for making the best baked curry puff recipe
I’ll be sharing a few tips on how to make the beef curry puff filling to how to wrap them so you get a delicious curry beef pie puff pastry!
- Use fresh quality minced ground beef. This really goes without saying. But it can make a huge difference when it comes to flavour.
- When frying your curry beef filling, start with the onions, spices and bay leaves first before you add your beef. This helps to bring out the flavour of the aromatics and the spices. Spices always taste better when toasted overheat.
- Don’t overcook your beef. Remember we are also baking this curry beef puff pastry in the oven too! Cook until the meat is no longer red and is completely brown.
- Allow the beef curry puff filling to cool down before you use to fill the puff pastry. This is important or the heat will make the puff pastry all mushy and difficult to fold over.
- Try to find the puff pastry sheets versus puff pastry dough. This will make your life much easier, trust me.
- If you’re using puff pastry dough, make sure to flour your surface well in order to roll it out into large sheets.
- Do not overstuff your puff pastry. Just 2 tbsps of the filling is enough. If you over pack it, the puff pastry will have a hard time closing and sealing.
- Seal and pinch with a fork but do it gently or you can tear holes into the edges!
- Egg wash is the key making these curry beef puffs golden and beautiful!
Other recipes you may like!
If you like this simple baked curry puff recipe, you may also really enjoy these other savoury pastry recipes:
MALAYSIAN CURRY PUFF
CHINESE CURRY BEEF BUNS
MUSHROOM LEEK HAND PIES
PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM WELLINGTON
MUSHROOM WELLINGTON CUPS
MUSHROOM POTATO POT PIE
PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM WELLINGTON
For this recipe
You will need the following ingredients for my Chinese baked curry puff recipe:
- 454 grams or 2 sheets of puff pastry, store bought and thawed in the fridge overnight (or 397 grams puff pastry dough – you will need flour to dust the working surface as you roll them out)
- 1 egg, for egg wash
Beef curry puff filling:
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 454 grams minced beef, lean
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 ½ tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon cooking oil
How to make Chinese curry beef pastry
- In a large pan set over medium heat, add cooking oil. Once the oil is hot, add diced onion, bay leaves, turmeric, curry powder, salt, and sugar. Mix and cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Next to the pan, add minced beef. Mix with the other ingredients in the pan, constantly moving the beef around. Cook until beef is brown and no longer red, about 7-8 minutes. Remove off heat, transfer to a large plate to cool down completely.
- Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Line two large baking sheets with two pieces of parchment paper to cover them. Then lay out both of your puff pastry sheets. Using a knife, slice each sheet into 6 equal squares. You should have 12 squares in total, about 5 inches x 5 inches in size. If you could only find puff pastry dough, roll out your dough into large sheets on a well floured surface to about 15 inches long x 10 inches wide if possible to make 6 squares per sheet. If not, don't worry make them slightly smaller but just reduce the amount of stuffing.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons each of the filling into the center of each puff pastry square.
- Fold one corner of the puff pastry square over to create a triangle.
- Using a fork, gently press the prongs down along the edges to seal them. With the same fork, poke three holes on top of the pies. This will allow for steam to escape.
- Whisk an egg in a small bowl. Brush the egg wash over each pie.
- Bake one tray at a time for 20 minutes each, until the pies come out golden. Repeat for the second tray. Enjoy hot!
Notes:
These pies will last 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature for the first two days. Then I would suggest storing them in the fridge for the latter two days. Reheat them in the microwave or enjoy cold.
If you're making this Chinese curry beef puff recipe for guests, I would suggest doubling up so there's more than enough to serve as these will go fast!
Give it a try!
Well, I hope you give my Chinese Curry Beef Puffs a try! It always excites me when you guys make my recipes and I hope this is one you try.
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Christie
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Chinese Curry Beef Puffs
Ingredients
- 454 grams or 2 sheets of store bought puff pastry thawed in the fridge overnight (or 397 grams puff pastry dough – you will need flour to dust the working surface as you roll them out)
- 1 egg for egg wash
Beef curry puff filling:
- 1 yellow onion finely diced
- 454 grams minced beef lean
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 ½ tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- In a large pan set over medium heat, add cooking oil. Once the oil is hot, add diced onion, bay leaves, turmeric, curry powder, salt, and sugar. Mix and cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Next to the pan, add minced beef. Mix with the other ingredients in the pan, constantly moving the beef around. Cook until beef is brown and no longer red, about 7-8 minutes. Remove off heat, transfer to a large plate to cool down completely.
- Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Line two large baking sheets with two pieces of parchment paper to cover them. Then lay out both of your puff pastry sheets. Using a knife, slice each sheet into 6 equal squares. You should have 12 squares in total, about 5 inches x 5 inches in size. If you could only find puff pastry dough, roll out your dough into large sheets on a well floured surface to about 15 inches long x 10 inches wide if possible to make 6 squares per sheet. If not, don't worry make them slightly smaller but just reduce the amount of stuffing.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons each of the filling into the center of each puff pastry square.
- Fold one corner of the puff pastry square over to create a triangle.
- Using a fork, gently press the prongs down along the edges to seal them. With the same fork, poke three holes on top of the pies. This will allow for steam to escape.
- Whisk an egg in a small bowl. Brush the egg wash over each pie.
- Bake one tray at a time for 20 minutes each, until the pies come out golden. Repeat for the second tray. Enjoy hot!
Notes
If you're making this Chinese curry beef puff recipe for guests, I would suggest doubling up so there's more than enough to serve as these will go fast!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
I love the combination of the crunch of the puff pastry and the savory beef filling. This would make the perfect appetizer for parties or holiday get togethers!