Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Turning Tip Top Curry Puff Into a Delicious Curry Puff Gratin, and Beef Rendang Puffs

I have always enjoyed Tip Top's curry puffs, or curry poks as we used to call them. The thing is, a singular curry puff is almost a meal in itself. And that can be quite tummy filling for me.

And curry puffs are one of those foods that adheres to the law of diminishing returns. The first bite is always great, but the last few bites will leave you feeling a bit heavy and bloated.

And so I thought, what if I made a proper dish out of a curry puff. Wouldn't that make a great meal, especially if you have the basis of a great curry puff like Tip Top's.

Thus, the Curry Puff Gratin was born. This recipe is best served with Tip Top's selection of curry puffs, though other brands might just as well do. But I personally like Tip Top the best.

What you need for 1 pax:

- 1 delicious Tip Top chicken curry puff.
- 1 regular egg.
- 50 grams of grated Parmesan cheese, or a handful (depending on how big your hands are too!).
- 10 grams of chopped Italian parsley, or another handful.
- 20 grams of regular salted butter, or 1 teaspoon.
- Black pepper to season.
- 1 regular conventional oven, no microwave please.

The method:

- First, take the tasty curry puff and use a knife to mince it finely. It should look like minced meat, a bit like cooked bolognese sauce. Just a tad dry looking.

- In a pan, pour the chopped curry puff mixture and add the butter. Fry it for approximately 6 minutes until the butter is melted and that will help to moisten the somewhat dry mixture. You should be able to smell a fragrant curry aroma by now.

- Pour the resulting mixture into a baking vessel or ramekin and season it with black pepper. Cover the top with grated cheese, and if you like more cheese, just add until the mixture is fully covered with cheese.

- Preheat the oven to 180 deg Celsius 5 minutes before putting in the gratin. Put the gratin mixture into the oven for about 5 to 6 minutes, or until the cheese starts to melt into a gooey like texture.

- Remove from the oven and crack the fresh egg over the gratin. Crack gently so that the yolk does not split.

- Put the gratin with the egg back into the oven for another 5 minutes or until the egg whites have start to set.

- Once the whites are set, take out the gratin and let it rest for about 5 minutes. Garnish with the chopped parsley to add colour and magically turn it into a pretty restaurant like dish.

- During the resting period, it is recommended that you take your Instagram pictures to show off to your friends. Use hashtags #currypuffgratin and #tiptopcurrypuff and #superyums if need be.

- Once the gratin has rested and cooled down, you can then take a fork and spoon and dig in.

Curry Puff Gratin - An Instagram Classic

Summing up:

The final gratin should possess the beautiful spicy flavours of the original Tip Top curry puff, but when it is enhanced with the added aroma of the Parmesan cheese and baked egg, the dish should be elevated to another level.

If it's not, then it probably means you did not follow the recipe accurately. At which point, you will have to sacrifice another delicious Tip Top curry puff and try again. But honestly, this recipe is so easy that even a kitchen noob should be able to pull it off effortlessly.

The addition of the baked egg with its creamy, yolky centre should burst with a gentle probing from a fork to elicit a saucy mixture over the gratin and give it a nice moistness to the dish.

That final explosion and kaleidoscope of flavours and textures will delight your guests and do justice to the original efforts of the Tip Top kitchen team.

Enjoy!

Tip Top has also recently launched their latest offering, the Rendang Puff and it is a winner!

Mixture of Classic, Rendang and Sardines Puffs

Full of refreshing, kicking lemongrass flavours and tender beef within, it is another twist to the classic curry puff. The spices are just enough to give you that classic Rendang rendition and encased in the crispy, flaky Tip Top signature crust, it is a superb puff in every sense of the word.

Tip Top Curry Puffs are available at the following outlets:

722 Ang Mo Kio Ave 8
#01-2843

Changi Airport Terminal 2
Kiosk N

Raffles City Shopping Centre
#B1-55

1 Raffles Place
#B1-26

Aperia Mall
#01-31

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