The Curry-Puff/Doughnut Man

Memories of the curry puff went back as far as when I was a 6 year old kid. The 'Curry Puff/Doughnut Man' was a friend of the family. It seems like my aunt who is an excellent cook was the one who helped him out when he first started his business. He is one of those diligent people who build his business one brick at a time, in this case one curry puff/doughnut at a time. He had his little vending food cart parked at the neighborhood square almost 7 days a week.

His place of operation was one of those favorite places that my brother and I like to hang out during school holidays. It was one of those simple joys of life ~ hanging around to watch him work, from deboning meat(he scrapped every tiny piece of meat off the bones until the bones literally shine!), dicing potatoes and then putting it all together for the filling to making the dough for the curry puff pastry. Cutting out the pastry, wrapping the puff and then frying it. Wow, did he worked hard!...now that I make my own curry puffs.


That is where I first learn how to crimp curry-puffs. I stared at him for hours on end, amazed at how he moves at lightning speed and still managed to produce very uniformed puffs. When he is in a good mood and he has too much to do, he will let me help him just a little but always under his watchful eye. He made all kinds of filling for the curry puffs, chicken, beef and mutton. Besides curry puffs he also makes doughnuts, hmm...coated with fine castor/fine granulated sugar that melts in your mouth.

A couple of years ago when I went back home to visit, he told me that he is now semi-retired and his son has inherited the business and has expanded the product line.

This memory will stay with me everytime I smell or bite into a curry puff! Food has a way to stimulate so many of our senses and thoughts.

(“Just one whiff of a scent from the past can bring forth a flood of feelings and vivid memories.” ~ The Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation, Chicago)

This recipe is at http://thegluttonsquare.blogspot.com/2010/06/curry-puffs.html

These unforgettable melt-in-your mouth doughnuts!