Egg puffs

     

A few years ago, a snack known as "bisboatu" or egg boats and some stuck to the name egg puff,  became popular here in the Maldives. This snack consists of a small sheet of dough with a quarter of a boiled egg on top of a tuna filling. Two opposite ends of the pastry are folded over to create a boat-like shape. However, I'm not fond of this creation because the egg becomes somewhat rubbery after baking.

 After doing some research, I discovered a very similar recipe from Kerala, India, called Egg Puffs. In this recipe, a caramelized onion mixture is topped with half a boiled egg and wrapped in a puff pastry sheet to secure the egg inside. I made a rough puff pastry for this recipe, but you can use ready-made square puff pastry sheets if preferred. You'll need to double the filling if making with puff pastry squares and place half of a boiled egg inside. 

Recipe Adapted from here

Recipe: Egg puffs. 

 To make the Rough puff: (*can use puff pastry instead of making the dough)

• 200g flour, sifted
• 100g butter, ( cold) 
• ½ tsp salt
• 10 tbsp cold water

1. To make the pastry, wrap the butter in foil and chill the butter in the freezer for 10 minutes.

2. Sift the flour into a bowl and mix in the flour. Using the grater, grate the butter into the flour. Use the coarse grate or large hole grater side.
3. Now using a pallet knife mix the butter into the flour. Once the butter gets a bit mixed into the flour, start adding water. Add cold water little by little until the flour starts to stick together. Then using your fingers, start bringing the flour in so you get a rough ball. Then wrap in cling film, flatter a bit and place in the fridge for 20 minutes or 10 if in the freezer.
4. Take a baking sheet or baking tray, flip it over and dust the flat side with some flour. Place the chilled dough on it and roll it into a rectangle. Fold the two ends in as shown in the picture. Then wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes along with the baking tray. 

Fold it like so

5. Remove the dough again, then turn the dough so the folded seam is facing you ( see the above picture)

 6. Roll and fold as before and repeat this step one last time (if you feel the dough is too warm pop it in the fridge before rolling a third time, wrapped in cling film for 10 minutes as before)
7. Roll the third time and then chill again in the fridge for another 15 minutes in the freezer or 30 minutes in the fridge.

For the Filling:

• 1 medium onion, 80g, sliced thinly
• 1 fat clove of garlic, grated
• ½ inch ginger grated
• ½ scotch bonnet chilli, sliced or finely chopped
• 8 curry leaves, finely chopped
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground red chilli powder
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 can of tuna, drained and flaked
• 1 heaped tsp tomato paste
• Salt to taste
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, quartered (* use halved if using puff pastry squares and increase the filling mixture a bit as the puff pastry squares are bigger in size)

1. Make the filling by frying the onions in a little oil in a frying pan, cook until it starts to caramelize, then add the garlic and ginger and scotch bonnet chili, curry leaves, spices and tuna.
2. Cook a few minutes stirring continuously so everything is well mixed and the tuna is starting to colour.
3. Add the tomato paste and the spices and season with salt. Stir for a minute and have a taste, add salt if necessary and then switch off. The mixture should be quite dry. Let it cool completely.

Assembling and baking:

1. Preheat the oven to about 200 Degrees C.
2. To assemble and make the puffs, get everything ready and prepped. Then take out the dough and still using the bottom of a baking sheet to roll the dough, roll the dough to half a cm thick. Then cut down the middle of the dough length-wise and divide each into 12 squares.
3. Into each square add a spoon of tuna and top with an egg quarter, with the yolk facing down.

4. Then bring the corners in so that the egg is almost completely wrapped in, and pinch the edges to seal.
5. Place on a clean and prepared baking sheet lined with baking paper.

 6. Repeat with the rest. Brush with some beaten egg so the pastries come out nice and golden.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes.