• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to footer navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to privacy navigation
  • Skip to recipes navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About
  • My Cookbooks
  • Work With Me
  • Shop
  • Contact

The Flavor Bender

Master the Science of Delicious

  • Recipe Index
    • All Recipes
    • Desserts
      • Cakes & Cupcakes
      • Candy & Bite Sizes
      • Chocolate
      • Cookies, Brownies & Bars
      • Frozen Desserts
      • Fruit Desserts
      • Puddings & Custards
      • Dessert drinks
      • No Bake
      • Pastries & Breads
      • Sweet Syrups & Spreads
      • Tarts & Pies
      • Cheesecakes
      • Healthy sweets
    • Breakfasts
      • Tarts, Quiches, & Pies
      • Waffles, Pancakes & Crepes
      • Quick Breads, Scones & Muffins
      • Breakfast Sandwiches
      • Pastries & Breads
      • Eggs
      • Breakfast & Brunch Drinks
      • Make Ahead Breakfasts
      • Healthy Breakfasts
      • Coffee and Tea drinks
      • Breakfast Smoothies & Juices
      • Breakfast Sides
      • Casseroles
    • Courses
      • Main Meals
        • Bread, Sandwiches & Burgers
        • Curries
        • Salads
        • Roasts & BBQ
        • Soups & Stews
        • Casseroles
      • Lunch
      • Beverages
      • Appetizers & Tapas
      • Sides
      • Dips & Condiments
      • Tea Time & Snacks
      • Desserts
      • Meal Prep
      • Cocktails
    • Cuisines
      • American
      • European
      • Australasian
      • Sri Lankan
      • East Asian
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • South Asian
    • Sri Lankan
      • Main Meals
      • Drinks
    • Skill Level
      • Easy
        • Easy Desserts
        • Easy Cooking
        • Easy Breads
        • Easy Breakfasts
        • Easy Dinners
      • Intermediate
        • Intermediate Desserts
        • Intermediate Cooking
        • Intermediate Breads
        • Intermediate Breakfasts
        • Intermediate Dinners
      • Advanced
        • Advanced Desserts
        • Advanced Cooking
  • New? Start Here
  • Measurement Conversions
  • How-To Posts
Home Recipes Courses Appetizers & Tapas
Posted:12/2/2019
Updated:1/15/2020

Easy Vegetarian Curry Puffs

2 hrs 40 mins
Easy
Appetizers & Tapas
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
118shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Disclaimer: The Flavor Bender is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. There are links on this site that can be defined as “affiliate links”. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no cost to you) that will help support this website.

These Curry Puffs are flaky, buttery, and filled with a lightly spiced vegetarian filling of potatoes and peas. These are an easy version of curry samosas that you can make with store-bought puff pastry.

These vegetarian curry puffs are easy to make and packed with so much flavor!

A curry puff served on a plate

This post is sponsored by The Spice Hunter and includes tracking links. For more information about tracking links and how to opt out, please visit All About Do Not Track prior to clicking any links found in this post.

I’m sure you guys know how much of a soft spot I have for anything with curry flavor. My Sri Lankan roots really run deep when it comes to a hearty curry. We LOVE making curried appetizers, and they are a quintessential part of any south Asian kid’s childhood. Some of my favorites growing up were fish cutlets, patties, curry rolls (Also called Chinese rolls in Sri Lanka) and of course these curry puffs!

Half eaten curry puff

What are curry puffs?

Curry puffs are a popular snack that’s sold everywhere in Sri Lanka. It’s a more modern version of Sri Lankan patties or Indian samosas – using puff pastry instead of homemade dough. It can be made with chicken, fish, beef or vegetarian filling, so it’s very versatile and easy. Usually store-bought puff pastry is used, but I made my own puff pastry as our local supermarket didn’t have any. You can make your own easy rough puff pastry using my recipe here too.

These are perfect to serve as appetizers for holiday entertaining. They are easy to assemble and can be frozen until needed. Using store-bought puff pastry and flavorful spice mixes will make the whole process even easier!

Why you should make these curry puffs

  • They are an easy appetizer, perfect for holiday entertaining, or any time of the year!
  • These are vegetarian (and can be vegan too). Non-vegetarians won’t miss the meat either – trust me!
  • Freezer friendly! The vegetarian curry puffs can be stored in the freezer and baked right before serving.
  • With store-bought puff pastry and excellent spice blends, these are a cinch to make.
  • Fantastic as finger food or as a snack.
  • A cheat’s “samosa” with the addition of flaky, buttery puff pastry.
  • No frying involved, and you can bake them all at once.

Which curry powder should I use?

For this recipe for vegetarian curry puffs, I’m using a combination of garam masala and other spices. Since the quality of the spices you use is so important for great flavor, make sure you use a spice blend that you know is good quality.

That’s why I really love The Spice Hunter’s Garam Masala! Their spice blends are of such high quality, and they have so many choices that you can choose from too. You could even choose their curry spice blends instead of garam masala.

I also used The Spice Hunter’s Bay Leaves. Bay leaves are only added during the cooking process, and are removed when the filling is done cooking. This adds a wonderful aroma to the potato and pea filling.

To add a nice spiciness, I used The Spice Hunter’s Savory Pepper Blend! I love that it has FOUR kinds of peppercorns that all have different flavor profiles and colors.

How to choose a good curry blend

I take spices very seriously. As such, finding good quality spice blends and curry powders is super important to me. I have seen so many curry blends and south Asian spice blends in the market that simply don’t pass muster. So always look for two simple things when you’re looking for the right kind of spice blend or curry blend,

  • Ingredients
  • Brand

Read the ingredient list. I’ve seen SO MANY “curry blends” that use so much turmeric and not much else! As if turmeric was a synonym for curry powder. It hurts my heart to see a good curry recipe ruined by a lame curry blend. A good curry blend has a range of spices blended together for the best taste and aroma. The spices can change depending on the curry powder (Madras curry powder vs Sri Lankan curry powder vs garam masala etc.).

Buy your spice blends from a brand that you know puts the effort into quality (like The Spice Hunter, because that’s what they are, that’s what they do).

The Spice Hunter range of spices and herbs are well-sourced from all over the world. Plus, they ensure high quality ingredients because they are a small boutique company. All their products are Non-GMO Project Verified too. You can’t beat that for quality.

You can get so much inspiration for great recipes on their website, and buy their products from there as well. With the holiday season upon us, The Spice Hunter is offering 15% off on all orders on Spicehunter.com (excludes branded merchandise) through 12/31/19 with the code HOLIDAYSPICE19. You can also sign up for their newsletter to get recipe inspiration throughout the year!

How to make Vegetarian Curry Puffs

Making the filling

The filling is simple and easy. It’s like a curried breakfast hash, with the addition of peas and spices.

Cut the potatoes into a small dice, and keep them soaked in cold water until you’re ready to cook them. It’s ok if they’re not even, because you will be mashing 1/3 of it anyway.

Soften onions over medium heat in a big pan, along with the bay leaves. Add the ginger and garlic, followed by the potatoes. Add the garam masala, salt and black pepper along with the other seasoning spices, and cook the potatoes until softened and caramelized. With a fork, mash up about 1/3 of the potatoes.

Add the peas with a little garam masala and cook until the peas are warmed up. Taste and season as needed.

THAT’S IT! The filling for these vegetarian curry puffs is now done and just needs to cool down to room temperature.

  • Pan fried curied potatoes for the filling
  • Peas and potato filling for the curry puffs

Making the curry puffs

If you want to make your own puff pastry, you can! Homemade puff pastry tastes heaps better and it’s easier than you think. You can follow my easy recipe here.

Homemade rough puff pastry

Buying store-bought puff pastry is an easier option though. And if you want to save time, then store-bought puff pastry will certainly help.

Roll about 1/2 lb of the puff pastry into a square sheet. It should be at least 12 x 12 inches, and 3 mm in thickness. Cut circles or squares from the puff pastry sheet. You should be able to cut out at least 9, with a diameter of 3.5 – 4 inches. Place a generous spoonful of the filling in the center of each small square. Brush the edges with water and fold over. Crimp the edges with a fork to seal. 

Cut the pastry sheets, and have the cooled filling ready.
Filling the puff pastry rounds with potato and pea filling
Place enough filling in the middle with a small border left to seal. Brush water along the edge.
Sealing the pastry edges
Fold over and use your fingers to seal the pastry.
A curry puff with crimped edges
Crimp the edges to seal.

Repeat with more puff pastry as needed. It’s easier to work with batches, rather than rolling out a big amount of puff pastry in one go. With 1 ½ lbs of puff pastry, I got about 24 vegetarian curry puffs. 

Brush the tops of the pastries with an egg wash and bake in a preheated oven until golden brown. They taste AMAZING while warm, but they can be enjoyed at room temperature too.

  • Freshly baked vegetarian curry puffs

What if I want to make these ahead of time?

These are super freezer-friendly!

When you have assembled the vegetarian curry puffs, place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and freeze for about 1 hour (or until completely frozen).

These frozen curry puffs can be stored in a sealable freezer bag or container and stored until needed.

And even better, they can be baked from frozen too! So these vegetarian curry puffs are perfect for entertaining, or when you have unexpected guests drop by, or even when you’re just craving a snack any time of the day!

A close up of the vegetarian curry puffs, showing the flaky layers

How to serve these vegetarian curry puffs

These don’t require much in the way of “dressing”, since all the flavor is inside the pastries.

However, these can be served with a tomato or mango chutney as well. 

A curry puff served on a plate

Vegetarian curry puff variations

These vegetarian curry puffs can be easily modified to your taste.

  • Substitute the potatoes with sweet potatoes.
  • Substitute half of the potatoes with carrots.
  • Follow the same filling recipe here, but for a spiced fish filling.
  • Add curried chicken or beef to the mix.
  • Use gluten-free puff pastry for a gluten-free curry puff version.
  • Use vegan puff pastry for a vegan curry puff version.
  • Reduce the spice levels or increase the spice levels to your taste (we like it spicy!).

Looking for more recipes?Sign up for my free recipe newsletter to get new recipes in your inbox each week! Find me sharing more inspiration on Pinterest and Instagram.

5 from 1 vote

Easy Vegetarian Curry Puffs

Yield: 26 curry puffs (3.5 inch sized)
Cuisine: South Asian, Sri Lankan
These vegetarian curry puffs are easy to make, and are filled with a lightly spiced potato filling. Perfect for entertaining or as delicious snacks!

EASY - This recipe is easy for beginners, if you make it with store-bought puff pastry. However, you can make you own puff pastry too (recipe link for that in ingredients).
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Common Measurement Conversions
Total Time 2 hours 40 minutes
Difficulty Easy
Serves 26 individual puffs
Prep: 45 minutes
Resting time / cooling time: 1 hour
Cook: 40 minutes
Print Rate

Ingredients:

Spiced potato and peas filling

  • 1 ½ lbs potatoes yukon gold, or something similar
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • ½ large onion chopped finely
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 inch ginger minced
  • 1 large The Spice Hunter Meditarranean Bay Leaf
  • 1 ½ tsp The Spice Hunter Garam Masala
  • ½ tsp The Spice Hunter Savory Pepper Blend ground. We used 1 ½ tsp because we like it spicy
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp turmeric optional
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • 5 oz frozen peas
  • 2 tbsp butter or ghee optional
  • Salt to taste

For the pastry

  • 1 ½ lbs puff pastry 3 sheets of store-bought puff pastry, or recipe for homemade puff pastry here.
  • 1 egg for an egg wash

Instructions:

Spiced potato and pea filling

  • Using a small mortar and pestle, or spice grinder, grind some of the peppercorns into a powder.
  • Peel the potatoes and cut into a small dice (about 1 cm). Place the potato in a bowl of cold water until ready to use.
  • Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the onion and bay leaves and cook until onions are softened. Add garlic, ginger, turmeric (if using), 1 tsp of garam masala, cinnamon and black pepper, and saute for 30 seconds. Add the potatoes, sugar and salt, and stir to coat the potatoes in the spice mix.
  • Cook the potatoes until they are softened and slightly caramelized. Stir potatoes every 5 - 8 minutes to prevent them from burning. The potatoes should be softened and caramelized in 15 - 20 minutes, depending on the heat of your stove.
  • Add the frozen peas and the remaining ½ tsp garam masala and saute the mix until the peas are heated through. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
  • Finally add the butter, and mix well.
  • Remove the filling from the heat and let it cool down to room temperature. The cooled down filling can also be stored in the fridge for up to 2 days. Remove the bay leaf as soon as you’re ready to use the filling.

Vegetarian curry puffs

  • Roll out the puff pastry to a thickness of about 3 mm. If using puff pastry sheets, you may still need to roll it out until it has the desired thickness.
  • Using a 3.5 inch cookie cutter, cut out circles of puff pastry. Alternatively you can cut the puff pastry into 3.5 - 4 inch squares as well.
  • Flatten the edge of the puff pastry circle and place it on your palm. Then while your palm is slightly cupped, fill the center with a generous spoonful of the curried potato and pea filling.
  • Moisten the edge of the puff pastry and fold it over to form a puff pastry half circle. Seal the edge well with your fingers first, and then crimp the edges with a fork. (See pictures in the post for more details.)
  • If using square pastries, fold over to form a triangle, seal the edges with your fingers first, and then crimp with a fork, as above.
  • Place the pastries on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and cover with plastic wrap or a clean cloth napkin. Repeat with all of the pastry and filling.
  • Keep the pastries at room temperature if you’re baking them immediately. If you’re baking the next day, keep them covered with plastic wrap in the fridge (take care not to let the pastries touch, as they will stick to each other).
  • If you want to store them for longer, then transfer them to the freezer.

Baking the curry puffs

  • Preheat oven to 375°F.
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the pastries on the baking tray with about 1 inch of space between each.
  • For the egg wash, whisk the egg lightly until the yolk and white are well-mixed.
  • Brush the tops with egg wash and bake in preheated oven until golden brown and puffed up - about 20 minutes.
  • Serve while warm, or at room temperature.

Tips & Tricks

  • The filling is enough for about 25 - 26 curry puffs (3.5 inch pastries). This can change according to the size of the pastries, and how much filling you put in each curry puff.
  • These curry puffs really puff up in the oven as they bake. So it’s important to seal them well with a fork so that the seams won’t open during or after baking. Too much filling could also lead to the curry puffs splitting open.
  • If the curry puffs open a little along the seam while baking, then use a chopstick (or something similar) to gently push down the pastry seam as soon as you remove the pastries from the oven. The pastry is more pliable when hot.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 1pastryCalories: 126kcal (6%)Carbohydrates: 13g (4%)Protein: 3g (6%)Fat: 7g (11%)Saturated Fat: 2g (13%)Cholesterol: 6mg (2%)Sodium: 94mg (4%)Potassium: 137mg (4%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 51IU (1%)Vitamin C: 5mg (6%)Calcium: 13mg (1%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Course:Appetizer, Short eats, Snacks
Cuisine:South Asian, Sri Lankan
Keyword:Appetizers, Puff Pastry, Rough Puff Pastry, Short eats, Vegetarian
Did you make this?Tag me on Instagram!I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @TheFlavorBender or leave me a comment & rating below.
118shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Pin

More Recipes You'll Love...

  • Authentic Sri Lankan Prawn Curry (Shrimp curry) - Learn all the tips and secrets into making the best spicy and creamy prawn or shrimp curry in your life! Can be adapted to your preference, and a perfect and easy recipe for a weeknight meal!
    Authentic Sri Lankan Prawn Curry (Shrimp Curry)
  • Sri Lankan Mango Curry - An easy curry recipe that is sweet, sour and spicy. Vegan and Gluten free and is absolutely amazing! A Sri Lankan favorite!
    Sri Lankan Mango Curry
  • Sri Lankan Beetroot Curry - A delicious vegan curry that even the pickiest eaters will love! Perfect accompaniment for rice and curry. Easy to make, and flavorful. #VegetarianSideDishes #VeganSideDishes #SriLanka #Beetroot
    Sri Lankan Beetroot Curry

Reader Interactions

Leave a Review Cancel reply

I love hearing from you! Submit your question or recipe review here.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Made this? Rate this recipe:




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Tracy says

    May 19, 2020 at 20:57

    I made the pastry from your recipe, amazing I’ve never made puff before I’ll never buy ready made again

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Hey there!

Hi! I’m Dini, a third culture kid by upbringing and a food-geek by nature. I was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in New Zealand and lived in Australia, and then the US, before moving to Canada in 2019! My food is a reflection of those amazing experiences!

Read More
Secret Layer Cakes Cookbook
The flavor bender
cookbook
Buy now on Amazon!

Recipe Basics

Learn how to make Perfect Choux Pastry (Or Pate a Choux!) - The only recipe guide you will ever need to make choux pastry, with perfect results every time. Plus a troubleshooting guide for your choux pastry recipe.  Fool proof choux pastry to make profiteroles, eclairs, cream puffs and more.  #ChouxPastry #Profiteroles #Eclairs #Pastry #CreamPuffs

How to make Perfect Choux Pastry

Classic Chocolate Eclairs - A foolproof recipe for making perfect eclairs that are crisp and puffy and filled with chocolate or vanilla pastry cream. 

Perfect Classic Chocolate Eclairs (Foolproof Recipe)

How to make Marshmallows - Learn the art of making fluffy, soft homemade marshmallows with or without corn syrup! With tips and information to make the perfect Marshmallows in many flavors. 

How to make Marshmallows (tips and tricks for homemade marshmallows)

How to make the best Homemade White Bread that is soft and delicious. An easy to follow recipe for perfect homemade bread with step by step instructions.

The Best Homemade Bread (White Bread Recipe)

Classic Pound Cake - A complete guide on how to make perfect, delicious and moist Pound Cake even if you're a baking novice! Tips + Tricks and Troubleshooting guide. 

Classic Pound Cake (Tips for a Perfect, Moist Pound Cake)

This Classic Chocolate Cake is the only and best chocolate cake recipe you will ever need! It has layers of soft, airy chocolate cake layers, with a creamy, buttery, melt in your mouth Chocolate buttercream frosting. Perfect cake for Birthday cake, or any occasion. 

The Best Classic Chocolate Cake

Chocolate
Cakes
Bread
Sri Lankan
Breakfast
Drinks
Candy
Pastries
All Recipes
Featured On
taste of the World
Free recipe ebook

Get my curated collection of the Top 10 Flavor Bender recipes!

  • 10 delicious chocolate recipes
  • Creative ways to use chocolate
  • Desserts and savory recipes
Download now!

Reader Faves

How to make Instant Pot Short Ribs - This easy recipe makes delicious, tender and succulent short ribs with classic flavors!

How to make the Best Instant Pot Short Ribs

Buttery Lemon Slow Roasted Salmon with Lemon Butter Sauce - Perfectly cooked, juicy slow roasted Salmon with a buttery tangy sauce! Delicious and versatile for any meal and occasion. 

Slow Roasted Salmon with Lemon Butter Sauce

Unbelievably easy Rough Puff pastry - Quick and easy to make and tasted infinitely better than store bought (30 -45 minutes only)! No long waiting times, to make this amazing pastry and NOONE will know you took a shortcut!

Perfect Quick and Easy Rough Puff Pastry

Spicy Sweet Chilli Sauce Easy to make, absolutely delicious, with an extra kick of spice this is the BEST Sweet chilli sauce you will EVER have!

The Best Spicy Sweet Chili Sauce!

The flavor bender

I love baking, and I love cooking. I experiment with flavors, textures and ingredients, and I love passing on all my tips and tricks to you!

Read More
  • About
    • Meet Dini
    • My Book
    • Work With Me
    • Contact
  • Browse
    • Recipes
    • Measurement Guide
    • Baking How-To’s
    • Shop My Faves
© The Flavor Bender
  • Privacy
  • Disclosure
  • Terms
Site Credits Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled

Join the flavor bender tribe!

Join my FREE recipe challenge to receive new recipes and dinner ideas straight to your inbox!