Curry puffs are fried pastries filled with curried meat and potatoes. It is believed that the curry puff was inspired by the British Cornish pasty. Curry puffs were introduced to the Malay Peninsula in the 1800s. There are a few theories about what food the curry puff was inspired by. Some say it is similar to the empanada, a pastry with a meat filling. Others believe it was influenced by the Indian samosa. The Malay version of the curry puff is called epok-epok. It is stuffed with sardines in a spice paste and uses no curry. The Malays modified the shape of the curry puff to look like a crescent, which has religious symbolism in Islam. The Chinese took the snack and changed it to a version with chicken, potato and a hard-boiled egg. Street vendors sold curry puffs long before they made their way to restaurants and cafes.
