The most perfect party time favorite. These delicious puff pastries are filledwith a well-seasoned chickenmix. A popular Caribbean party favorite, thisTrinidad chicken puffs recipe is a great option for get-togethers.
There is nothing that reminds me of the joys of childhood more thanthinking of puffs.
When I see a puff, I think of a birthday partywith endless snacks and drinks.
It was a staple at all family events,this choux pastry is usually filled with well-seasoned chicken or cheese ortuna.
And they are usually gobbled up in no time.
Today Ireminisce and share the recipe for my favorite of them all, these delightfulchicken puffs.
Family gatherings are so important to me. I lovebirthday parties and live for any type of get-togethers: house visits, beachlimes, trips to the forts. Those were all exciting. But you see birthdayparties??
Those were the grand prize get-together.
Theexcitement of sharing that day with a sister, cousin, a friend was one thing.Being able to celebrate that special day and have some fun was pure joy.
Onething we knew, as for most parties in Trinidad and Tobago, there was going to befood and snacks galore.Cheese paste sandwichesand puffs and even stuffed prunes with peanut butter were all partyfavorites.
What do Caribbean people call "puffs"?
What we refer to as puffs is really the shell for choux pastry or cheesepuffs.
It's stuffed with some kind of paste be it chicken which ismy favorite filling, fish (tuna), or cheese.
They are likeprofiteroles. But unlike them, they are not required to be frozen afterstuffing.
Choux pastry is a light, crispy pastry shell that can alsobe used to make eclairs to gougères. Though they are fancy in name, they arepretty easy to make.
Ingredients for Puffs
As I mentioned, these look fancy and taste amazing. So it's surprisingthat they come forth from some of the most basic pantry items.
Thisrecipe's ingredients are nothing fancy or out of the ordinary.
Shells:Flour, eggs, butter, sugar, salt, and boiling water
Types of fillings:Meat - I love chicken but you can also use other types of meats.Fish(tuna is the common substitute). You can easily use canned chicken chunks as Ido for the tuna, but I much prefer to use fresh chicken breasts (or even arotisserie chicken) and make my seasoned chicken.
Meat seasonings:thyme, garlic, celery, red onion, black pepper, salt, pimento peppers, bellpeppers, dijon mustard, pepper sauce.
How to make Trini style cheese puffs
I must confess though the hardest part of me was creating the shells andmaking them look nice. On my first attempt, they came out looking like ducks.Ha!!
To make the dough for the shells, melt your butter in water overmedium heat. Add salt, flour, and sugar to melted butter and mix vigorously. Youwant it to all get incorporated smoothly. Mixing till a ball is formed.
Onceyou get the initial incorporation, continue mixing together for about anotherfive minutes, then remove from the heat.
We need to get the mixtureto cool to room temperature prior to adding the eggs.
Have you evergotten a puff and it smells really eggy fresh scent? The eggs were added to thehot mixture and it started to cook. We don't want that to happen.
Oncecooled, add eggs one at a time to get it fully mixed in.
Then you canadd the mixture to your piping bag to make your shell casings.
Thankgoodness for YouTube, and I founda great tutorialon making the shells look "cute" from Gordon Ramsay. (from the 1-minutemark).
On a baking paper-lined baking tray, bake your shells forabout 40 minutes.
Now to make your filling. You can make any type of meatfilling just about the same way.
Canned meats can be used, butpersonally, I find they have this weird taste. Well, not tuna but chicken. Iprefer to season up my chicken breast and then control my level of seasoning tomy taste.
Add the chicken to some water making sure that the water isthe same level or coves the chicken. Let it boil till tender so I can shred itup. If you have an instant pot, you can do theshredded chickenin there even faster.
Once it's tender, remove and shred or blend.It's best to use a processor/blender because you don't want it to be chunky.More on the smooth side.
Put the blended chicken mixture in a largebowl, add the other seasonings, and mix everything until combined. Taste testfor salt and pepper levels to your liking.
With your shells completedand your filling done it's now time to build the puffs.
Slit yourpuffs mid-way and take about a tablespoon of chicken mixture or pipe in withyour bag.
Repeat until all your shells are filled. Or use as manyshells as you wish at the time. The rest can be frozen.
Tips & Tricks
- If you do not want to use any meat, a cheese filling is a great substitution. Just use the cheese from the cheese paste sandwiches.
- A rotisserie chicken is also perfect if you are short on time. Debone the meat from the carcass and add the meat to the blender or processor. Once blended fine, add the rest of the ingredients. You just need to be mindful of the salt level now since the rotisserie chicken would be well seasoned. I would add salt last after taste testing.
- For the shells, it is very important that you make sure you measure the ingredients exactly. Also, DO NOT open your oven while baking.
- Something I've also learned is placing parchment paper on your baking sheet is important. It creates a great base for the dough to cook evenly. Dampen it a little using a brush. Since this is an egg heavy dough, it will help like water does with cheesecake.
Don't have a piping bag?
If you don't have a piping bag, no worries. You can take a Ziploc bag andcut one of the corners and use it to pipe the mixture. You can check out thestep-by-step process of using aZiploc bag instead of a piping bag.
You can also just use a spoon to "drop" the mixture on the bakingsheet.
Can you make the Trinidad puffs recipe ahead of time?
Yes, these can be done ahead of time. Well, the dough can be made. Theuncooked dough can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. This can bedone up to two days prior to use.
Shells already baked can also befrozen without filling. Pack them flat in a Ziploc bag and store them. These canbe kept for up to three months.
When ready to use, thaw the shells inthe fridge, then bake them for about 10 minutes.
Do you know that you can use choux pastry mix to make eclairstoo?
So I'm basically giving you a many-in-one recipe today. Thank melater.
Have you ever had chicken puffs?
I hope you have,and if you didn't I wish you would take some time and try these out.
Theyare really great mouth stuffers for parties. And the shells can be easily madebefore and frozen till needed.
Ok, enough talking, let me go pop afew of these in the belly!!
