Best thing I ate this week: Chicken curry puff

'Best thing I ate' is a series where we share the best things we have eaten around Singapore. Read more here.

What: Chicken curry puff ($1.70  )

Where: Soon Soon Huat Crispy Curry Puff, 220 East Coast Road

Started in Eunos Crescent in 1990, this is a well-known curry puff stall in the east that moved to various locations before settling in its own shop space in the Katong neighbourhood finally.

The matriarch of the family business created its signature spiral seashell look for the chunky puffs before they are stuffed and deep fried to a flaky crisp. This requires more skill of course, but the result is worth the effort: it transcends the traditional but not always assured idea of crispiness.

Although the shop offers several flavours including durian, it's the divine chicken curry puff that keeps drawing fans. A bite through the thin overlapping layers reveals a mouthwatering filling of spiced potatoes and a few morsels of meat.

The stuffing is a little wet but not mushy, with the ingredients cooked just right.

The skilful blend of curry spices creates the appropriate full-bodied and balanced taste for this quintessential Singapore snack. Well-spiced but not tongue-numbing, so kids can enjoy it too.

An ideal afternoon treat with local tea or coffee before the shop shutters in the late afternoon. Our advice: Go early as every batch of the freshly-cooked puffs sells out fast.

chenj@sph.com.sg

The writer paid for the food reviewed.