Crisp, thin pastry cups shaped like little top hats, filled with a savoury-sweet stir-fry of finely shredded jicama and prawns, topped with omelet, cucumber and chili. The iconic Nyonya appetizer and party finger food.
Kueh pie tee is the iconic Nyonya appetizer and party finger food of Singapore Peranakan cuisine. Crisp pastry cups shaped like little top hats are filled with a savoury-sweet stir-fry of finely shredded jicama (bangkuang) and carrot with prawns, topped with shredded omelet, cucumber and chili. The labour-intensive shells, made by dipping a brass mold into batter and frying it, mark pie tee as a special-occasion dish central to the Singapore Peranakan canon.
A shatteringly crisp pastry shell giving way to a sweet, savoury, moist jicama filling, the omelet and cucumber cooling it, the chili adding a bright edge. Eaten in two bites, it is one of the most elegant Nyonya bites.
The pastry cups are made by dipping a brass pie-tee mold into a thin rice-and-wheat flour batter, then lowering it into hot oil so the batter fries into a crisp shell that holds its hat shape. The filling is a dry stir-fry of finely shredded jicama and carrot with dried shrimp, garlic and shallots, seasoned sweet-savoury, and is spooned into the cups at the last minute so they stay crisp. The shells are made ahead and kept dry.
Variations
A prawn-topped version adds a whole cooked prawn. Some add bamboo shoots to the filling.
On the Palate
Where Kueh Pie Tee Singapore sits in the Singaporean flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 8How it's made
6 steps · 1 hour
- 18 min
For the cups: whisk 100g rice flour, 50g plain flour, 1 egg, 200ml water and a pinch of salt into a thin batter; rest 30 minutes.
- 212 min
Heat oil to 170C; dip a brass pie-tee mold into the batter, then lower it into the oil and fry 30 seconds until golden; tap out and repeat to make 24 cups.
Watch outThe batter must be thin and the mold properly hot — dip, then lower into the oil so the shell fries crisp and releases; too thick or too cool and it won't hold its cup shape.
- 38 min
For the filling: soak 30g dried shrimp, drain, chop; finely shred 400g jicama and 100g carrot.
- 48 min
In 3 tbsp oil, fry 5 sliced shallots and 3 cloves garlic 2 minutes; add the dried shrimp, then jicama and carrot; season with 1 tbsp light soy, 1 tsp sugar and pepper.
- 510 min
Cook uncovered 10 minutes until the jicama is tender and the filling fairly dry.
- 64 min
Spoon the filling into the cups just before serving; top with shredded omelet, cucumber and chili.
Watch outSpoon the filling into the cups only at the last minute — sit filled and the crisp shells go soggy fast.
