Pie tee

Kueh Pie Teeis a thin and crispy pastry tart shellkuihoften filled with a spicy, shredded Chinese turnips, sweet mixture of thinly sliced vegetables and prawns. It is a popularPeranakandish, that is often consumed duringChinese New Yearor tea parties. The shells are made of flour and though some stores will make them from scratch, they can usually be found ready made in most supermarkets. Similar topopiah, the main filling is shreddedjicamaand carrots, and usually these two dishes are sold by the same stall inhawker centres.
Kueh Pie Teeis known by different names across the Southeast Asia region, with several variations in spelling.Kueh Pie Teeis pronounced/ˈkweɪˈpaɪˈtiː/, and is also known asKoay Pai Ti', 'Kuih Pie Tee' or 'Kuih Pai Ti. The word 'kueh' is aloanwordthat combines the Malay wordkueh, which means dessert, and from theMinnan dialectkueh(Minnan:kueh or koé(粿); Chinese: 粿; pinyin:guǒ) which means a flour-based dish.'Pie' is derived from the English word 'pie' while other regional variations that usepaiuses it as a loanword from the Malay language, 'pai' which means pie. In other accounts, the phrasepie tee(orpai tiorpai tee) may have been derived from the English term 'patty'.
In Malaysia, the kueh pie tee is also known as Tophats, suggesting that part of the dish was likely influenced by Western culture.
While the origins of the kueh pie tee remain unclear, there are several speculations on how the Kueh Pie Tee was invented. Based on currently available sources, the Kueh Pie Tee was  invented in the early 20th century.The kueh pie tee is believed to be derived from thepopiah. Thepopiahwas likely introduced to theSoutheast Asiaregion by the Chinese migrants moving there. The snack's prolonged exposure to its surrounding multi-ethnic influences, such asMalay cuisineandWestern cuisine, led to the adaptation of the original 'baobing' recipe to create thekueh pie tee.
InMalaysia, many locals recognise the kueh pie tee by the name 'Tophats' instead because the piecrust shell resemblesWestern tophats. As such, some locals in Malaysia believe that the kueh pie tee may have been invented in Malaysia.
Another possible speculation suggests that thekueh pie teeis originally from Singapore. One of the earliest recordedkueh pie teerecipes is found inEllice Handy'sMy Favourite Recipes, published in 1952. This recipe book was one of the first few recipe books that featured Malayan dishes and ingredients. In this recipe book, the instructions to make thekueh pie teeare found in two recipes named the Popia and the Pie Tee. Handy's Popia recipe provides steps to make thekueh pie tee'sfilling, while her Pie Tee recipe contains instructions to make the piecrust shells.Noting that the recipe is found in a recipe book published in Singapore, this suggests that thekueh pie tee'sorigins may be related to thelocal cuisine of Singapore.
BabaOng Jin Teonghas also suggested in his Peranakan heritage books that theKueh Pie Teemay have originated in Singapore. The recipe found in Ong's book,Penang Heritage Food, belongs to his mother, who compiled the recipe in the 1950s. Additionally, thekueh pie teeis also known as the 'Singapore Poh Piah' or 'Syonan-to Pie', further suggesting that the snack may have originated from Singapore.
Currently, thekueh pie teeremains popular in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.