I remember my first samosa: a delicious pastry filled with spiced potatoes and peas, shaped in attractive conular shapes that take you to the warm Indian subcontinent. The day was rainy and we were in the North of England traveling for one of my mother’s conferences. None of us were expecting Indian food at what was typically a buffet of flavorless meat. My dad, an Indian food connoisseur, was pleasantly surprised to see samosas offered at the buffet and all he said was ‘You’ll like these.’
It’s not at all hard to become addicted to these Indian appetizers. Careful though: loaded with potatoes and other vegetables, these pastries can be a meal in and of themselves.
There are multiple recipes for samosas, and like other pastry appetizers the world over (i.e. empanadas, turnovers, etc.), you can tailor the ingredients to whatever you like. This version sticks with the more ‘traditional’ vegetarian samosa filling.
Ways to make this your own
Fillings
As stated above, your filling can be whatever you like: meat, vegetables, fish, etc. The frying process will be the same no matter what you use.
Spices
You can have fun with your spices and tailor them to how hot or spicy you like your food. Generally, if I want these to be spicier, I’ll add more cayenne pepper, not more green chili.
Shape
While the traditional samosa shape is a cone, getting the pastry to adhere to this shape can be tricky and sometimes it’s more trouble than it’s worth. If that’s the case for you, there’s no shame in going with the ‘empanada’ or ‘pot sticker’ shape. Do what feels right.
Ingredients:
Dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water, as needed
Filling:
2 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
kosher salt
vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp minced ginger
1/2 green chili (either a jalapeño or serrano pepper) minced (can be seeded or unseeded depending on the spice level you’re looking for)
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp Garam Masala
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (more to taste)
1 cup frozen peas
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
juice of half a lemon
vegetable oil for deep frying
Directions:
Start with your dough. Mix the flour, salt, and vegetable oil together. The dough will be crumbly. Slowly add the water until a solid dough begins to form. You may not need to use all the water. Knead the dough for approximately 5 minutes, just until the dough feels slightly elastic. Place in a bowl and cover with a cloth or plastic wrap while you work on the filling.
Boil the potatoes in salted water until they’re fork-tender (about 10-15 minutes). Drain and set aside for later.
Meanwhile, have your onion, ginger, chili, and spices ready. Heat a tbsp of vegetable oil in a medium-sized pan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and cook until they’re just browned and start to become fragrant (approximately 2 -3 minutes).
Add the onions, ginger, and chili and cook until the onion has softened, about 3 - 5 minutes. Add in the coriander, Garam Masala, and cayenne pepper. Stir until everything is mixed and let cook for another minute.
Add the peas and cook until they’ve turned light green. (By this point, you may need to add a splash of water here and there if the mixture is sticking to the pan.) Add the potatoes and stir into the mixture. Then add the cilantro and lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Take off the heat and let cool to room temperature before proceeding to the next steps.
Take your dough and divide it into 12 equally-sized balls. The balls don’t need to be perfect.
Take one ball and roll the dough out into a 6-inch circular shape. It’s okay if the shape isn’t perfectly circular. Cut the dough in half as shown. On one half, add about a tbsp worth of filling. Have a bowl of water handy. Dip a finger into the water and outline the very edges of the pastry. (This will help the pastry to stick together.) Take one edge of the dough and fold over the filling. Use your fingers to press the dough together along the edges so that it seals. Continue with the other half of the dough.
Repeat this process with each ball of dough. You may notice you can adjust how much filling you put in, depending on how well the dough shapes over it.
**You can stop here if you intend to cook the samosas later. Simply cover them, place them in the fridge, and take out when you’re ready to deep fry.
Once you have all of your samosas assembled, heat up the oil in a frying pan or deep fryer. The oil should be at 375 degrees.
Add up to three samosas at a time and deep-fry until golden-brown. This will take approximately 3 -5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, take out the samosas and place on a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
Enjoy with your favorite chutney, an Indian curry, or other Indian appetizers for the ultimate Indian feast!