Samooosaaaaass!

I am lucky to have a lot of really cool friends that I have made on Twitter. One of them, Shaheen, the delightful @PurpleFoodie has agreed to the be the guest blogger for samosas! So here she is!

Hot Samosas and Friendship

I’ve known Luna for a few months over twitter now and it’s been lovely knowing her. On one such occasion over a twitter chatter, Luna asked me if I had a nice samosa recipe. Now here in Bombay (Mumbai), samosas are found at the corner of every other street. I just have to walk down my lane for a minute and I can get some delicious, piping hot samosas. That’s the reason why I hardly ever make them at home. But since it’s Luna, I just had to make it for her. :)

If you’re not already following her on twitter, then go do that right now! You will then know what thoughtful she is. I especially remember the time she gave me all the moral support I needed to venture out in alone in New York City when I went there a few months ago. Thanks, sweetie!


So back to the samosas - when I made them they took a lot lesser tie than I had anticipated so the long list of ingredients shouldn't stop you! Everyone at home loved them. The samosa was flaky and crunchy all at once and the flavour of the spicy potato filling was kicked up a knotch with the addition of fennel seeds. Try it, you will love it


Samosa recipe

Yield: 6-8

For the dough

1-1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup ghee or vegetable shortening
2 Tbs. plain yogurt, stirred well

1/4 cup water (or as required)

In a wide, shallow bowl, mix the flour with the salt and baking soda.

Rub in the ghee or shortening, whichever you’re using into the flour.

Rub the fat and the flour together until the flour is evenly coated; there shouldn’t be any lumps.
Add the yogurt-water mixture a little at a time. Add just enough liquid until the dough comes together in a mass.

Knead the dough until it's smooth and elastic. The dough is ready when it's no longer sticky and feels nice and supple (after about 5 minutes of kneading).

Wrap it in plastic, and let it rest for about 15 minutes.




For Potato and Peas Filling

1 tbs. cooking oil

3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped

½ tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. coriander powder

1/2 tsp. dry mango powder or amchoor

½ tsp turmeric

¼-1/2 tsp. chilli powder (depending on how hot you want it to be)

1 cups very coarsely mashed potatoes

½ cup peas, boiled

Salt to taste


Canola oil or any flavourless oil for deep frying


Heat 1 tbsp oil and add the garlic. Cook until fragrant. About 2 minutes.

Next add in the whole seeds – mustard, cumin and fennel and cook until they sizzle. Another 1 minute.

Now add all the powdered spices, coriander, dry mango, turmeric, chilli.

Once it is all incorporated, add the potatoes and peas and mix well. Add the salt.

Let this potato mixture cool.



Assembling the samosa

Divide the dough into about 6-8 portions.

Roll them out into strips of 1/8th inch thickness.

Place the potato filling in the middle and seal the sides as shown in the photo.

Heat the oil for deep frying the samosas.

Drop 2-3 in at a time and dry till they are golden brown.

Drain on paper towel and serve hot!


http://purplefoodie.com/