SAMOSAS

I love these spicy potato-and-vegetable-filled pastries! This particular recipe is for East Indian-style samosas; I got the recipe from my old IRC pal Ski Sotero (a.k.a. "mopus-box"), who got it from an Indian woman who lived near him.

For the pastry:

• 2 cups all purpose white flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
• 4 tablespoons water

Place the flour and salt in a bowl. Add the 4 tablespoons oil and rub into mixture. After it's mixed in well, add water until the dough forms a ball. Remove and knead for 10 minutes until the dough smooth. Rub dough ball with oil, slip into plastic bag and set aside for 30 minutes to rise. Knead again and divide into 8 balls. Roll out a dough ball until it is 7" in diameter. Cut in half and form a cone, making a 1/4" overlapping seam. Glue the seam together with a little water. Fill with 2-3 tablespoons of filling. Close the outer seam with a fork, repeat for 2nd half. Repeat for the remaining 14 samosas. Deep fry in peanut oil at 375F until golden brown.

For the Filling:

• 4 - 5 medium potatoes, boiled in jackets and cooled
• 4 tablespoons ghee or oil
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 1 cup fresh peas, or frozen and thawed
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 fresh hot green chile, minced
• 3 tablespoons cilantro, very finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted briefly
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted briefly
• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Peel potatoes and cut into 1/4" dice. Heat oil in pan. When hot, put in onions, fry until browned at edges. Add peas, ginger, green chil, fresh cilantro, and water. Cover and simmer until peas are cooked. Check frequenetly so that the peas don't dry out; add water if they are. Add potatoes, salt, coriander seeds, garam masala, cumin, cayenne and lemon juice. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Check balance of lemon and salt; adjust seasoning as necessary. Let mixture cool and add to the samosa pastry.

 

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Chuck Taggart   (e-mail chuck)