Once you’ve got the hang of making samosas you can do batches and freeze them. Bring them out when friends come around, brush melted butter on and bake … easy. Here you can see a Beetroot & Feta version on the left and Lamb & Mint on the right. We’ve decorated them with different seeds to help tell the difference. Our guests went home wanting to make them for themselves – and they promptly did. No better indorsement we think.
Lamb & Mint Samosas – makes 18-24
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 500g lamb mince
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp finely grated ginger
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 tbsp finely chopped mint
- 2 x 270g packs of filo pastry
- 100g unsalted butter, melted
- onion seeds (nigella seeds) or sesame seed to garnish, to garnish
Heat the oil in a large saucepan, then add the cumin seeds and fry for a minute. Add the onions and fry for 8-10 minutes, or until golden, then add the garlic and stir-fry for a couple of minutes.
Add the lamb mince and break up with a wooden spoon. Fry for 8-10 minutes, then add the cumin, coriander, garam masala, ginger, chilli & salt.
Continue to cook the the mince until starting to brown, then tip into a dish to cool. Add the mint just before you make the samosas.
Lay a sheet of the filo pastry out with the long side towards you (cover the rest of the filo with a damp tea towel). Brush the left hand side of the pastry sheet lightly with the melted butter. Fold the right hand side of the sheet over the left so you have a double layer of pastry. Cut the pastry into 3 long strips with a sharp knife.
Place a heaped tbsp of the lamb mixture at the bottom of a pastry strip, then fold the bottom right hand corner up over the filling to make a small triangle. Flip the triangle over as you move up the pastry strip, the filling will eventually be sealed inside. When you get to the end, brush the end of the pastry strip with a little melted butter and press to seal.
Continue like this until all of the lamb mixture has been used, you might not need all of the filo pastry.
If you want to freeze the samosas at this stage you can set them on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, then place in tray in the freezer. When the samosas are frozen you can transfer them to a bag.
If you want to cook the freshly made samosas, preheat the oven to 200ºC/400°F/gas 6. Brush the samosas on both sides with melted butter and sprinkle a few onion seeds or sesame seeds over the top. Put onto a lightly greased baking tray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
To cook from frozen. Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400°F/gas 6. Brush both sides with melted butter, sprinkle a few onion or sesame seeds over the top, and put onto a lightly greased baking tray. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until crisp and golden.
(Original recipe from Made in India by Meera Sodha, Fig Tree, 2014.)
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