We are studying India in geography and history, so we spent a long and exhausting day with the pots and pans last week. Here's what we made:
- Curried chicken
- Daal
- Naan
- Vegetarian Samosas
- Paal Payasam
Here's the thing, though -- it was my first time making samosas, and dang! those were some fiddly scraps of demonic pastry.
Note: delicious.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vegetarian Samosa Filling
- 2 potatoes, finely diced
- 1 carrot, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 Tbsp ghee (or, butter or vegetable oil)
- 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
- 1/4 tsp ground coriander
- 1 1/2 tsp Madras curry
- about 1/2 tsp Vij's Masala
- 150 mL vegetable stock
Heat the ghee in a frying pan, add the onion and garlic and sautee until soft. Add the spices and cook 2 minutes more, stirring. Add the vegetables and stir until well coated. Stir in stock. Reduce heat, cover and simmer about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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The trouble began with the dough. I followed a recipe I found online, and ended up with a gargantuan, glutinous gob of gelatinous goop. Persevering, I did my darndest to shape them into the uniform little samosa packages we all know and love.
Something's not quite right about these samosas.In the end, I said a rude word, threw the samosa dough into the garbage, and made a batch of all-too-Western Tenderflake pastry. I scraped the filling into it, formed it into a pasty, and baked the bejeebers out of it for about 40 minutes.
All's well that ends well!
