Monday Night Dinner

So tonight I was feeling kind of bold and decided to try making samosas. They are these delicious fried triangles from Southeast Asia and are filled with with a spicy potato mixture. I found a recipe on Foodgawker.com (my new muse), and they looked so good, that I've been dying to make them ever since. My Mom bought some awhile back, and I remembered them being pretty delicious, so I used the best looking recipe I could find. They turned out pretty well, though I have to say, this recipe didn't seem to have enough dough to make all the samosas. . . Rolling the dough out too thin makes them weaker and a lot harder to work with, which left me with quite a bit of extra filling (no problem since the filling is delicious and it's quite good on it's own). So that said, I think next time I will double the dough recipe. Here's what the filling looks like:

Here's what the samosas look like when they're done:

The recipe I used combined this recipe and another I can't find now:

http://threemanycooks.com/recipes/nibbles-and-drinks/spicy-potato-samosas/

Pastry Dough: (not doubled yet, though I would recommend it)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; more for dusting
1 tsp. kosher salt
4 Tbs. vegetable shortening
6-7 Tbs. cold water

Filling:
2 medium potatoes
1 small onion, diced
1/4-1/2 lb ground chicken or pork
3/4 C frozen mixed vegetable Thawed (I recommend something with corn or beans)
1/4 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp crushed black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp turmeric

Make the dough:
Mix the flour and salt. Cut in the shortening. Add the water slowly until a ball of dough forms. Take the dough and gather it into a smooth ball. Cover and let rest for 1/2 hour.

Make the Filling:
In a medium pot, bring water to a boil. Peel and cut potatoes, then boil for 8-10 mins or until cooked through. Drain potatoes, and once potatoes are completely cool, diced into smaller pieces (1cm cube)

In a large pan or a wok, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add in onion and cook for 2-3 mins. Then, add in the ground chicken/pork. Stir. When the ground chicken/pork is fully cooked, add in mixed vegetable and diced potatoes. Add in all seasoning. Cook for another 2-3 mins. Stir and lightly crush the filling mixture. Transfer the filling into a bowl and let it cool for 10 mins.

Assemble the samosas:

Knead the dough for a minute and divide into 8 equal parts. Working one at a time, place a ball of dough on your work surface, dust it lightly with flour, and roll it into a 6-inch circle. Cut the rolled circle in half. Now you have two semicircles. Each semi-circle will make a samosa.

Place a small bowl of water next to your work surface to help seal the seams. Moisten the semi-circle’s straight edge with water and fold in half. Press the edges securely together to seal. Fill the cone with one heaping tablespoons of the potato filling. Moisten the open side of the cone with water and pinch the opening closed.

Fry the samosas:
When ready to fry the samosas, heat about 4 inches of vegetable oil in a large pan to about 350° F.  Add the samosas in batches of 3-4, being careful not to crowd the pan. Cook the samosas, turning often, until they’re golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or tongs, transfer samosas to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Serve immediately