I first tried a Kenyan samosa in the Netherlands, as a student I missed home cooked meals and so a visit to a Kenyan Dutch friend's home was a welcome respite. Her father periodically stocked their freezer with samosas, so there was always a snack on hand. Little did I know that a few years later I would be in the kitchen with my Kenyan mother-in-law teaching ourselves how to make the samosas together.
Unlike Indian samosas which are usually filled with a spiced vegetable mixture in a slightly thicker pastry, Kenyan samosas are most commonly filled with beef, onion and green chilis (although at the coast they also have the crab samosas which are a favourite of mine), and are wrapped in a more delicate, lighter pastry - more similar to a spring roll wrapper.
I always imagined the wrapper to be the hardest to make, due to the prevalence of store bought pastry at supermarkets back in the UK. But surprisingly, they are relatively simple to make once you learn the technique. Traditionally, Kenyan samosas will be very lightly spiced to focus on the flavour of the meat, but I love to add leeks, peas and mint to my samosas - feel free to play around with the additions and flavours to your preference.
Ingredients
Samosa Filling
300g Minced Beef
2 garlic cloves
1 inch ginger
¼ cup Green Chilis
1 small red onion
1 large Leek
½ cup peas
1 ½ tsp garam masala
¾ tsp ground cumin
¾ tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 ¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
Bunch fresh Mint
Oil
Salt and Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Samosa Wrappers
1 cup flour
Pinch of salt
3-4 tbsp water
1 tbsp oil
Samosa Wrapper Glue
2 tbsp plain flour
Water to make paste
Oil for deep frying
Limes to serve
How to Make Kenyan Samosas
Prepare Samosa Wrapper Dough
To make the wrappers add the flour and salt to a bowl, bring together with three to four tbsps of water.
Kneed to make a stiff dough. Make a ball with a divet in the middle, add 1 tbsp of oil and knead well into the dough.
Let it rest in a bowl under a warm damp towel for 30 minutes.
Samosa Filling
Grate the ginger and garlic to make a paste. Finely dice the onion and cut leek into thin slices. Finely slice the green chilis and mint.
On a medium heat, add oil and the minced meat.
Cook until mince is browned.
And the ginger and garlic and chilis cook for 30 seconds until the raw smell goes away.
Add the onions, leeks and a pinch of salt and cook on low until softened and slightly caramelised. Add a splash of water if needed to prevent burning.
Add the peas and cook together for a few minutes or until peas are cooked through.
Add the spices
1 ½ tbsp garam masala
¾ tsp ground cumin
¾ tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp salt
Cook out the spices until fragrant.
Take off the heat and add the mint and lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Keep mixture aside and leave to cool.
Roll Out Samosa Wrappers
Divide the dough into 4 and roll flat into small circles.
On the surface of each circle rub a ½ tbsp oil and then sprinkle with flour.
Then place the oiled part over another circle and repeat the oiling and flour until all four circles are placed together with a layer of oil and flour in between each layer.
Roll out the layers into a large thin circle and place onto a heated pan. You'll notice my circle is not very round here - my mother-in-law always reminds me "you can't eat shapes!"
Cook for 30 seconds on each side and then take it off the heat.
Peel the layers apart whilst still hot, each layer will easily peel apart. The cut the wrappers into four.
Assemble Samosas
Make the samosa glue by adding 2 tbsp of flour to a bowl, slowly adding water until it forms a sticky paste.
Fold each sheet into a triangle - it will look a little like a kite shape. Use samosa glue to stick the pieces together
Fill the samosa with the minced meat filling, being careful not to overfill.
Fold the top of the kite over and stick together with samosa glue. Make sure to close the samosa very tightly so it stays together when cooking.
Repeat with the rest to make 16 pieces of samosas.
Fry Samosas
Add oil to a deep wok or pan. You’ll know the oil is ready when you see small, consistent bubbles forming around a wooden spoon when placed in the oil.
Fry the samosas for a minute on each side, being sure not to overcrowd the pan as this will bring down the temperature of the oil. The samosa should be lightly golden brown, if they go dark too quickly reduce the heat to bring down the temperature of the oil.
Serve samosas fresh with plenty of lime juice.
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