In July, at a reception, the Obamas served chicken samosas at a White House reception hosted for ambassadors, including Indian envoy Meera Shankar. Samosas are a snack you can buy from street vendors and restaurants all over East Africa. Traditionally, samosas are made only with vegetables, however below is a recipe for chicken and beef samosa fillings. You can find the recipe and instructions for the samosa pastry in the article titled Vegetable Samosa Recipe.
Filling for Chicken Samosas
2 cups chicken, diced
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic crushed
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground tumeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 fresh chili, finely chopped
1 tsp corriander
1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
salt and pepper to taste
juice of half a lemon
1. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan.
2. Add the onion, garlic and spices. Fry until soft.
3. Add the chicken and stir until cooked.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the corriander and lemon juice.
Variations for Chicken Samosas:
* Add in peas, diced potatoes, and/or diced carrots.
* Use garam masala for a more authentic spice mix.
* Use mint instead of corriander.
* For more flavor, roast and grind your own cumin seeds instead of using ground cumin.
Filling for Beef Samosas
1 pound ground beef
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
Chili to taste
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground corriander
2 tsp fresh ginger root
2 Tablespoons chopped mint
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan.
2. Add the onion, garlic and spices. Fry until soft.
3. Add the beef and stir until cooked.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the mint and lemon juice.
Variations for Beef Samosas:
* Add in peas, diced potatoes, and/or diced carrots.
* Use garam masala for a more authentic spice mix.
* Add in some chopped green chile peppers.
* Consider adding in some cinnamon and cardamom into the spice mix.
* Crush a bay leaf into the spice mixture.
* Add some heat to the beef filling with 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
