Samosa

For the Nicaraguan dictator(s), see Somoza

Samosa

Samosa with chutney from Raipur, India
Origin
Alternative name(s)	Samsa, Somsa, Sambosak, Sambusa, Samoosa
Region or state	South Asia, Central Asia, Western Asia, the Horn of Africa and North Africa
Dish details
Main ingredient(s)	maida, potato, onion, spices, green chili, cheese, meat
Variations	Chamuça

A samosa is a stuffed pastry and a popular snack in South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, throughout the Mediterranean (Greece), Southwest Asia, the Horn of Africa and North Africa. It generally consists of a fried or baked triangular, semi-lunar or tetrahedral pastry shell with a savory filling, which may include spiced potatoes, onions, peas, coriander, and lentils, or ground beef or chicken. The size and shape of a samosa as well as the consistency of the pastry used can vary considerably, although it is mostly triangular. Samosas are often served with tamarind chutney or curd.

Name variation

Samosa (English pronunciation: /səˈmoʊsə/) is used in South Asia, Bengali: Shingara,Oriya: Shingada, Punjabi: smosa, Gujarati: sumosa, Malayalam: സമോസ,Marathi: समोसा, Tamil: சமோசா, Hindi: samosa), sambusak (Arabic: سمبوسك‎), samsa (pronounced [ˈsamsə]) or somsa in Turkic Central Asia (Kyrgyz: самса, [sɑmsɑ́]; Kazakh: самса, [sɑmsɑ́], Uzbek: somsa, [sɒmsa]), sambusa among Arabs, Ethiopians, Somalis (Somali: sambuusa) and Tajiks (Tajik: самбӯса), sanbusa among Iranians (Persian: سنبوسه), samuza (Burmese: ဆမူစာ, IPA: [sʰəmùzà]) among Burmese or chamuça in the Lusophone world.

Etymology

The word samosa can be traced to the Persian "sanbosag".^[1] The pastry name in other countries also derives from this root, such as the crescent-shaped sanbusak or sanbusaj in Arab countries, sambosa in Afghanistan, "samosa" in India, "samboosa" in Tajikistan, samsa by Turkic-speaking nations, sambusa in parts of Iran and chamuça in Goa, Mozambique and Portugal.^[1] While they are modernly referred to as sambusak in the Arabic-speaking world, Medieval Arabic recipe books sometimes spell it sambusaj.^[2]

Regional varieties

Different regions which have inherited this food have significantly different ways of preparing it.

Central Asia

Filled and cut samosa ready to be baked in Karakol, Kyrgyzstan.

In Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, samsas are almost always baked and never fried. The dough can be a simple bread dough, or a layered pastry dough. The most common filling for traditional samsa is lamb and onions, but beef, chicken, and cheese varieties are also quite common from street vendors. Samsas with other fillings, such as potato or pumpkin (usually only when in season), can also be found.

In Central Asia, samsas are often sold on the street as a hot snack. Samsas are sold at kiosks where only samsas are made, or alternatively, at kiosks where other fast foods (such as hamburgers) are sold. Many grocers also buy samsas from suppliers and resell them.

South Asia

Samosas being fried at a road-side vendor in India.

Samosas being deep fried, at a shop in Varanasi.

Burmese-style samusa are flat and triangular, and usually smaller than their Indian counterparts.

The North Indian and Pakistani samosa contains a maida flour shell stuffed with a mixture of mashed boiled potato, onion, green peas, spices and green chili. The entire pastry is then deep fried to a golden brown colour, in vegetable oil. It is served hot and is often eaten with fresh Indian/Pakistani chutney, such as Mentha (mint), coriander or tamarind. It can also be prepared as a sweet form, rather than as a savory one. Samosas are often served in chaat, along with the traditional accompaniments of yogurt, chutney, chopped onions and coriander, and chaat masala.

In South India, samosas are slightly different, in that they are folded in a different way, not as stuffed as in the North, more like Portuguese chamuças, with a different style pastry. The filling also differs and typically features a lot of fried onions, peas, carrots, cabbage, curry leaves, green chillies, etc., but completely lack the mashed potato filling of its northern variation. It is mostly eaten without chutney.

In Pakistan, the Faisalabadi samosas are very well known. They are abnormally large, topped with spicy red and white chutney with a side portion of onion salad. The filling is usually mixed vegetable, however the meat version also remains very popular.

They are called samusa in Burmese, and are an extremely popular snack in Burma.

In Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India, a smaller version of the samosa with a thicker pastry crust and mince-meat filling referred to as Lukhmi is consumed, as is another variation with onion fillings.

Horn of Africa

Sambusas pictured in an Ethiopian restaurant in the USA.

Samosas are a staple of local cuisine in the Horn of Africa, particularly in Somalia and Ethiopia, where they are known as sambus. While sambusas can be eaten any time of the year, they are usually reserved for special occasions such as Ramadan, Christmas or Meskel.

Near East

Sambusak in the Near East is often prepared by folding a thin circular piece of dough over the filling, either in half to form a semicircle or at three edges to form a triangular shape. The resulting pastry is shallow fried on both sides or baked.

Traditional fillings are:

• minced meat and onions, sometimes with crushed chickpeas
• spinach with little chopped pieces of onions, spiced with sumac
• chickpeas (garbanzo beans), onions and peppers
• cheese (usually feta or halloumi)

In Israel, sambusak is usually filled with mashed chickpeas.^[3] It is associated with Sephardic Jewish cuisine and considered an Iraqi dish. It can be eaten with hummus as part of the mezza (appetizer spread before a meal).

Lusophone world

Goan chamuças.

In Goa and Portugal, samosas are known as chamuças, usually filled with chicken, beef, pork, or vegetables and generally quite hot. They are an integral part of Goan cuisine and Portuguese cuisine.

Chamuças is also relatively common in several former Portuguese colonies in Africa, such as Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe, Angola and Mozambique.

Anglophone world

Samosas have become popular in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Kenya and in Canada^[4][5] and the United States. They may be called "samboosa" or "sambusac", and in South Africa they are often called "samoosa".^[6] Frozen samosas are increasingly available in grocery stores in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom.

While samosas are traditionally fried, many Westerners prefer to bake them, as this is more convenient and healthier. Variations using phyllo^[7] or flour tortillas^[8] are sometimes used.

History

A street vendor making samosas in Pakistan.

The Samosa has been a popular snack in South Asia for centuries. It is believed that it originated in Central Asia (where they are known as samsa^[9]) prior to the 10th century.^[10] Abolfazl Beyhaqi (995-1077), an Iranian historian has mentioned it in his history, Tarikh-e Beyhaghi.^[11] It was introduced to the Indian subcontinent in the 13th or 14th century by traders from the region.^[1]

Amir Khusro (1253–1325), a scholar and the royal poet of the Delhi Sultanate, wrote in around 1300 that the princes and nobles enjoyed the "samosa prepared from meat, ghee, onion and so on".^[12][13]

Ibn Battuta, the 14th century traveller and explorer, describes a meal at the court of Muhammad bin Tughluq where the samushak or sambusak, a small pie stuffed with minced meat, almonds, pistachio, walnuts and spices, was served before the third course, of pulao.^[13][14]

The Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th century Mughal document, mentions the recipe for 'Qutab', which it says, “the people of Hindustan call sanbúsah”.^[15]

See also

• Dumpling
• Fatayer
• Aloo pie
• Lukhmi
• Bourekas
• Empanada
• Turnover
• Pierogi

References

External links

• The Samosa Diaspora describes similar foods around the world
• The Samosa Connection for a culinary history
• The Ismaili Nutrition Centre Chicken Samosa recipe includes health and nutritional information and a visual guide to folding samosas.