I'VE HAD SAMOSAS HEAVILY ON MY MIND OF LATE. And while my day job is to test recipes, I'm sad to say that the idea of making samosas from scratch or making Aloo Parantha (potato-stuffed bread) had me severely procrastinating. It felt like work on top of all of my other projects. So, how to start enjoying the process again? Like anything, by breaking it down into more manageable morsels (pun intended). I started by first making the filling - a really good samosa and parantha start with a deeply-flavored filling. Remember, the pastry or dough is relatively bland and a shell to hold and showcase what's inside. What is inside can be prepared well in advance to pull out whenever you want to whip up a batch of your fried fritters or bread. A perfect filling ... er stuffing, can also be used for a holiday meal, think Thanksgiving. What a delicious change of pace to add this recipe to your holiday table as a side! You can refrigerate or freeze this recipe, but remember cold potatoes need to be brought back to room temperature before using for a smoother end product. While this recipe can be used to stuff bread and make paranthas, the traditional Punjabi Aloo Parantha is made without peas - so just eliminate them. Also, the al dente aspect of the peas while important to the mouth feel of a samosa, is less needed in a parantha, so feel free to mash the mixture down with the back of a fork before stuff in dough if you want to use the peas. I would also avoid the fennel seeds if looking to stuff a parantha - I find the taste to be a touch distracting.
More Notes: It was tough for this Punjabi cook to resist, but I refrained from using diced onion after a call to my sis-in-law Alka in Delhi. She recommends keeping the onion out if you want the mixture to last longer. She says when making stuffed snacks and sabzi that need to travel longer distances - don't add onion. It's an interesting point because I've been frustrated in the past with how quickly my potato mixture goes bad in the fridge. This might be the trick that I'd been missing. If you like the crunch of diced onion, just add it in fresh or slightly cooked before using this filling later. I also boiled the potatoes with the skin first rather than adding them raw and then cooking them in the pan. What I like about this is that boiled potatoes can be stored in the fridge and pulled out as needed. They tend to stay fresher if boiled with the skin and stored that way - just peel right before using. It's also important to mash them before adding the peas - you don't want to mash the mixture after adding the peas because then they will get mushy. You want a little texture from the peas for an ideal samosa. In this version, I added fennel seeds after researching other recipes - something I don't normally do and was hesitant to try, but found that I really liked it. Though as noted above, liked it less so in a parantha. But, that is also likely from me eating hundreds of paranthas in my lifetime without the fennel. I also added dried fenugreek leaves, which give you a nice flavor pop. Last, I eliminated fresh cilantro, which can have the same effect as onion and make the mixture go bad more quickly. My sense is the moisture content in the onion and cilantro is the issue. If planning to make and use this mixture relatively quickly, by all means add either one or both.
Stovetop: Punjabi Potato Mash with Peas and No Onion
3 large Russet potatoes, boiled and peeled
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 heaping teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds optional
1 tablespoon kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves), lightly hand-crushed to release flavor
1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated or ground)
1/2 - 3 fresh Thai or serrano green chiles, stems removed and minced
1 heaping teaspoon coriander powder
1 heaping teaspoon garam masala
1 heaping teaspoon amchur powder or chaat masala
1 teaspoon red chile powder or cayenne
2 teaspoons salt
2/3 cup frozen peas, slightly defrosted
1. Dice the potatoes small. You'll end up with about 5 cups. Any potato will do, but I like using Russet - the ones I used are each about 5-inches long. Though the potatoes will end up mashed, I start with diced pieces so that when I pan-fry them they get a touch of color before mashing. This is a little different from the recipe in my book Indian For Everyone, where I start by mashing them first. You can do it either way. Order is important here. We want the peas to stay whole, so we mash the potatoes before adding the peas.
2. In a large and wide skillet or fry pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. I use a 6-quart All Clad. Once the oil is warm, add the turmeric, cumin, fennel, and kasoori methi. Stir and cook for 40 seconds.
3. Add the ginger and fresh chiles. Stir and cook for 20 second.
4. Add the diced potatoes. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add the powders (coriander, garam masala, amchur, red chile, and salt). Stir and cook for another 2 minutes and then mash the potatoes down until most of them are broken and the mixture is smoother. This does not have to be perfect, but the more you break down the potato here, the less they will break through your pastry or flour later. This mixture will stick to the pan a bit, but not to worry. The moisture from the peas will deglaze the pan in the next step.
5. Turn the heat off, remove the pan from the burner, and add the peas. Stir, scraping the bottom until everything pulls together. Leave the mixture to sit until completely cool - at least 30 minutes, though an hour is better. Again, the moisture from the peas will help deglaze the pan even as it sits. I say this to help you resist the urge to add water - the dryer this mixture, the better your stuffed samosas or parantha will turn out.
Next up ... samosas and parantha. Oh, my! Stay tuned, folks!
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