Almost everyone loves Samosas; however, they require some skill to make them from scratch. This recipe will give the samosa taste experience without having to make the pastry from scratch or need to do fiddly pastry folding. I use Shortcrust pastry instead of making the pastry, and together with the samosa filling, they are rolled to create the pinwheels. The filling is inspired by the samosas we eat during the Indian festival of lights - Holi.
Think of these as samosas for beginners. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy!
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Ingredients
- Shortcrust pastry
- Mashed potato
- Ginger
- Cumin seeds
- Amchur powder ( dry mango powder )
- Kala namak
- Turmeric powder
- Asafoetida powder
- Fresh coriander leaves
- Green chilli
- Peas
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Remove the peas from the freezer and leave them to defrost.
To begin, prepare the potatoes for mashed potatoes. Peel the potatoes and cut them in half, and cut each half in half again. Boil the potatoes in a saucepan of water until cooked. They will be ready when you can easily pass a knife through them.
While the potatoes are boiling, prepare your ingredients.
Finely chop the ginger, chillies and coriander. Chop both the leaves and stems of the coriander.
When the potatoes have cooked, drain the saucepan of water and then mash the potatoes. Set aside.
Now heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and asafoetida and cook for about thirty seconds to "bloom" the spices. By doing this, they release their flavours. Be careful not to burn them, though.
After thirty seconds, add the ginger and chillies and fry for about two minutes. Add the turmeric and give the mix a good stir.
Add the mashed potatoes and again give it a good mix to combine. Follow the mashed potatoes with the defrosted peas and the Kala namak and mix again. Cook the contents for about five minutes. Stir the mixture constantly so that nothing gets stuck to the pot. After this, add the amchur powder and mix to combine. That's the filling made. Set it aside to cool down.
Remove the shortcrust pastry from the fridge so it reaches room temperature. Gently unroll the pastry sheets. Leave the butter paper in place, as this will help you transfer the pinwheel log to the fridge for chilling. Spoon the cooled down filling mix onto the pastry sheet and spread out evenly. Leave half a centimetre gap on the sides and a one-centimetre gap at the top edge - see the photograph below.
Mix a pinch of turmeric with the plant-based milk
Brush the edges of the pastry with it.
Now gently roll the pastry sheet from the bottom to the top. Keep it as tight as possible. Brush the pastry edge with the plant-based milk/turmeric mix and seal the log entirely when you reach the top. Press the pastry at this edge to make sure the seal is complete.
Brush the entire log with the plant-based milk/turmeric mix. Now put it in the fridge to chill (about fifteen minutes). Chilling will help when you cut the log into portions to make the pinwheels.
Remove the log from the fridge and then cut it into portions, one inch in width. Use a sharp knife and a sawing motion, don't press down or else it will ruin the shape of the pinwheels.
Place the pinwheels onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and place them back in the fridge while the oven warms up.
Heat the oven to 190ºC (fan assisted oven).
Remove the pinwheels from the fridge, place them in the oven, and bake for 25 - 30 minutes. The pinwheels have cooked when the pastry has turned golden brown. Turn the tray halfway through cooking so that each pinwheel has an even colour.
Once cooked, remove them from the oven and cool down for five minutes, before serving.
Serve hot with a chutney or ketchup.
How To Video
Here is a video guide to making pinwheel samosas.
Substitutions
You can replace the potatoes with sweet potatoes and add different vegetables like carrots if you prefer.
If you don't have Amchur powder (dried mango powder), you can use chat masala. The function of amchur is to give a sour taste without adding further moisture. If you have neither amchur nor chat masala, use lemon or lime juice to balance all the flavours.
Variations
Shortcrust pastry is similar to the made-from-scratch samosa pastry, so I have used it instead of making my own. You can also use puff pastry if that's what you have in your fridge. It will result in a more flaky samosa pinwheel.
Traditionally samosas are made with potatoes and peas; however, you can use vegetables of your choice along with potatoes and peas.
Asafoetida replaces the flavour of onion and garlic. Many people in India do not eat onion and garlic. You can use onions in the samosa and leave the asafoetida out if you want.
Equipment
Digital scales and measuring spoons help to give exact quantities for the recipe. I would highly recommend using them, and if you don't have them, they are well worth the investment.
Usually, I prefer to use a silicone mat for baking as it is reusable. Of course, if you buy a prerolled pastry, they typically come with parchment paper; I use that.
Storage
You can store the pinwheels in an airtight box at room temperature for up to three days.
Unbaked pinwheels can be individually wrapped or kept in an airtight box with parchment paper between layers and frozen for up to three months. If you want to bake from frozen, take them out while the oven is heating up and arrange them on a tray. The cooking time will be a bit longer. Defrost overnight in the fridge before baking is a better option.
Top tip
The shortcrust pastry tends to soften quickly at room temperature; make sure you give it enough time to rest in the fridge before cutting. Treat yourself to a well-deserved cup of tea while you wait.
📖 Recipe
Samosa Pinwheels
Equipment
- Digital scales
Ingredients
- 525 gms Potato
- 125 gms Green peas Frozen
- 15 gms Ginger
- 2 Green chilli
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida
- 2 teaspoon Amchur powder
- 1 teaspoon Kala namak
- 15 gms Fresh coriander leaves
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- 1 tablespoon Plant-based Milk
- 320 gms Pre-rolled shortcrust pastry 1 sheet
Instructions
- Peel and cut the potatoes in half, and then quarters. Transfer to a pot with water and boil till cooked.
- Defrost the peas.
- Meanwhile, finely chop the ginger, chillies and coriander (both leaves and stems)
- Once the potatoes have cooked, drain the water and mash.
- Heat oil in a pan over medium heat and add the cumin seeds and asafoetida. Allow them to bloom (cook in the oil) for 30 seconds.
- Add the ginger and chillies and fry for a minute or two.
- Add the turmeric (reserve a pinch for the plant-based milk wash) and mix.
- Now add the mashed potatoes and mix.
- Add the peas and kala namak and mix to combine. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring continuously to ensure nothing gets stuck to the pot.
- Add the Amchur powder and chopped coriander. Mix to combine.
- Take off the heat and transfer it onto a large plate or tray to cool.
- Remove the shortcrust pastry from the fridge to allow it to come up to room temperature.
- Gently unroll the pastry on the countertop, leaving the butter paper in (it will come in handy when transferring the log into the fridge). Spoon the cooled potato mix onto the pastry and spread it evenly, leaving ½ a cm on the sides and 1 cm on the top end (see photographs)
- Mix turmeric with the plant-based milk and brush the edges of the pastry.
- Gently start rolling from the bottom end towards the other end. Attempt to roll as tight as possible. Once you reach the top end, brush with the plant-based milk/turmeric wash and seal the end. Press pastry to ensure a tight seal.
- Brush the log with the plant-based milk/turmeric wash and transfer to the fridge for about 10 to 15 minutes. When the pastry is firm it is easier to cut it into the pinwheel portions.
- Once chilled, cut the log into one-inch width portions with a sharp knife. Cut using a sawing motion. Pressing down the knife will ruin the shape of the pinwheels. You will have about nine pinwheels.
- Transfer the pinwheels onto a tray lined with parchment paper and return back to the fridge.
- Preheat oven to 190ºC. (fan assisted)
- Remove the pinwheels from the fridge and transfer them into the oven. They have cooked when the pastry is golden. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, turning the tray midway. They have cooked when the pastry is golden.
- Once baked, leave on the counter to cool for five minutes. Serve with a side of coriander and mint chutney or ketchup.
Food Safety
In a professional kitchen, food hygiene and safety is a top priority, and from the very beginning of training, I practised good habits and routines. Of course, it is also very, very important to practice good food hygiene and safety at home. Here are some fundamental practices to adopt in the kitchen.
- Wash your hands regularly while preparing, handling and cooking food
- Wipe down counter tops and high contact points regularly
- If you cook meat and fish, do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat. Use separate chopping boards for meat and fish. Wash your chopping boards immediately after use.
- Thoroughly cook food to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods (more than 2 hours)
- Store food correctly
For more details of food hygiene and safety in the home, visit the UK Government's Food Standards Agency webpage.
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