Samosa help, please

[Mobile Chicane]

Here's the recipe I've found to spice a filling of 450g lamb and 450g peas. It's from a reasonably 'authentic' cookbook, therefore I was expecting great things:

Large onion, diced
1.5cm piece of ginger root, finely chopped
2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground roasted cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 tbs chopped fresh coriander
1 green Indian finger chilli, finely chopped

Bland bland bland bland bland bland bland.

Where am I going wrong? All spices were fresh / ground to order, so it isn't a question of these being stale.

Is there a secret ingredient I'm missing?

[prand]

There's no salt, simple as that.

I'd season (i.e. add salt) to the original mixture till it tastes right. You could use veg or meat stock cubes to cook the meat with too - that usually has plenty of salt in and a bit more flavour too.

Edit to add - I'd also not put the fresh coriander till right at the end of the cooking process (stirred in just before you are wrapping up the meat mixture in the pastry). I find the fresh flavour is cooked away which is a bit of a waste, when you know what it tastes like "raw".

Edited by prand on Monday 29th July 17:24

[Mobile Chicane]

Sorry I missed out the salt. It did have salt - 1 tsp.

[jazzybee]

I don't cook myself, but looking at that, with around a kilo of meat, onion and peas, 1tsp of salt and 1 tsp of garam masala looks like very little. Never mind a single chilli.

[calibrax]

jazzybee said:

I don't cook myself, but looking at that, with around a kilo of meat, onion and peas, 1tsp of salt and 1 tsp of garam masala looks like very little. Never mind a single chilli.

I agree. I would double all the quantities except the lamb and peas.

[jas xjr]

do you put any salt in the pastry ? I also put a little ground cumin in the pastry too . also make your dipping sauce more spicy

more chilli , fresh ones can vary so much , we use chilli flakes for heat and green chilli for taste . I think you , like me , grow green chilli so you would have more control over that , more consistency.

just thought , are you currying the mince before adding ?

Edited by jas xjr on Monday 29th July 18:55

Edited by jas xjr on Monday 29th July 19:02

[Mobile Chicane]

I am currying the mince with the spices, and adding the coriander right at the end rather than stewing it. I could also quite happily double the quantities of chilli and spices.

It just seems as though 'something' from the flavour profile is missing, compared with home-made (and even factory made) samosas. Stock cubes I sort of get, however I'm sure it's something else.

Ajwain? Hing? Methi leaves?

[jas xjr]

Mobile Chicane said:

I am currying the mince with the spices, and adding the coriander right at the end rather than stewing it. I could also quite happily double the quantities of chilli and spices.

It just seems as though 'something' from the flavour profile is missing, compared with home-made (and even factory made) samosas. Stock cubes I sort of get, however I'm sure it's something else.

Ajwain? Hing? Methi leaves?

we have had this issue at home , albeit with veggie ones . for us it was the lack of jeera in the pastry . your ingredients are more fresh than bought ones so it is probably a question of some fine tuning

[Wadeski]

I would try a batch where you switch the Tsp to Tb at least. Go heavy on the cumin and chilli for sure!

Maybe some "tang" from dried green mango powder or tamarind?

[B17NNS]

The hungry sailors did samosas today on TV.

Might be on catchup or something.

Edit. Yes it is.

https://www.itv.com/itvplayer/the-hungry-sailors/s...

Edited by B17NNS on Monday 29th July 22:55

[giblet]

Missing tomatoes for a start. Mamma Giblet tends to make the filling the same way as a traditional keema curry, but with more peas and smaller piece of potatoes. I'll speak to her in the morning and see what she thinks is missing from your recipe above.

[Mobile Chicane]

Thanks chaps. More spice it is. Would never have thought to use ground coriander in addition to the fresh.

[jas xjr]

Mobile Chicane said:

Thanks chaps. More spice it is. Would never have thought to use ground coriander in addition to the fresh.

just to confuse you even more , ground coriander is the main ingredient of garam masala

keep experimenting , sometimes your tastebuds are having an off day and what you have cooked tastes fine to everybody else . I am on some strong medication and even beer lacks taste

[BarnFind]

Black Mustard Seed ?

[prand]

jas xjr said:

just to confuse you even more , ground coriander is the main ingredient of garam masala

keep experimenting , sometimes your tastebuds are having an off day and what you have cooked tastes fine to everybody else . I am on some strong medication and even beer lacks taste

I was just going to say that Garam Masala would have ground coriander, cumin, clove, nutmeg, and other nice spices already in. So don't go too mad, just increase the overall spice list a bit and taste as you go to see. I keep banging on about salt but make sure you add enough to taste too.

Also, I'm not quite sure how you measure a teaspoon but a proper measuring spoon is 5gms or so, a normal metal spoon may be measuring much less. This might explain why you're under-spicing and under-seasoning.

Also - I find the "real" flavour of a curry or chilli needs to be tasted once I have left it on the side for a bit so the flavours have a chance to settle, and I've gone away from the kitchen for a while and get on with something else to clear my nose and tastebuds. Overnight is often the best.

[Engineer1]

It could be a less potent Garam Masala, I've made curries using different brands of garam masala and some are fiercely hot others are fairly mild or even bland. The other thing to consider are the samosas meant to be served with a spicy dipping sauce? the ones that get brought into work here are mildly spicy but have a firey hot sauce to dip/ drizzle over them.

[Mobile Chicane]

Thanks all. More spice required

In pursuit of more samosa R&D, I've trawled the ethnic freezer section in Asda. I wasn't expecting much, but holy moly, the 'Sharam' brand lamb samosas are delicious.

Coriander would seem to be the key, also red chilli, a bit of potato, and don't grind the spices too finely. There's a different flavour burst in every bite - I'll be nicking that.

[jas xjr]

we sometimes put in pomegranate seeds in them too . not a fan but other people like them

[Mobile Chicane]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Woof! That's the ticket!

I suspect the resulting keema won't make it as far as a samosa filling.

Layers of flavour from the cinnamon and cardamom pods. I also bunged in some whole black peppercorns into the oil, plus a can of tomatoes.

[Mr Roper]

Willing test subject, ready and waiting.

Just saying.