This delicious recipe for Keema Samosa is the perfect handheld snack. Filled with a bright, spicy and smoky meat filling and fried to crispy golden perfection, you will love this tasty and savory appetizer.
Why you will love this recipe
Keema means "mince," and in this case refers to the minced mutton (lamb) or beef filling. In my humble opinion, my smoky Keema filling makes the best samosa. Who doesn't love a crispy, handheld pocket of delicious and dip-able meat?!?
Perfect for parties, get together, game day or Ramadan Iftar, this traditional Indian and Pakistani snack is sure to please the whole crowd. Serve with your favorite green chutney or tomato sauce for a delicious appetizer, no matter what the occasion.
Ingredients & Possible Substitutions
This meat samosa recipe may look daunting, but it is likely that you have many of the spices and ingredients already on hand. Here is everything you need:
A few notes on the ingredients
- Samosa Pattis - while pattis are the traditional wrapper used for samosa, you can easily substitute spring roll wrappers, phyllo dough or even puff pastry depending on what you have on hand.
- Ground Meat - I personally prefer mutton/lamb or beef for this recipe, but if you are avoiding red meat, ground chicken or turkey can be used instead.
- Ginger Garlic Paste - while I love keeping this on hand as a great time saver, you can opt to use minced garlic cloves and freshly grated ginger instead.
- Flour Paste - to seal the samosas, you need to make a paste of flour and water. All purpose, whole wheat or even gluten free all purpose flour can be used for this purpose. Mix together 4-6 tablespoons of water with 2-3 tablespoons of flour for your samosa sealing paste.
- Spice Powders - to season the keema filling, use ground turmeric, coriander, chili powder and garam masala. Feel free to adjust the spices to your preferred levels.
- Dill - this recipe calls for fresh dill, which I love for it's bright green color and fresh, herbaceous flavor. If necessary, substitute 2 teaspoons of dried dill.
- Lemon Juice - whenever possible, use fresh lemon juice for the best possible flavors.
How to Make Keema Patti Samosa
Step 1 - Make Meat Filling
In a heavy bottom pan, heat oil. Add ¼ cup sliced onion and fry well till light golden brown.
Then, add ground meat, browning it and breaking it up with your spatula.
Now, add ginger garlic paste, all the dry spice powders, and salt. Mix and sauté on high heat for 1 minute. Cover and cook on low heat until just done and all liquid is evaporated.
Take the cooked meat mixture off the heat and immediately add chopped cilantro, dill leaves, scallion, green chili, remaining sliced onion, lemon juice to hot meat mixture and mix well.
Now, place a small steel bowl in the center of the mixture, and put the heated charcoal into the bowl.
Pour 1 teaspoon ghee over the heated charcoal to create smoke, and immediately cover with the tight-fitting lid to allow the smoke to penetrate into the meat. Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes.
After 15 minutes, discard the coal. The meat mixture is now ready for filling the samosas.
Step 2 - Fold Keema Samosa
Take one patti and make a cone by wrapping one corner around as illustrated below.
TIP: Be sure to keep stack of pattis covered with plastic wrap or a damp towel while you work. They will become dry and brittle if exposed to air for too long.
Add a spoonful of mixture to the cone.
TIP: Do not overfill the cone with the mixture as it may cause the patti to tear or overflow.
Wrap the sides to form a triangle.
Now seal the edges using the prepared flour paste. Wet the exposed edges with the paste, then gently press shut as though you were sealing an envelope.
Repeat the same procedure till all the mixture is used up.
Step 3 - Fry the Samosas
Heat enough oil to fully immerse the samosas in a deep pan or a wok. Once the oil gets hot (~175-190C/350-375F), reduce the heat to medium-high and fry the samosas until crisp and golden brown.
TIP: Oil temperature is very important when frying. When possible, use a frying thermometer to ensure proper temperature. If the oil is too hot, the samosas can burn. If it is too cold, the samosas will take on extra oil and become soggy. Don't have a thermometer? You can approximate oil temperatures with a wooden spoon.
Remove fried samosas to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Serve hot with green chutney or tomato sauce.
Expert Tips & Tricks
- For perfect Keema Samosa, you want the meat filling to remain moist without having any excess liquid. Be sure to remove the meat from heat as soon as the meat is *just cooked* through. If needed, cook on high heat for a minute to dry out any remaining liquid.
- Samosa pattis can become dry and brittle when exposed to air. Keep them covered with a damp towel until you fold them.
- Be sure to fry your samosas on medium heat. Oil should reach 175-190C or 350-375F for best results. Additionally, do not overcrowd the frying pan when frying samosas. Work in batches to keep the heat constant.
- If you are planning to freeze the uncooked samosa, then make sure all of the onions are cooked. So, after you add the greens and sliced onions, I would recommend sautéing everything together for a minute until onion is just translucent. Raw onion and uncooked greens may give you stale aroma after freezing.
FAQs, Storage, Freezing
While samosa pattis are traditional wrappers for this Indian snack, you can opt to use spring roll wrappers, phyllo dough or puff pastry sheets instead. Be sure to cut them into appropriate sizes after defrosting and keep phyllo and spring roll wrappers under a damp towel while you work.
Absolutely. If you are avoiding deep fried foods, you can opt to bake them instead. Lay them in a single layer on a parchment lined baking tray. Brush with little oil and bake in preheated oven at 180C/355F for 25 minutes or until golden and crisp. Flip once in the middle of baking, and keep an eye on them to ensure they don't burn.
Yes! Preheat air fryer at 180C/355F for 5-7 minutes. Brush the samosa with oil and arrange 4-5 keema samosa in the air fryer basket.
Cook for 20-22 minutes until golden brown flipping once in between.
Uncooked samosas stay well in the fridge for up to 2 days and in the freezer for up to 4 months. Leftover cooked samosas will keep at room temperature for up to 8 hours and in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, use the oven, toaster oven or air fryer.
Absolutely! After making the meat filling and wrapping the patti, you can freeze uncooked samosas for up to 4 months. I recommend you place them on a parchment lined pan in a single layer without touching, then freeze for about two hours. After this, you can place the samosas into a zip top freezer bag, removing as much air as possible, and store.
Need more appetizer inspiration? Here's delicious snack ideas for you
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📖 Recipe
Keema Samosa Recipe (Patti Samosa)
Ingredients
- 16-18 Samosa Patti Sheets
- 2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil + for Deep Frying
- ¾ cup Onion (divided) (sliced)
- 250 grams Ground Meat (Beef or Mutton)
- 2 teaspoon Ginger Garlic Paste
- ½ teaspoon Ground Turmeric
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Powder
- 1 teaspoon Red Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon Lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons Cilantro (chopped)
- 2 tablespoons Dill (chopped)
- 1¼ cup Scallion (Spring Onion) (chopped)
- 1 Green Chili
- 1 Live Charcoal
- 1 tsp Ghee
- Flour Paste ( A mixture of all purpose flour and water)
Instructions
- In a heavy bottom pan, heat oil. Add ¼ cup sliced onion and fry well till light golden brown.
- Add ground meat, ginger garlic paste, all the dry spice powders, and salt. mix and saute on high heat for 1 minute. Cover and cook on low heat until just done. Keep in mind that there should be no water left at all, the mixture should be dry.
- Take the cooked meat mixture off the heat and immediately add chopped cilantro, dill leaves, scallion, green chili, remaining sliced onion, lemon juice to hot meat mixture and mix well.
- Now, place a small steel bowl in the center of the mixture, and put the heated charcoal into the bowl.
- Pour 1 teaspoon ghee over the heated charcoal to create smoke, and immediately cover with the tight-fitting lid to allow the smoke to penetrate into the meat. Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, discard the coal. Meat Mixture is ready for filling the samosas.
Folding the Patti Samosa
- Take one patti, and make a cone, fill the mixture in it, wrap the sides to form a triangle, and seal the edges using the prepared flour paste. (Please refer to the step by step pictures in the post above)
- Do not overfill the cone with the mixture as it may cause the patti to tear or overflow.
- Repeat the same procedure till all the mixture is used up.
- Heat enough oil in a deep pan or a wok. Once the oil gets hot, reduce the heat to medium-high and fry the samosas until crisp and golden brown.
- Do not fry on high heat to avoid burning of the samosas.
- Serve hot with green chutney or simply with tomato sauce.
Notes
- For perfect Keema Patti Samosa, you want the meat filling to remain moist without having any excess liquid. Be sure to remove the meat from heat as soon as the meat is *just cooked* through. If needed, cook on high heat for a minute to dry out any remaining liquid.
- Samosa pattis can become dry and brittle when exposed to air. Keep them covered with a damp towel until you fold them.
- Be sure to fry your samosas on medium heat. Oil should reach 175-190C or 350-375F for best results. Additionally, do not overcrowd the frying pan when frying samosas. Work in batches to keep the heat constant.
- If you are planning to freeze the uncooked samosa, then make sure all of the onions are cooked. So, after you add the greens and sliced onions, I would recommend sautéing everything together for a minute until onion is just translucent. Raw onion and uncooked greens may give you stale aroma after freezing.
Barbara
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I would like to print it to save it in my recipe book, but you don't give us that option. I will try it anyway. HAVE A NICE DAY.
Finla
These look so good. Have not had samosas for a while. I should make them once but i know mine won't look perfect as these one.