This is definitely the best Indian punjabi samosa you’ll every make at home! I’m arming you with step by step directions and a recipe video for you to follow. So you can learn how to make the samosa dough, the aloo stuffing and how to easily wrap them.
I don’t make tall claims easily but I think I’ve been looking for the best Indian punjabi samosa recipe all my life. Because I’m a samosa lover. More like an obsessive samosa lover with an irresistible need to have samosas every week because I think they are the most epic Indian snack ever invented!
I mean who can resist flaky samosa pastry, stuffed with a spicy, mouthwatering aloo (potato) filling thats deep fried till golden? Not this girl!
And I think these homemade punjabi samosas can give any store bought samosa a run for its money. In fact, some store bought samosas get it so wrong that it’s unbelievable – the stuffing is not appetizing enough, or the pastry is not fried properly. Because making good samosas is an art and needs time and patience, so I don’t have any shortcuts today. Because the best Indian punjabi samosas don’t deserve them. They deserve to be made with love and care and patience so that when you take that first bite you are transported back to your favorite childhood mithai shop.
If you’ve never attempted samosas at home before, I think it’s time we all start. And if I can do it, so can you. Because I’m the least arty person I’ve ever met. Origami was never my thing and wrapping samosas is a bit like that. It takes a few tries, but once you get it, you’ll be wrapping them like a boss. I have a step by step video recipe if you scroll down, that’s going to make things even easier.
Because I want this to become the definitive guide to making homemade punjabi samosas, let’s just answer some questions that you may have.
Which flour can you use to make samosa?
Samosa is traditionally made with all purpose flour or maida. But you can swap in some of the maida for whole wheat flour (atta). All purpose flour provides flakier results, and whole wheat flour samosas will result in a denser samosa pastry, but they still be very tasty!
Can the samosa filling be made without onion and garlic?
The samosa filling recipe that I have does not have any onions, but I do love adding garlic. However, if you don’t like garlic or don’t eat it, feel free to skip it and replace it with a pinch of asafoetida right in the beginning after you heat the oil.
Can the samosa dough be made in advance?
Yes, and it should be. You will always get better results when you make the samosa dough in advance and keep it covered for 30-40 minutes. This helps form the gluten in the dough and the resting time gives you better control while rolling the dough.
Are these samosas vegetarian or even vegan?
These are the best Indian punjabi samosas and they are vegetarian. Infact these samosas are also naturally vegan like a lot of Indian cooking, so if you are looking for vegan festive options, these will please you!
Can samosas be baked?
Yes, samosas can be baked in general. Though I believe deep frying provides the best results, and when you are enjoying something like samosas, you should stop worrying about it being healthy and just indulge. To bake these, the amount of oil in the dough will need to be increased to give the same flaky results, without making them overtly oily. I’m testing a baked samosa recipe and if I’m happy, I will put it up soon!
Can samosas be made in the air fryer?
Absolutely! My mother has tested these samosas in the air fryer with great results. They will need to be brushed with a light coating of oil before being air-fried but the result is pretty yummy. They may not have the perfect, even golden brown crust but the pastry is cooked through and its quite crispy too, just like a good samosa should be.
Can the best Indian punjabi samosa be made in advance?
Yes, you can easily make these samosas in advance and refrigerate them for about 6-8 hours. Or you can individually freeze them and store them in a ziplock or a freezer friendly container and fry them at a later date. If freezing these, make sure to thaw them at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes before frying.
How long do samosas keep?
I have never been able to keep samosas for more than two days because they always get over before that. In fact I love cold samosa and make them into a samosa sandwich or samosa chaat. You won’t believe how good samosas can taste between two slices of bread slathered with ketchup and coriander chutney.
Whoa! I know thats a lot of questions but those are all the questions I had when I started making samosas. If you have any others, feel free to leave them in a comment and I’ll be happy to keep adding them as we go!
My favorite way to serve samosas is definitely with ketchup, but you can always serve these with coriander chutney or tamarind chutney, or turn them into a samosa chaat with all your favorite toppings.
Big thumbs up from Denver every time I make these which means they are approved by my biggest critic!
The Best Indian Punjabi Samosa Recipe Video (Step by Step)
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The Best Indian Punjabi Samosa
Prep Time: 20 minutes- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 15 Samosas 1x
Category: Appetizer
Cuisine: Indian
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This is definitely the best Indian punjabi samosa you’ll every make at home! I’m arming you with step by step directions and a recipe video for you to follow. So you can learn how to make the samosa dough, the aloo stuffing and how to easily wrap them.
Ingredients
Samosa Dough
- 2 cups Maida
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 cup Water + a few tablespoons extra
Samosa Filling
- 2 tablespoons Oil
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon Saunf (fennel seeds)
- A pinch of Methi Seeds (fenugreek seeds)
- 1 tablespoon Ginger Paste (freshly ground ginger)
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Paste (freshly ground garlic)
- 1 teaspoon chopped Green Chillies (or Jalapeno)
- 2 teaspoons Red Chilli Powder
- 2 tablespoons Coriander Powder
- 3/4 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 tablespoon Raw Mango Powder (Amchoor)
- 1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
- 2 large Potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
- 6–7 Curry Leaves
- Salt to taste
Oil for Frying
Instructions
Samosa Dough: To start making the samosa dough or pastry, mix together flour and salt and add oil. Rub the oil with the flour till it resembles bread crumbs. Start by adding 1/2 cup water and knead it into a firm dough. You may need a few extra teaspoons of water but add as you go. The consistency of the dough should be firm and smooth. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and set aside while you make the filling.
Samosa Filling: Heat oil in a pan. While the oil is heating, crush the coriander seeds, saunf (fennel seeds) and methi (fenugreek seeds) roughly and add it to the pan. Fry the spices till aromatic but be careful not to burn them. Add ginger, garlic and green chilies and stir fry for a minute or two. Add the remaining spices, mashed boiled potatoes and salt. I like to use a potato masher to just mash everything together and then mix it. Add the curry leaves right at the end, give it one more good mix and then set the mixture aside to cool.
Wrapping the samosas:
Take a lime sized bowl of dough, roll it between your palms till smooth and dust it with flour.
Roll it out into a circle which is less than 1 mm thickness and about 6 inches in diameter.
Cut the rolled dough in half. Pick up one half and brush it with a little water along the straight edge of the pastry.
Now take one edge of the straight side, and place it on the other edge of the straight side in such a way that the dough forms into a cone (watch the video for more clarity). Pinch the corner of the cone so that its sealed. Place a tablespoon and a half of the filling in the cone, making sure to fill it only 3/4th of the way. Brush the inside of the unfilled dough with a little water and seal it by pinching the edge together. Repeat till all the dough is used up. Place the samosas on a greased tray making sure they don’t touch each either and cover them with a damp cloth.
Frying the samosas: Heat about 2-3 inches oil in a pan. To test if the oil is hot enough, add a tiny piece of dough to the oil and if it bubbles and floats on the surface, your oil is ready for frying. Add the samosas to the oil making sure not to overcrowd the pan, and reduce the flame to a simmer. Fry the samosas on a low flame till golden brown on either side. Its important to fry them on a low flame, or the pastry would be raw from the inside and golden brown on the outside. Take them out on a plate lined with paper to absorb any extra oil and serve them immediately with ketchup, coriander chutney or tamarind chutney.
I’ve made these on average once a month for the last year since finding the recipe and haven’t even considered giving you feedback until just now! I’m fricking obsessed haha
I’ve adjusted the spices every now and then with ease and surprisingly, subbing Korean red Chili flakes was a total game changer! Something about that warm Chili with the warmth of the garam masala is everything.
I noticed a comment about someone having trouble with the dough – I’ve had times where using a different flour caused some trouble – it’s just about trusting yourself and not being afraid to sprinkle more even if it goes outside of the recipe.
Once I got that perfect dough and rolled it out nice and thin, everything changed hehe.
Anyway, thanks so much for your recipe – looking forward to seeing if you’ve figured out a baked alternative that comes anywhere near to matching this (my roomie loves the samosas but not how much of our oil it takes up ahaha)
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You made my day Bri!! And thanks for talking about how you’ve played around with the recipe – most people don’t do that enough. I will work on a baked alternative soon. The thing with samosas is, they are just so awesome as is haha that I haven’t had the motivation so far. But I will work on it 🙂 I hope you’ll keep visiting the site and trying out some of the other recipes!
This samosa filing is exactly what it should be. Never tasted any better! So much so that I use this filling for any potato stuffed fried foods I make. Thank you!!!
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Thanks Sminu!
I really loved how you explained how to make samosas step by step. I tried the recipe and my kids loved it. It tasted a bit different than the samosas I get her in Little India (Millwoods, Edmonton, AB) so I’ll play around with the spices.
Thanks again!
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Thanks so much Brenda. India has a gazillion samosa recipes and each recipe can taste slightly different.
Hi we love Indian food and am craving for samosas but my little girl is allergic to potato what can be a substitute instead. Thanks
Hey Salma, you can try using raw bananas (they can boiled just like potatoes) or arbi (colocasia), or even do a mixed vegetable filling. I hope some of these options will appeal to you.
Hi! Is coriander power just ground coriander seeds or it’s the dried leaves that are ground?
Hey Kawthar, coriander powder is just ground coriander seeds.
Do you use fresh Curry leaves or dried?
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Hey Brandi – I use fresh curry leaves because they are easily available here but you can use dried also
I realized that there are no peas on your recipe? Why?
It’s just a personal choice. But you can throw in some blanched peas if you like.
I am curious how many this recipe makes? Gleaning from the recipe it makes 2. Is that correct?
This makes 15 samosas which is actually mentioned in the recipe box.
How long should I knead the dough?
About 3-4 minutes – till the dough feels smooth to touch.
Hi, did you use plain flour ?
Yes, all purpose flour or maida
Hi, is it possible to make the dough a couple of days ahead of time and leave in the fridge covered?
Thanks
Hey Shola, I won’t recommend keeping the dough in the fridge for longer than a day. What you can do is form the samosas, freeze them and then deep fry them when you are ready to cook them.
This dough recipe didn’t work at all. I used normal flour, but I can’t see that this was the problem. After 50ml each time it was getting wet and sticky so I had used enough water. There was 68ml left, more than half. The dough was pretty elastic and didn’t go very thin. When cooked it looked raw but I’m not sure if that’s normal. was also quite to very hard. Very confusing. The test of the dough recipe was exactly the same. Not sure if I’m thinking of a different type of food but I thought it was supposed to be thin, oily and crunchy. Either way the dough failed
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I’m really sorry this didn’t turn out well for you. The amount of water may need to be adjusted because flour can be different in different places. Also, you only need to knead the dough for 3-4 minutes. Thirdly, samosas take time to fry – 15 to 20 minutes- for them to cook through. I hope this helps!
Thank you so much!!! Living in a small village in Czech republic I only get my samosas craving fix when I luck out with an Indian restaurant while on a business trip abroad. I have been reluctant to try to do them at home because I was scared of the complexity of all the recipes but this was super easy and super delicious. Thank you again!
So so glad you got your samosa fix at home!
Can I freeze the dough or wrap the samosas then freeze?
Hey Fatima, you can absolutely wrap the samosas and freeze them. Whenever you are ready to fry them, they can go straight from freezer to the pan.
Great recipe. Turned out just like market
Thanks Meeta!
Wooooow… that’s looking so nice, hope this is yammii tooo…
thanks for sharing the recipe here , definitely i would try this at home.
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Very easy recipe..first time I am seeing..thanks a lot..got the confidence to make
Hi.
Is there a substitute for the mango powder? Or can I skip that completely?
I just got back from India and samosa had been my favorite snack during the whole duration of my stay. Actually it was my snack, dinner, breakfast lol.
Anyway, the mango powder is something that I have not bought when I was there and it is not available here.
Thanks!
Hey Mikko – you can skip the mango powder here. It adds a nice tang to the samosas and rounds up the flavour but they will taste amazing even without it. Alternatively, you can look up ‘amchoor’ or ‘raw mango powder’ on Amazon or find it in Indian grocery stores. Its a great addition to Indian recipes. Either way, I hope you try this recipe and like it!
I add dried mango or raisins when I have no Amchoor 😊
very nice recipe
Hey Richa!
Tried the samosas today. They turned out awesome. Followed the recipe exactly and they tasted better than anything I’ve ever had. Perfect for monsoons.
Yay!! So glad you liked these!
I’m not sure what happened- I followed your recipe exactly but the outer layer wasn’t quite right. I did measure all the ingredients out for flour, salt, and oil and water but It felt too dry, and slightly chewy. The filling was perfect- though I made with just a little extra green chili and chaat masala. Any suggestions what went wrong with the outer layer?
Hey Lili, this can happen if the outer layer is not cooked properly. The thing with samosas is that they have to cook long and slow so that the dough is cooked well from inside. If its uncooked, it can be dry and chewy. I’m sorry this didn’t turn out well. I hope you’ll try making them again.
By the way thank you for sharing the recipe i will must try .
Punjabi samosa hot or warm with imli chutney or tomato sauce. in north india, they also serve punjabi chole with samosa. its called as samosa chana chaat. the combo of samosa with masala chai is irresistible. You must try Samosa with cold curd.
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It looks Yummy.
Thanks for sharing.
So good and a fine recipe where all eat it and especially a Punjabi samosa need to say that more than in the writing part I understood in the video
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Thank you!
This recipe is perfect! I definitely need that step by step video to help with wrapping!
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Thanks Ashley!
This recipe was my first successful samosa experience. The dough was perfect and the instructions were easy to follow. The samosas, of course, were FANTASTIC. I served them with my homemade apple chutney. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
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Yay! Glad you liked it Katie! Samosas can be so incredible when homemade
Tried this recipe yesterday for my sons potluck. Turned out very well. To give extra flavor to the filling I added 1/4 tsp of chaat masala. Thanks for this amazing recipe!
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Thanks Sameena – so glad you liked it!
I will definitely try these! You video is great too. Love them. Can I use dip with saffron? I tried restaurant/bought ) and it had some lovely tangy taste to it.
Thanks Pat! Let me know if you like these. And sure you can create a dip with saffron – it would taste amazing.
Nice one! the filling of the Punjabi samosa distinguishes it from every other Samosa.
Totally!
I need to try making these right away! They look amazing!
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Thanks Carolyn!
Sounds like so much flavor!
Looks great!!
Since I have never had one, what is the difference between a Punjabi Samosa and other Samosa’s and for that matter the Shingara which is available in Bengal? Is it the stuffing? Use of Chhole? Or what? Nice Blogpost as always
Hey Anindya, I’m not an expert on other varieties of samosas, but these use garlic which is not used in a lot of samosa recipes. For example, the samosas from Delhi will not use things like turmeric and the masala will be slightly brownish in colour.