Baked Chicken Samosas

Samosas are one of my favorite Indian treats. All that spicy, flaky goodness just makes me drool. The thing is - they are usually deep fried. Don't get me wrong, deep frying makes everything taste a billion times better but, unfortunately, it also adds about a billion more calories. 

We decided to lighten things up a tick and bake our samosas instead of deep frying them. We went with phyllo (or filo) pastry to keep that crispy texture and it worked out fantabulously. 

We added chicken to ours but you can make these vegetarian by leaving out the meat. They are delicious either way!

Baked Chicken Samosas

Ingredients

Filling

1 Tbsp oil

1 chicken breast, diced fine

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

2 cups potatoes, cooked, diced small

1/2 cup frozen peas

2 medium carrots, parboiled & diced fine

1 small onion, diced fine

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garam masala

1/4 tsp chili powder

1 1/2 tsp curry 

1/2 tsp coriander seeds

salt & pepper

Pastry

1 box phyllo pastry, thawed

Directions

Prepare filling - In a large frying pan, heat the oil and mustard seed over medium heat until mustard seeds start popping. Add in chicken and cook and stir until chicken is no longer pink.

Add in potatoes, peas, carrots, onion, and garlic. 

Stir in the spices.

Cook and stir until mixture is softened and cooked through, about 5 - 8 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool completely before making the samosas.

Prepare samosas - Preheat oven to 400. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, set aside.

Take thawed phyllo pastry and place on work surface. You will be working with 1 sheet at a time so keep the remaining sheets covered with a damp cloth. 

Take a sheet of pastry and lightly spray half with cooking spray (or brush with a bit of melted butter).

Fold sheet in half so that the half sprayed with the cooking spray is on the inside.

Rotate strip so the seam is now at the top. 

Cut sheet into 3 equal strips.

Place a generous spoonful near the top of each strip, leaving a small border from the edge without filling. (See photo below)

Brush the edges of the strips with butter (or cooking spray).

Fold the corner of the strip, down, over the filling to form a triangle, pressing the edges firmly together. (See photo below)

Now, fold the bottom of the strip up, over the triangle, and then flip the whole thing over. (See photo below)

Finally, brush the remaining bit of pastry with a bit of butter (or cooking spray) and fold it over the samosa to form a triangle. Firmly press all edges to make sure they are sealed.

Place on cookie sheet and cover with a clean towel. 

Repeat with remaining phyllo pastry and filling until you run out. (I get between 24 - 30 when I do it)

Place tray of samosas in preheated oven. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Gently flip the samosas over and continue to cook for another 10 - 15 minutes - until well browned and crispy.

Serve hot with your favorite chutney or dipping sauce. 

So much tastiness...

These are best the day they are made. They tend to get quite soggy in the fridge. You could probably freeze them as soon as they are cooked and cooled to room temp and then thaw them in the oven for a bit when you go to serve them. (I've never done this but I don't see why it wouldn't work.)

Be patient when working with the phyllo pastry. It is very delicate and rips very easily. I was having little fits as mine kept ripping but after the first couple I got the hang of it and things went more smoothly. 

Be sure to stop by these fab sites for some fun and tasty links - Dizzy Busy & Hungry, Adorned From Above, Easy Life,