Best Beef Samosas
These East African style sambousa (samosa) will quickly become a family favourite! Be sure to read all the tips in the blog post above before making them, and check out my reels on how to make the filling and fold the samosas! @threecupsofchai on instagram
Equipment
- food processor this is helpful, but optional. I often grind the beef to my desired texture to make it easier vs doing this by hand in the skillet. Not mandatory.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs extra lean ground beef
- 3 Tbsp garam masala
- 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper more or less, to taste
- 2 tsp salt to taste
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice use fresh not bottled
- 1 medium bunch cilantro finely chopped
- 1/2 cup loosely packed mint leaves finely chopped
- 5 Indian green chilis to taste, these add a wonderful flavour don't leave them out - if anything add less
- 3/4 lb yellow onion very finely chopped *by hand*
- 1/2 - 1 tsp citric acid depending on how tangy you like the filling
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet to medium high heat.
- Add the ground beef and ginger garlic paste.
- Mix well to combine.
- Cook the ground beef mixture, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you go, until the beef is cooked through and the liquid has fully evaporated.Two key points for delicious samosa: finely minced ground beef (you may use a food processor to help with this), and beef that is not too wet, and not browned and crispy. We want ground beef that is moist in that it has not been cooked to dark brown dry, hard pieces - but there is no liquid left in the pan once it's done.Test the beef by pressing a good amount against the side of the skillet. If there is minimal liquid, it's done. If the beef is too fatty, there will be a lot of grease in the skillet. Tilt it to one side, push the beef to the other side, and drain the grease. Heads up: fatty beef does not make good samosas - so this is not the best option. Save the fatty beef for kababs.
- Once the beef has cooled, add in the garam masala, cayenne pepper, salt, cilantro, mint, green chilis, onions and lemon juice. Mix well to combine. Taste for spice, salt and acidity.
- Add more spices, salt, and the citric acid starting with 1/2 tsp as needed.
- The mixture should taste fresh, light, slightly spicy, and tangy/bright.
- Check out my reel on Instagram for how to fold the samoasas.
- Fry as explained in the blog post above, serve with lemon wedges and enjoy!
Notes
The recipe can be adapted to your liking, more cilantro, less cilantro etc. This is how we enjoy them - with fresh lemon wedges to squeeze into the crispy fried samosas to serve.