Where it comes from
Indian samosa adapted to Afghan-Persian palate — black-eyed lentils replace the South Asian pea filling, and Herati black pepper takes over from garam masala.
On the plate
Crackling shell breaks into soft spiced lentil filling; the heat of black pepper, sweetness of fried onion, all coated in fragrant frying oil.
How it works
Boiling lentils to mashed consistency before stuffing means the filling holds together when fried; thin dough crisps fast at 180 °C.
Variations
Kabuli sambosa uses ground meat; vegetarian Herati version stays popular for Ramadan.
On the Palate
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
4 steps · Show ↓50 min active · 30 min waiting
How it's made
4 steps · Show ↓- 130 min
Cook 200 g lentils 25 min until very soft; mash; mix with 1 chopped fried onion + 1 boiled mashed potato + 1 tbsp black pepper + cumin + salt.
- 235 min
Make dough: 400 g flour + 250 ml water + 5 g salt + 30 ml oil; knead, rest 30 min.
- 310 min
Roll dough thin; cut into 12 cm circles; cut each into half-moons.
- 46 min
Fold half-moons into triangles, fill, seal edges with water; deep-fry in 180 °C oil 4 min until golden.
