Kenyan samosas are fun to make and freeze very well. They’re so versatile, you can use whatever ground meat and vegetables you happen to have. Just make sure to make extra for snacking on later.
We have some dear friends who moved here about three years ago from Kenya. To say that their friendship has enriched our lives would be an understatement. We have learned so much from them about contentment, needs vs wants, education and a whole host of other things.
I’ve also learned how to make some pretty yummy food, like lentils and rice and rainbow salad. Last week I learned how to make Kenyan samosa. Samosa is a fried savory pie that is made in many Middle Eastern and African countries. It can be filled with just veggies or a veggie and meat combination.
Like in many cultures there isn’t an “official” recipe that everyone follows because people just use what they have. My friend had only had samosa a few times as a young child. Then another local Kenyan friend showed her how to make them, and she showed me.
One thing I love about this recipe is that samosa freezes well so I made a bunch and put them in the freezer for my kids for snacks. You can also freeze them before frying.
How to make Kenyan Samosas
You can make your own pastry but my Kenyan friend (and her friend) use these uncooked tortillas. So that’s what I used. I realize that makes them not completely authentic. But if that’s what they use now that they’re living in the States, who am I to question it?
Cut the tortillas in half and then make them into a funnel. You’ll make a paste with flour and water to seal all the edges.
Brown the meat and then add chopped onions, garlic, shredded cabbage, grated carrots and whatever other vegetables you want to the mixture.
Fill the tortilla funnels and seal the edges with the flour and water glue. Deep fry until golden brown. My friend used an electric fryer but I just use my deep cast iron skillet.
Kenyan Samosas Recipe
Kenyan samosas are fun to make and freeze well. My Kenyan friends showed me an easy way to make them by using raw tortillas instead of making pastry. It's such a time saver.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground meat (my friend used turkey, I used beef; they were both good)
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 grated carrot
- 1 cup finely chopped cabbage
- 1/2 finely chopped onion
- 5 cloves garlic (we love garlic, feel free to use less)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 cup of flour and water - mixed
- Oil for frying (my friend used canola, I used coconut)
- Uncooked tortillas or (make your own pastry)
Instructions
- Cut tortillas in half and set aside.
- Brown meat.
- Chop all vegetables and add to meat.
- Add salt and pepper.
- Fold tortillas into a triangle so that they make a pocket.
- Use the flour and water mixture as a paste to seal the seams.
- Put a heaping teaspoon of meat in the pocket.
- Again, use the flour and water mixture to seal the top seam and fold it over. At first I used quite a bit of the flour and water but as I got more comfortable with sealing the seams I didn't need as much.
- After you have a few made, heat the oil to fry them.
- Fry them until the pastry is brown and then flip.
- Remove from pan when both sides are brown and put them on a plate with a towel to absorb the oil or on a rack with a platter underneath.
- Makes about 20
Notes
Samosas are one of those cultural recipes where it's really more of a process than an exact recipe. For the most part, people just use what they have to fill it. So feel free to experiment.
These look so amazingly good. I wonder if you could make them ahead of time but don’t fry? Just fill and freeze for later, then thaw and fry? Maybe the tortilla would dry out… What do you think?
Pinning & sharing.
You can, Kathie. I haven’t tried it but my friend said they did. I’ll edit the post to mention that. Thanks!
Oh yes you can . I used to do it a lot back in Africa. I’ve moved to Cyprus, Paphos and I can’t find uncooked tortilla wraps, totally sucks. I can make the pastry but it’s just so much work.
That’s what my friend said, so I just took her word for it.
This don’t seem African to me sound like empanadas where you get tortillas from in Africa 🤦🏾♀️🤦🏾♀️🤦🏾♀️ This why white folk should leave ethnic food alone
Hi Tanya, First let me say that I’m sorry if my post is offensive to you. That is certainly not my intent. I did ask my Kenyan friend who taught me how to make them to read the post before I shared it and she saw nothing wrong with it. She was born in Kenyan and lived there until she was in her thirties, I trust her judgement on this.
About the tortillas….I should have been clearer in my post that in Kenya they do make their own dough. It’s labor intensive but there aren’t any pre-made, uncooked tortillas (or flatbread) sold there. When coming to this country my friend (and her friend) started using these tortillas because making the dough is labor intensive. I do state that in the article. I assumed people would understand that this isn’t exactly how they would make them in Kenya – obviously, they don’t sell these tortillas in Kenya. I even link to a dough recipe if people want to make their dough.
Again, my intent was NOT to offend anyone but to share a recipe that our family really enjoy.
Don’t pay her anymind. My boyfriend is Kenyan. I add peas and potatoes and he liked it. I myself am not Kenyan but I try to cook what he likes until his momma shows me how to make the dough 😂😂😂
Thank you! Peas and potatoes sound like a wonderful addition, thanks for sharing.
Try adding peas and pilau seasoning to them next time. My husband is Kenyan said it’s better than his momma use to make. And I use egg roll wrappers instead of tortilla
Hi Amy, thanks for the tip. I will certainly try peas next time I have them in the garden and I’ll look for the pilau seasoning. It sounds really tasty!
I’ve had these in both Kenya and Tanzania. They’re definitely African. They’re probably not so common in villages for every day. I’ve had them in hotel restaurants. They’re amazing!
Hi Tadie, could you use bought raw filo pastry instead?
Oh, thank you. I’ve never made these and my friends buy them frozen and reheat in the oven. I am so going to make these with ground lamb filling and homemade pastry. Fun!
oh, Lamb sounds good. This fall I want to try some venison ones, too. When you get that homemade pastry worked out, come back and share it with the rest of us. I know homemade will be so much better (and better for us) but right now, store bought dough was the best I could do.
Goodness these look yummy!
We’re having them again tonight and no one is complaining. You and your girls should make some for the freezer, it would really come in handy during the school year.
Oh can’t wait to try this recipe, I’m always looking for and trying new recipes, thank you!
You’re welcome, Tammy. I hope you like them.
Wow, these sound fantastic! Great recipe! I do appreciate you sharing with Home and Garden Thursday,
Kathy
Wow, these look tasty! I just got back from Kenya 2 weeks ago, and we had samosas almost everyday. They were great. I’m excited to try this recipe!
You say “add spices”, but you do not list any spices in the list of ingredients!
It’s just the salt and pepper. It should have read “add salt and pepper” not “add spices and salt and pepper”. I’ve fixed now. Thanks for catching that!
I tried Samosas on my mission trip to Kenya back in 2004? LONG time ago…lol. I can’t wait to try this recipe! I left quite a chunk of my heart there…hope these take me back for a just a bit until I can someday return in person. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Oh, I hope you like them. I’m sure they will taste a bit different since it’s really more of a process than a recipe. I do hope you get to go back some day….and we hope to go one day, also.
oh goodness, I just clicked over to check out your site…yum!!! I wish I lived in Boerne.
I made these and they were awesome! They will satisfy my craving for samosas till I get to go back to Kenya again, in Jan. 2017 . . . hopefully 🙂
I’m so glad you liked them! I’m even more happy you’re going to get to go back to Kenya. I’ll be praying that everything works out!
It’s midnight, had to make them, yummy!
Hi, Dolores, hope you also tried kenyan mandazis and chapati.
Can i also use cooked Tortilas?
Hi Rose, I don’t know the answer to that because I’ve never tried using cooked tortillas. Traditionally samosa is made using a dough similar to pie crust but without the shortening, something that is rolled very thin. You could certainly try using cooked tortillas and the let us know how it goes.
These are wonderful! If I freeze for later use, what is the best way to reheat them for best taste?
I’m so glad you like them! Normally we just microwave them for snacks, however if I’m serving them for dinner I’ll thaw them and then heat them in the oven to crisp them up.
What grocery store and where in the store did you find uncooked tortillas? I have never seen them but I haven’t been looking for them. I am first generation Kenyan American. We used to use egg roll wrappers but now most people use tortillas because its just a little thicker. My cousin uses cooked ones and it works fine but I feel like uncooked would be better. Lamb is traditionally used in the meat version in Kenya. potatoes and peas in the veggie. Somalis use lentils and that is now popular in Kenya too. My favorite is the lamb. I am making them today. Hope to find uncooked tortillas in the grocery store.
Alyssa, thanks so much for chiming in! I’ve found them at our local grocery store, H.E.B., and at Walmart. In both stores they were with the regular tortillas but on a bottom shelf. I’ve never had lamb but maybe one day will be able to try it. Let me know if you’re able to find the tortillas and how they turned out.
Is there any spice you add besides salt and pepper my neighbors taught me to make it with chicken builon so I’m curios
Thank you so very much Angi, for sharing. I will definitely look for the uncooked tortillas and try some myself. Will give you a feedback. Cheers!
Hope you enjoy them!
This recipe reminds me of the Samosas we had (almost every day for a month) when my family visited the Seychelles when I was 12 years old! I have been searching for a similar version for almost 30 years now, since they are just not quite the same as the Indian version.
So, first of all, thank you so much for posting this!! Secondly, regarding the flour/water paste, do you mean that you use 1/2 of flour with just enough water to make a paste? Or do you use 1/2 cup of each?
Hi Lisa, just add enough water to make a paste. I’ll make that more clear in the direction. I hope you enjoy them!
Do you have a homemade dipping sauce?
Hi Debbie, our family isn’t big on dipping sauces so we just eat our samosas plain.
Hi Angi can I also use filo pastry ? I am going to make half with tortilla and half with filo . I was brought up in Nyasaland (Malawi) and I’m sure they were made with filo – delicious!
Hi Mike, I’m sure you could but I’ve not used them. In Kenya they don’t use tortillas either they make their own pastry I bet they do the same in Malawi and their pastry might be more like filo. If you try it let me know how it turns out.
For those who, like me, were unable to find the uncooked tortilla and too lazy to make from scratch, I used the Empanada Pastry disks from Goya. They should be easy to find. The empanada “disks” come in two sizes. Hope this helps someone, find out how great this recipe is. I really enjoyed the first batch and have gone on to adding all kinds of different ingredients since then.
Thanks so very much for the tip, Cindy! I bet it will help someone and appreciate you taking the time to share. I’m glad you enjoy the samosas and are making them your own by adding different ingredients.
Wow, do these look good. I have never seen uncooked tortillas before, so I would need to make my own pastry, but I will definitely be giving these a try.
Hi Sarah, I hope you enjoy them! Sometimes uncooked tortilla are kept in the refrigerator section. I’m sure homemade pastry would be even better though!
When we went to Kenya many years ago our friend insisted on us trying these street food pastries called Samosas, we were game and found two ladies making them right on the sidewalk. We bought 3, then 3 more, it was on then! Any time we saw ladies making them we tried them! Those ladies used wonton wrappers because I watched and asked., I just forgot the names of the seasonings they used. They served them with a slice of lime. Yum.
What a great experience. I bet they are tasty with lime, thanks sharing!
Thank you so much for the receive. I’m anxious to try it because my fella and I had beef & potato Samosas for the first time at an African Festival. So good. When reheated at home the 2nd day the aroma is even more delicious. I swear there is some cinnamon or other sweet seasoning included. What do you recommend?
Hi, yes, there certainly might be some cinnamon in the samosa you had. I’ve seen recipes that include a little bit of cinnamon or even cardamon. I would suggesting trying a small amount and seeing how you like it.
My family lived in Somalia years ago. We love samosas and make them every year for Christmas. (Ramadan was during Christmas when we were in Somalia). We have always used egg roll wraps. I’m flung to have to look for that pilau seasoning. There’s a Somali guy in the san Diego area that sells samosas in the outdoor market. We bought lentil, potatoes, spinach, pineapple cream cheese, beef, and chicken. My favorites were the pineapple cream cheese and the potato ones.
Thanks for sharing, Louise! I love hearing how other people eat. Pineapple cream cheese samosas sound fantastic! I’ll have to try my hand at making some.
In India and South Asia, you will find different variants of samosa. In India, Pakistan, Nepal and neighbouring countries, we make it using potato stuffing. You should check it out. Making samosa with meat is what came to our countries from Arabs.
Oh, I’ll have to check that out. We love potatoes…lol. Thanks so much for sharing!
I cook this all the time. Very, very good.
Thanks for sharing, Michele!!
I recently returned from Kenya and my daughter in law’s family make these. They are one of my favorite. I did also try at the airport cafe and you can buy two Jumo ones filled with ground meat and green onion for 3500 ksh and they are amazing! Those were my favorite! I did try and make and my dough fell apart. It seems I added too much of something. I don’t think cooking something from any other part of the world has anything to do with what race you are, I think it’s more important of what taste you like. I did wander about using tortillas but they have more of an egg roll texture and taste. Also the flour in Africa is different than what we have as are most other products we purchase in America. Most sugary items are using unrefined and not over processed goods. It’s healthier also.
The ones my mother in law made where stuffed with some type of pea. This is a very tasty food! I will continue to make until I perfect my own ! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Carmen. Food should be a uniting thing and I’m so thankful for those who share their food with us. It’s hard when people move to other countries and can’t find the same type of products they used in their homeland. I love that you’re going to continue trying to find the perfect version for you!
I made these. I added 2 teaspoons of medium hot curry powder to the filling mixture while browning meat. They were delicious. Thank you.
I’m so very glad!
Can these be baked instead of fried and if so, time and temp suggestion, please.
I’ve never baked them, so I can’t give you a time and temperature.
Is it flour or corn tortilla?
It’s a flour tortillas that is sold in the refrigerator section as it’s uncooked.
Oy! Haters gonna hate love! These are perfect. My sister lives in Kenya, and I kid you not, nearly every day we went to “Java House” for coffee and Samosas. (and oh my gosh their butter cookies!) These are very good. And Yes! You must serve with lime to be the Kenyan version! It’s all about the seasoning whether indian or Kenyan hot sauce if latino! And homemade dough of course is always preferable, but who has time! Tortillas, phyllo, eggroll wrappers, pie crust, or best… empanada wrappers are closest if you can get.
I’ve made them and they were so easy and great! I would definitely recommend!