Have you ever seen the crisp golden colour of a perfect pasty, smelt the warm and invited spice of coriander, and finally sunk your teeth into warm potatoes and peas that feel like you have receiving a nice warm hug. Well, this is what samosas make me feel. For myself, samosas have been apart of my life for as long as I can remember. I distinctly remember that even as a child, my hope on my birthday was to receive gifts of samosas. It is something my family will never let me forget… but could you blame me? Samosas are DELICIOUS!
Samosas have a pastry crust that is soft but also crunchy, as well as a filling that has spice but will also fill up your belly. To add onto the already great flavour of the samosa, samosas come along with flavourful chutneys that add on to the experience.
Samosas originated in Persia and were known as the “sanbosag” which means “‘lovely triangles”, although there are plenty of different ways names that are associated with them. The samosa was originally popular throughout courts in the “Ghaznavid empire”. The pastry was similar to today’s version of it but originally it was filled with meat, nuts, and dried fruit.
The samosa then took a huge journey. The samosa had travelled far and wide over miles and miles and even had to traverse mountains to finally get to Indian where it was transformed. Here it would eventually became the traditional samosa that I and the world know and love. I do have to thank those traders who brought the knowledge and recipe of the samosa with them and shared it with others. Without this the samosa would not have been the Indian delicacy it is today.
Once in India, the samosa had developed into a less regal snack. It was filled with meat, onions, and only flavoured with salt to ensure that workers would be full for hours so that they would be able to last in the fields farming or catering to their livestock. During this time, the samosa continued to journey through various Indian subcontinents where additional changes were made to it to fit the needs of the people and ended with a transformation of the original snack.
Some changes were the additions of spices to increase flavour, more vegetables, and ginger and chillies.
The travels of the Samosa began to stretch to many places and adapt. Here are some examples:
Bangladesh included nuts
Nepal and Pakistan used different meats
Maldives used fish such as tuna
Portuguese influenced the use of potatoes
The samosa was constantly influenced by the people who encountered it. From culture to culture and region to region, there are many different types and preferences for samosas. Even today, the influence of the samosa is felt around the world and people are continuing to adapt and fuse different cultures with this tasty treat. Just to name a few there are now chocolate samosas, butter chicken samosas, pizza, egg, cheese wonton samosas, and sweet cream cheese samosas. All of these have taken the traditional idea and been influenced by world cuisine.
A samosa isn’t just a snack, it demonstrates how people and the world can impact food choices and cultures. For myself I am excited to see just how else the world will evolve the samosa, but for now I will stick to my traditional tasty treat.
Rowlatt, Justin, "The story of India as told by a humble street snack". https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-36548445 [accessed February, 4] Admin143, "The History of Samosas". https://thesamosahouse.com/the-history-of-samosas/ [accessed February, 4] The Food Mag, "History of Samosa and its immigration to India". https://foodmag.ca/food/history-of-samosa-and-its-immigration-to-india/ [accessed February, 4] The Economic Times, "The origin of the samosa: Where does India's most-popular snack come from?". https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/the-origin-of-the-samosa-where-does-indias-most-popular-snack-come-from/dont-get-carried-away/slideshow/59094407.cms [accessed February, 4] Kritika Pushkarna, Kritika. "8 Types Of Samosas You Must Try This Season". https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/food-news/8-types-of-samosas-you-must-try-this-season/photostory/87632312.cms?picid=87632461 [accessed February, 4] Fatima Cooks. "21 Delicious Samosa Filling Ideas (WITH Recipes AND Pictures!)". https://fatimacooks.net/21-delicious-samosa-filling-ideas-with-recipes-and-pictures/#google_vignette [accessed February, 4]
