Washington Herbert’s Pea-Beef Samosas Dinner

By Harry {doc} Babad, © Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved.

This is Joan’s (and my) the favorite Indian dish; it is even better than a black pepper curry or Chicken or Lamb Tandoori. This meal consists of three recipes that are listed sequentially:

• Samosas stuffed with fresh peas and spicy ground meat
• Prune-Plum Chutney
• Indian Cucumber Salad

Background

Back in the mid-1960, when I taught chemistry at Denver University, my family because grinds with one my Indian graduate students and family friend. “Washington “Washie” Herbert. Not only did he introduce us to Indian cooking, both in our kitchen, but by inviting us to attend the dinners of the India-Pakistan Society that were held of the University of Colorado’s Boulder campus. [In those days at least in a university setting the difference between India and Pakistan were not reflected in student relations.

When Joan and I got married, understand I had been mentoring Mr. Herbert and he because a welcome friend of our family, he father send Joan a gold Wedding Sari. Tucked into the folds of gold silk, were some photos, and a packet of fresh Indian species. The best, but that’s a difference recipe, was black pepper curry powder in two levels heat. Those days, we could not get online and order what we needed online didn’t exist. …Washie and his friends, students and teachers all, got spices from their families.

Therefore, unless you lived in a community with a large community of folks from the Indian Subcontinent, you were at the tail end of a long telephone chase, talking, often, to salespeople who spoke English as a second language. Yes, there were sources of spices in Bon Appetit, and Gourmet Magazines, … and then you took your chances each time you ordered.

One of the dishes Joan and I fell in love with, and despite the longer than our usual food preparation time, was a meat and fresh peas filled samosa, fired and eaten on the spot. As you’ll notice, the Indian students used ketchup to dip their treats sometimes laced with a bit of curry powder, I read somewhere, a likely an Indian cookbook. I really wanted something ‘more interesting, and chutney came to mind. How I got to create my “Plum-Prune Chutney and its origins remain lost in my fun-filled 60’s academic years … my stages, student to assistant professor. But, I was an information junkie in those days too, the days of only a Xerox machine and file cabinet. After all, we were making recipe sheets to go into holiday newsletters; the chutney recipe survived.

Our first Indian cook book, which we still have was called Cooking the Indian Way by Attia and Sita Pasricha Hosain (Spring Books; A book club edition, 1962).

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Samosas

INGREDIENTS

Filling Ingredients

• 1-½ Lb Lean Ground Beef; browned in a skillet, much of the fat drained off (I use a fine mesh wire colander).
• 1 Medium Onion (Chopped medium fine)
• ⅛ to ½ tsp Ground* Ginger [to taste – I like ¼ tsp, Joan less.)]
• ½ tsp Ground Black Pepper
• 1/8 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• ¼ tsp Ground Cumin
• 1/16 tsp Ground Cloves
• ⅛ – ¼ tsp Salt
• ⅛ tsp Chili Flakes {Optional – To Taste for those like me who like them hotter}
• A bit of water for cooking
• 1 – 16 Oz Package of Frozen Peas

All ingredients added added to the sautéed browned ground beef and the mixture simmered until for about 5 minutes the beef is cooked and the peas are tender.

*Note, the fresher the spices the better and richer the flavor. My Friends from India/Pakistan fresh grind their spices.

Samosa Fritter Shells Ingredients

• 3 cups baking or regular flour
• 1 stick margarine or salted butter
• 1 cup water
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 egg white mixed with a little water (pastry shell glue)

DIRECTIONS

1. Blend the flour and the margarine with a pastry blender till the mixture is mealy.  Add the water and the salt and knead the mixture well, until the dough is smooth.
2. Pinch off golf ball size pieces of the dough and roll them out on a well floured board until you have a circle of dough about 1/8 inch thick.  There are a number of ways to fold samosas, ranging from half circle pouches to multi-layered triangles. For this article I’ll use easier pouch method, it’s the one Joan first
3. Cut the circle in half and seal (using egg white mixture) the straight edges together (over-lapping) to make a “cup” for the filling.
4. Fill with the meat and vegetable mixture.  Seal the upper edges together by pinching closed (egg white mixture)
5. Carefully deep fat fry <warning> the Samosas, a few at a time, until they are golden brown.
6. Serve them with catsup {Yes I know! really catsup} and Fresh Prune Chutney.  Perhaps, serves six as a side dish, and 4 was a meal with an Indian style cucumber salad (included bellow), – and are great when eaten cold as a snack.

Simple Variants — Optional Ingredients

1/2 Cup Diced (1 cm) butter ‘n garlic braised peeled potatoes (when the mood strikes)

For a veggie samosa, skip the beef and add more potatoes and also ½ Cup coarsely shredded 2” stands of green cabbage. Also, add ½ Cup medium shredded or coarsely chopped carrots.

Warning! When adding the samosas to the hot oil, the oil filled (½ full only) will ‘boil’ frumiously and some splattering may occur so lean away from the pot. Better yet, I use a screen Chinese Wok Spoon

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Fresh Prune-Plum Chutney

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Cup Brown Sugar, light packed tight
• 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
• ¾ Cup Cider Vinegar
• 1 ½ tsp Hot Crushed Red Pepper
• 2 tsp Salt
• 2 tsp Mustard Seed
• 2-4 Fat cloves of Garlic (Thinly Sliced)
• ½ Cup Preserved or Candied Ginger (sliced thinly, have fun they’re stick!)
• ¼ Cup Onion (thinly sliced slivers)
• ½ Cup of White Seedless Raisins
• 3-½ Cups of Fresh Italian (German or Hungarian but not Stanley) Prunes (Seeded and cut into quarters – about 26 prunes) Stanley prunes do not work as well since the fruit is not as firm.)

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix together the sugar and the vinegar in an enamel or stainless steel pot and bring the mixture to a boil.
2. Add all the remaining ingredients EXCEPT THE PRUNES and stir until well mixed.
3. Then stir in the prunes.  The mixture should be simmered over low heat until thickened (about one hour) care being taken not to scorch the chutney, by stirring gently but often.  Spoon the mixture into hot sterilized jars, seal them and store in a dark cool place. Shelf Life about one year.

Yield – 3 Half Pints

Tip! Serve on Samosas, or English Muffins; or to accompany Indian or Southeast Asian food.

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Indian-Style Cucumber Salad

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine   | May 2005

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Indian-Style-Cucumber-Salad-232007

Yield: Makes 4 side-dish servings

Active time: 10 min  Total time: 35 min

INGREDIENTS

• 1 (1-lb) Seedless English or Turkish Cucumber (usually plastic-wrapped) cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• ½ Cup Red Onion thin sliced/slivered
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ¾ to 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2-cup whole-milk plain yogurt

DIRECTIONS

1. I prefer to thinly slice the cucumber, like for Greek Tzatziki and for a Viennese gurken salad rather than cutting them into small cubes.
2. Toss cucumber with salt in a bowl, then transfer the salted cucumbers to colander in the sink, and let drain 30 minutes, then pat dry.
3. Toast cumin seeds in a dry small heavy skillet over low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and a shade darker, 3 to 4 minutes. Cool on a cutting board, then the crush slightly with a rolling pin; yes crushed NOT ground.
4. Stir cucumber, cumin, and cilantro into yogurt in a bowl.

End Notes

Check out this blog for A Guide to Samosa, an international comfort food accompanied by an article on Chutneys, an international relish form. I’m working on it at time and interest permit, it’s likely to be in August or September.

Check out myApple Pie Samosa Recipe on our Sleeping Cat Blog

Hot Dog Chili

By Mike Hubbartt, © Copyright 2011, All Rights Reserved.

As you’ve probably guessed by now, I love spicy food. This is my hot dog chili, which is cooked in a crock pot on high for 5-6 hours. I use 93% lean ground beef to keep the calories down, and NO beans.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb ground beef (93% lean – 680 cal)
• 1-14.5 oz can Hunt’s diced tomatoes (87 cal)
• 2 1/2 cups waters
• 1 – 5 oz baked potato (110 cal)
• 2 medium onions diced
• 2 cloves garlic diced (10 cal)
• 2 tbsp Ancho or Chipolte chili powder
• 2 tbsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/2 tbsp cumin
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper

Total calories: 680 + 87  + 110 + 10 = 877 cal/3 tbsp serving = 40 calories/serving.

DIRECTIONS

1. Brown the ground beef on the stove, and then drain.
2. Turn the crock pot on to High, then add the ground beef.
3. Dice and add the onions and garlic to the crock pot, then add the diced tomatoes. Do NOT drain the tomatoes.
4. Grate the baked potato (smallest possible), then add the bits to the crock pot.
5. Add the 2 1/2 cups of water to the crock pot.
6. Add 2 tbsp Ancho or Chipolte chili, 2 tbsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tbsp cumin, 1 tbsp, 2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp pepper to the crock pot.
7. Stir the mix and let it cook 5 hours.
8. Remove the lid, stir one last time, then add 1 tsp of crushed red peppers and let it cook (uncovered) another hour.

Tip! I love chili cheese burgers and prefer this recipe over my chili with beans recipe. For this burger, I wait until I flip the burger, then add fresh onions, 2 tbsp chili, and a pinch of cheddar cheese, then cover and wait for the cheese to melt.

Tip! For a great low calorie hot dog, use 2 tbsp of this chili with a 100 calorie bun, onions, mustard, relish, and a 40 calorie Hebrew Nation hot dog.