Saturday, April 25: Potato and Pea Samosa Wraps

I was craving samosas and was originally going to do something with frozen puff pastry dough… but realized using tortillas would be way easier! Made the filling with Yukon Gold potatoes, peas, onion, ginger, garlic, jalapeno, and spices, then stuffed it into whole wheat tortillas and grilled them up in a pan until crisp. Voila: delicious cheater samosas! (This makes enough filling for about 6 wraps — Matt and I both ate two for dinner, with leftovers for lunch the next day.)

I also blended up a cilantro chutney but added too much ginger — to calm down the flavors a bit I mixed a few spoonfuls with a dollop of vegan mayo and ended up with a delightfully creamy and bright sauce that we couldn’t stop dipping the wraps into.

First, peel and chop 1.5 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes into one-inch chunks. Add to a pot with enough cold, salted water to cover the potatoes by one inch, then bring to a boil and boil until tender (10-15 minutes). When soft and easily pierced with a fork, drain them. I usually will put the pot back on low heat for a few minutes to let any excess water steam off of the potatoes, then turn off heat. Mash up the potatoes a bit, so you’re left with a very course mash with plenty of intact bite-sized pieces.

To a large skillet or saute pan add a few TB olive oil and heat over medium. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds and saute a few minutes, until starting to sizzle/pop. Add one diced onion, one minced jalapeno (seeds removed if sensitive to heat), and a pinch of salt, and saute for about 5-7 minutes. Add 3 minced garlic cloves, a 1-2 inch piece of ginger (minced), and your spices: 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp garam masala, and a few shakes of cayenne (optional). Saute, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Finally, add in the cooked potatoes, 1 cup frozen peas (no need to defrost), a big pinch of salt, and 1/4 cup of water, and stir to warm and meld flavors (add more water as needed if it starts to get dry). Taste and adjust for salt.

Scoop into whole wheat tortillas, fold and roll to seal, then place in dry non-stick skillet for a few minutes per side. This will make the tortilla warm and crispy, while also helping to seal the seams shut.

I won’t post the cilantro chutney recipe since it didn’t turn out I’d hoped (I added way too much ginger!), but I loosely followed a combination/adaptation of these two recipes: Bon Appetit and Spice Cravings. While it wasn’t great on its own, it was surprisingly AMAZING when mixed with a few TB of vegan mayo — which turned it into a light green, creamy sauce that I seriously want to eat with everything.