Vegetable Samosa Pie

Vegetable Samosa Pie – Everything you love about Samosas…in giant pie form! Oh – and with handy store bought puff pastry and loads of extra veg. 😂 Excellent centrepiece vegetarian dinner recipe. Something different yet familiar, totally delicious with a bit of (rustic) wow factor.

Those who tried the Eggplant Curry I shared last week will love the common ingredients in this!

Vegetable Samosa Pie

I don’t hold this vegetarian pie to be in anyway authentic Indian in its construct (BIG), the filling (VEG loaded!) and the use of puff pastry instead of homemade samosa pastry (handy!).

But I do hope those of Indian background can recognise that I’ve stayed respectable of traditional Samosas by using authentic Samosa filling spices.

And while this might look a far cry from those little hand held, deep fried Samosa pastries we all know and love so much, just one bite is all it will take for you to think Ah! NOW I get why she calls it a Samosa pie!

You can substitute all the vegetables except potato and onion. Potato is used to bind the filling. Onion is for essential flavour!

What you need – Vegetables for the Filling

The ingredients list for this Vegetable Samosa Pie is fairly extensive, but that’s partly because I’ve put in a decent variety of vegetables. But in fact, other than potato and onion, all the vegetables are customisable. I could’ve just made a zucchini and potato filling to make it look far simpler! 😂

So here are the vegetables I’ve used:

If you tried the Eggplant Curry I recently shared, you’ll have all the necessary spices!

What you need – Filling Spices

And here are the flavourings for the filling. Don’t be alarmed if you don’t recognise some of these – I’ve got options for you!

• Black mustard seeds – they look like poppyseeds but have a slight wasabi-like bite to them. And they smell Indian, not Japanese! Not spicy, more a fresh zing.  It’s about $1.50 in small packs at Indian grocery stores – I go to Indian Emporium in Dee Why on the Northern Beaches, Sydney. Also sold in the Indian food section at some Woolworths (Australia) $1.70, and online! Used in an Eggplant Curry I shared last week (big hit!), more recently Goan Fish Curry, and meatless wonder-dish Dal. 

• Curry leaves – imagine curry powder, in fresh curry leaf form! Adds incredible curry perfume into anything it’s used in. Fairly accessible nowadays for Sydney-siders, sold at Harris Farms, most Coles and Woolworths. Keeps for several weeks in the fridge. This too is used in Eggplant Curry and Dal. Throw in 10 or so when cooking Curried Rice, or into this Indian Chickpea Curry or Vegetable Curry – it will really take it to a new level! Substitute: dried curry leaves (not quite the same, but it’s the best sub) or Garam Masala powder;

• The other spices – nothing out of the ordinary here, everything you find at local grocery stores; and

• Tomato paste – for a little flavour and help thicken the liquid.

Puff pastry

I’ve taken the path of least resistance with this Vegetable Samosa Pie and used store bought puff pastry – for both the base and lid.  Store bought shortcrust / pie crust pastry will also work a treat.

I don’t blind bake the base in this recipe, the filling is so juicy it will be soggy regardless. But if you’re cooking to impress and want a crispy base, use store bought or homemade pie crust/shortcrust pastry for the base, blind bake it (per that recipe), then top with puff pastry.

How to make Vegetable Samosa Pie

The vegetables are simmered with the spices until soft and fragrant, then it’s all mixed up with mashed potato to make a big pot of juicy, heavenly smelling filling. Then we simply pile this into a pastry lined pie dish (I like to use a big one), top with pastry then bake until puffed and golden!

OK, I realise that summary is VERY condensed, this pie does take time to come together.

But BOY is it worth it. Just look at what comes out of the oven! ↓↓↓

Ugh, that flaky puff pastry. I swear, puff pastry and its relative filo can make anything good. (Case in point: Chicken Pot Pie, Spinach Ricotta Rolls, Aussie Meat Pies, Sausage Rolls, Spanakopita. See? All good stuff!)

I like to serve it with a dollop of plain yogurt, just to add an extra dimension to the dish.

As for a side salad? Na! I’ve been having a (big!) slice of this Vegetable Samosa Pie for dinner, with no side salads or anything. This is a VEGETARIAN pie. It is jam packed with vegetables – almost 12 cups, to be exact! (PS Onion counts towards your veg intake – did you know that? 😇)

However, if you were to serve this at a dinner with family or friends and you wanted to add some more to the table, I’d probably add a couple of these salads:

Indian Tomato Salad with Mint Dressing

Green Bean Salad

Cucumber Salad with Herb Garlic Vinaigrette

Creamy Cucumber Salad with Lemon Yogurt Dressing

Roast Pumpkin, Spinach and Feta Salad

Garlic Butter Warm Red Cabbage Salad

Everyday Cabbage Salad

Roasted Broccolini with Tahini Sauce (Ottolenghi recipe)

Lastly – I realise this recipe has a lengthier ingredients list and more steps than my typical quick ‘n easy Monday night dinner offerings. But this pie is BIG. It will serve 6 to 8. So it’s dinner today and lunch tomorrow. Worth making! – Nagi x

PS Would also be wonderful in individual form – think: ramekins, even mini in muffin tins. Share if you try!

Watch how to make it

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Vegetable Samosa Pie

Author: Nagi

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 1 hr 40 mins

Cool filling: 30 mins

Mains, Vegetarian

Indian

4.92 from 58 votes

Servings6 - 8 people

Tap or hover to scale

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Recipe video above. Take everything you know about samosas - the curried mashed potato filling, the crispy pastry - put it in giant pie form, add a stack of extra vegetables and voila! Vegetable Samosa Pie! This is a big, vegetarian main course dinner that's something different yet also familiar, and wonderfully versatile - stuff with any veggies you want.

Simplify SPICES: I've stayed true to traditional Samosa filling, so there's a fairly lengthy list of spices. It can be drastically simplified - see Notes 1 to 3.

SPICINESS: Very mild - just a slight warmth. Dial it up if you want, or omit it!

Blind baking / Crispy Base: See Note 5.

Those who tried the South Indian Eggplant Curry I shared last week will love the common ingredients in this!

Ingredients

CupsMetric

• ▢ 700g / 1.4lb potato , cut into 2cm / 4/5" pieces

Filling:

• ▢ 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• ▢ 1.5 tsp black mustard seeds (Note 1)
• ▢ 1 tsp cumin seeds (Note 2)
• ▢ 1 tsp fennel seeds (Note 2)
• ▢ 15 curry leaves , fresh (Note 3)
• ▢ 1 tbsp garlic , finely grated
• ▢ 1 tbsp ginger , finely grated
• ▢ 1 onion , finely chopped (brown, white, yellow)
• ▢ 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• ▢ 2 tsp curry powder (Note 4)
• ▢ 1/2 tsp chilli powder , adjust spiciness to taste ((pure ground, not US Chili Spice Mi, sub cayenne)
• ▢ 1 tbsp tomato paste
• ▢ 1 tomato * , chopped into 1.5cm / 1/2" pieces
• ▢ 1 zucchini * , chopped into 1.5cm / 1/2" pieces
• ▢ 1 carrot * , chopped into 1.5cm / 1/2" pieces
• ▢ 1/2 cauliflower * (small), cut/broken into small florets (~ 3 cups)
• ▢ 1/2 tsp black pepper
• ▢ 1 tsp salt
• ▢ 2 cups water
• ▢ 1 cup frozen green peas *

Puff pastry crust:

• ▢ 2 sheets puff pastry (Note 5)
• ▢ 1 egg , lightly whisked

Serving:

• ▢ Plain yogurt
• ▢ Coriander/cilantro leaves , option (decorative only, pictured)

* Asterisk-marked - can be substituted with any vegetables that can be cooked. Use 8 cups total.

Instructions

MASHED POTATO:

• Bring a pot of water to the boil then cook potato for 12 - 15 minutes until very soft.
• Drain, mash and set aside.

FILLING:

• Sizzling spices: Heat oil in a dutch oven or pot over high heat. Add black mustard seeds, cumin and fennel seeds. Let them sizzle for 15 seconds - careful, they might pop!
• Curry leaves: Then add curry leaves and stir for 15 seconds.
• Aromatics: Add garlic, ginger and onion. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes until onion is tinged with gold.
• Tomato: Add tomato paste and tomato, cook for 30 seconds.
• Spices: Add curry powder, turmeric and chilli. Cook for 30 seconds.
• Most Veg: Add zucchini, carrot and cauliflower. Stir well to coat in the spice paste.
• Water: Add water, salt and pepper. Stir, bring to a simmer then put the lid on and reduce heat to medium low (so it's simmer gently).
• Cook & reduce: Cook for 15 minutes until vegetables are soft. Then remove lid and simmer for 5 minutes to reduce liquid a bit.
• Add mash: Remove from stove. Add peas and potato, mix through well.
• Taste: Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
• Cool: Place lid on and cool for at least 30 minutes (even overnight is fine).

ASSEMBLY & BAKING:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types).
• Grease a large pie dish with butter, or oil spray (Note 6). Drape in a puff pastry sheet.(I don't blind bake here - see Note 5)
• Fill with Filling - slightly mounded is fine.
• Fold in the corners of the puff pastry sheet.
• Top with puff pastry sheet - turn 90 degrees to the base puff pastry sheet (see photo).
• Fold the overhang puff pastry under itself - no need to be neat here, this is a rustic pie!
• Egg wash: Brush with egg, cut a 2cm / 1" cross in the middle (to let steam escape).
• Bake 50 to 60 minutes, until the top is very deep golden and flaky.
• Stand 5 minutes then slice to serve. A dollop of plain yogurt goes well with this!

Recipe Notes:

1. Black mustard seeds - key ingredient for authentic flavour. Look like poppyseeds, wasabi bite, Indian aroma! ~ $1.50 in small packs at Indian grocery stores (my local is Indian Emporium in Dee Why, Sydney). Also sold in the Indian food section at some Woolworths (Australia) $1.70, otherwise try online.

Substitutes (starting with best):

• Brown mustard seeds
• Yellow mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder*
• 1 1/2 tsp Garam Masala* (different flavour, but is intended to make up for absence)

* Add with curry powder in recipe

2. Cumin seeds - can sub with 3/4 tsp cumin powder but add it with the curry powder.

Fennel seeds - can sub with 1/2 tsp powder, but add with curry powder.

3. Fresh curry leaves - another key ingredient for authentic flavour! Sub 10 dried curry leaves. Fairly accessible nowadays for Sydney-siders, sold at Harris Farms, most Coles and Woolworths. 

Substitute:

• dried curry leaves (not quite the same, but it's the best sub);
• 1 tsp Garam Masala powder (add it with rest of spices).

Also used in the recently shared Eggplant curry.

4. Curry powder - any curry powder is fine here, I use Clives of India or Keens. Don't use HOT unless you know you can handle the heat, or reduce chilli powder.

5. Puff pastry here in Australia comes in 20cm/8" square sheets, recipe calls for 2 sheets.

Can be substituted with pie crust or shortcrust pastry, anything suitable for a pie like this. Filo would work too - brush each layer with butter and use perhaps 6 to 8 layers (enclose it like a parcel).

No blind baking - Usually, I blind bake pastry bases, but because I'm going pretty rustic and basic here, I haven't bothered so it's not crispy - but it does cook through in the relatively long cook time. It doesn't bother me here (the filling flavour and crispy top really is the focus) and also I am not convinced that the base would stay crispy even if you did blind bake it because the filling is juicy. But if you want to blind bake, do as follows:

• Puff pastry (per Chicken Pot Pies direction, in the notes): Line dish with puff pastry, place in oven at 180C/350F. After 10 min or whenever the partially cooked base starts to puff up, just push it back down. Repeat once more or as required to stop the puffing (it doesn't take much). Then once the pastry is golden, remove from oven and let cool. Proceed with recipe.
• Shortcrust / pie crust pastry: Follow directions in this Meat Pie recipe.

6. Large pie dish diameter - rim: 24cm/9.5", base: 20cm / 8" base, height: 4cm / 1.7".

It will also fit a 20cm / 8" square dish but it will be a bit flatter (bonus: more puff pastry surface area - yay!).

If you use a 9"/23cm pie dish, you'll have a bit leftover so make a little one in a ramekin.

You could also do handheld triangles using puff pastry - seal the edges using the egg.

7. Storage:

• Leftovers in Fridge - 4 to 5 days. To reheat and retain crispy top - stick a strip of foil over exposed filling (so it doesn't dry out), then bake in the oven at 180C/350F for 10 - 15 minutes until the top is crusty and the filling is hot.
• Leftovers for freezing - haven't tried but see no reason why it wouldn't work. Thaw then reheat per above.
• Make ahead - assemble with thawed puff pastry then either freeze (3 months) or fridge (2 days). Thaw, egg wash, bake per recipe + 10 minutes (takes longer due to chill in centre. Thawed-fridge stored / thawed-frozen-thawed puff does not rise quite as much as thawed then immediately baked, but the difference is marginal in a pie like this. Also, for those concerned, for store bought puff, thaw-freeze-thaw again poses no health issues (unlike meat).

If you microwave, I take no responsibility for your disappointment over the soggy puff pastry.

8. Nutrition per serving, assuming 6 (that's a BIG meal size slice, no sides required!).

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 385cal (19%)Carbohydrates: 45g (15%)Protein: 8g (16%)Fat: 20g (31%)Saturated Fat: 9g (56%)Sodium: 533mg (23%)Potassium: 880mg (25%)Fiber: 7g (29%)Sugar: 6g (7%)Vitamin A: 2304IU (46%)Vitamin C: 115mg (139%)Calcium: 70mg (7%)Iron: 3mg (17%)

Keywords: puff pastry recipe, vegetable dinner recipe, Vegetable pie

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