Samosa Wellington

This Samosa Wellington makes for a great vegetarian dinner option. A spiced vegetable samosa filling encased within crispy, flaky puff pasty.

I think I’m yet to meet anyone who doesn’t love some puff pastry action.

So let’s stick with the ethos that puff pastry is one of the best things ever, and make a Samosa Wellington. This would be great for a vegetarian dinner, or part of a vegetarian roast, or even as a Christmas centrepiece for the main course.

Samosa Wellington

This is literally everything and anything that exists inside a vegetable samosa, transported inside a case of buttery, flaky, crispy puff pastry. What’s not to love?

This wellington is made with a medley of vegetables cooked in spices, aromatics, and ghee. A mountain of this spiced filling is then placed inside a sheet of puff pastry.

We’re then brushing on a sweet and sour tamarind glaze inside the pastry before being sealing and baked. It’s an extra layer of flavour that is just *chefs kiss*.

The sweet and sour tamarind glaze is ESSENTIAL

This Samosa Wellington has a tamarind glaze brushed inside the pastry. This is reminiscent of tamarind chutney which is the usual accompaniment for samosas.

It’s sour and sweet, and hence a little goes a long way. It adds an extra hit of flavour and marries up with the spiced vegetable filling perfectly.

I guess you could say this is kind of like a giant samosa

Giant samosa is the way every samosa should be. This really is a crossover between a giant samosa and a vegetable wellington. The main difference between this samosa wellington and authentic samosas is really just the pastry.

Gujarati samosas use a more filo-style pastry whilst Punjabi samosas use a more shortcrust-style pastry. We’re going for puff pastry here, and it’s perfect for this vegetarian wellington.

What is inside a vegetable samosa?

The holy trinity of a vegetable samosa (in my opinion, at least), are potatoes, onions, and peas. They are the essential choices, whilst everything else is optional.

It does ultimately come down to personal preference though. We’re adding in some carrots for this one, it’s the style of samosa filling I’ve grown up eating. It adds texture, a subtle sweetness, and a pop of colour which never goes amiss.

The spices and aromatics are fairly simple, we’re using cumin seeds, coriander seeds, garlic, and chilli as our main flavours. The main key to a good samosa filling is the balance of flavours, the spices shouldn’t be overpowering.

This Samosa Wellington would make for a great Christmas main dish

I don’t know if any of you guys have had the same experience. But growing up in an Indian household, Christmas meant samosas were going to be fried. It was just one of those things that I’ve always associated with Christmas.

So it was only fitting to extrapolate that ritual into a samosa-style main course for Christmas this year. Samosas deserve it.

Samosa Wellington serving suggestions

There are two main ways I would recommend serving this wellington. The first would be with a warm, sweet and sour tamarind sauce, which is essentially just a tamarind chutney but served warm.

The second would be with my Masala Onion Gravy. This is a lightly spiced and fragrant gravy which pairs with this wellington beautifully. I never thought I’d be telling you guys that samosas and gravy go well together, but to say I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement.

It’s an incredible combination.

Let’s talk about some of the ingredients

I’ll cover the main ones below but the full recipe can be found at the end

• Puff pastry – this is a flaky pastry made from a laminated dough that puffs up when baking, hence the name. I purchase this ready-made in rolls from the supermarket
• Potatoes – use any potato you like, my go-to is always a Maris Piper or King Edward as they tend to lend the ‘fluffiest’ texture
• Whole spices – we’re using just a few whole spices here, you’ll need cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and a cinnamon stick
• Ground spices – a few simple ground spices like chilli powder, turmeric, and garam masala are key. I’m also adding in some mango powder (amchoor) and chaat masala which add a lovely street food-esque flavour
• Tamarind puree – this can be purchased in supermarkets, and it is worth noting that it differs from tamarind concentrate. If you’re using tamarind concentrate here, you’ll need to use a lot less

The KEY tips to getting this Samosa Wellington right

• Cold pastry is key – cold pastry means the butter inside the pastry is also cold. This will allow for maximum flakiness and a good rise on the puff pastry
• The vegetable samosa filling needs to bind together – it’s imperative for wellington fillings to bind together for 3 reasons. Firstly to make it easy to shape and seal the puff pastry. Secondly, to maintain the height during the bake so it doesn’t fall flat. And finally to make it easy to cut clean slices
• Don’t skip the sweet and sour tamarind glaze – this adds an extra ‘oomph’ of flavour that’s reminiscent of tamarind chutney and it complements the samosa filling perfectly
• Prepare the wellington on baking paper on top of a chopping board OR the baking tray you intend on using – this makes it so much easier to move around. The baking paper with the wellington can slide right on to a baking tray from a chopping board

How to make this Samosa Wellington

Let’s start by making the vegetable samosa filling

1) Heat some oil in a wide pan and add the cumin seeds, a small cinnamon/cassia stick, and the coriander seeds. I like to lightly crush the coriander seeds in a pestle and mortar

2) Temper the spices for around 1-2 minutes

3) Next, add in the onions, garlic, ginger, and chillies. Add a pinch of salt at this stage too, seasoning every layer ensures we get the most flavour and helps the onions to cook

4) Sauté everything together over a medium heat for several minutes until fragrant and the onions have softened

5) Then add in the carrots and peas, and continue to sauté until the carrots have almost completely softened

6) Now we can add in the ground spices. Add in turmeric, chilli powder, garam masala, chaat masala, and mango powder

7) Continue to cook the mixture for another minute or so

8) Start mashing the cooled potatoes. This doesn’t need to be completely smooth, we want to keep some texture here

9) Add the mashed potato to the vegetable mixture in the saucepan

10) Season with salt once again. Mix everything together and continue to cook over a low heat for a further 1-2 minutes

11) Finish the vegetable samosa filling with some coriander and spring onions

12) Allow the samosa filling to cool completely before assembling the wellington

How to make the tamarind glaze

1) Mix the tamarind puree/paste, brown sugar, water, and salt in a bowl

2) Place into a microwave and heat in 20s increments until thick and syrupy. It will continue to thicken further as it cools

How to assemble the Samosa Wellington

1) Unroll a sheet of puff pastry (this is 35cmx23cm/14″x9″). Place the samosa filling in the centre and shape into a ‘half-log’ along the longer side of the pastry. Aim for height here as the wellington will spread out slightly during baking

Prep this all on baking paper (pastry sometimes already comes with it) on top of a chopping board or the baking tray you intend on using

2) Set the first sheet aside and grab another sheet of puff pastry of the same size. Brush over the tamarind glaze leaving around a 2″ border (this will be trimmed off)

3) Lay the sheet of puff pastry with the tamarind glaze over the first sheet with the samosa filling

4) Peel off the paper (if any) from the second sheet

5) Press around the wellington to seal the the two sheets together

6) Then trim off the excess but leave a 2-3cm border, this works best with a pizza cutter or sharp knife. I cut away slightly too much on the side above, leave more excess

7) Then tuck the excess underneath the wellington. This helps it to get a good seal all around and a nice clean shape

8) Wrap the wellington tightly with clingfilm and place into the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, but it can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. I recommend keeping it on top of a chopping board/the baking tray you intend on using for easy transfer

9) Lightly score the chilled wellington with any pattern you like. This is a superficial score so avoid cutting all the way through

10) Brush all over with the no egg ‘egg-wash’

11+12) And place into the oven to bake until golden brown

Frequently asked questions

Can this Samosa Wellington be made vegan?

Absolutely, you just need to substitute the puff pastry for a vegan puff pastry. And substitute the butter and milk in the no-egg ‘egg wash’ for any plant based alternative.

Can this wellington be prepared in advance?

You can prepare the wellington 1-2 days in advance and keep refrigerated. I recommend tightly covering with clingfilm to ensure the pastry does not try dry out.

It can be baked directly from the fridge. Brush on the ‘no-egg wash’ right before baking. Add on around 5 minutes to the bake time to account for the refrigeration.

How long will the Samosa Wellington keep? And what’s the best way to store it/reheat it?

It will keep for 3-5 days in an airtight container and refrigerated.

Reheat by placing back into the oven (cut side down) at 180’C for 10-15 minutes, flipping over half way. The reheated wellington is honestly my absolute favourite. The filling gets a little crispy as it bakes again and it is honestly SO GOOD.

If you enjoyed this recipe

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Until then, happy cooking!