Published: Apr 30, 2018 · Modified: May 19, 2025 by Alissa Saenz · This post may contain affiliate links · 30 Comments

Baked Samosas

Make your own, 100% vegan samosas at home! These little dumplings are stuffed with spiced potatoes, peas, and crunchy peanuts. The best part: they bake up golden and delicious (no frying required!).

I'm usually a little reluctant to post baked versions of fried things, because they're often a disappointment. And the more delicious the original, the more reluctant I am, because the further it has to fall. But, every once in a while I decide to risk it and try baking something that's normally fried, and on those rare occasions where it turns out really good, I have to share. I'm talking about things like my baked tofu nuggets, vegan baked doughnuts, and vegan corn fritters. Well, today I have a new one. I tried making baked samosas, and they were DELICIOUS!

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Ingredients You'll Need
How They're Made
Variations
Frequently Asked Questions
Leftovers & Reheating
More Vegan Indian Recipes
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

These baked samosas feature pretty traditional ingredients in both the wrappers and fillings. They only difference is that they're baked, making them easier to make (no sputtering hot oil!) and a tad lighter as well.

I'm not going to lie and paint these as super healthy. They're potatoes wrapped in pastry. Carb wrapped in extra fatty carb. They're just not fried, so a little bit healthier and there's no fear of oil splattering involved. And of course they're vegan!

Ingredients You'll Need

Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.

Flour. The recipe calls for all-purpose wheat flour. I've also successfully made them with whole wheat pastry flour, so you can substitute that if you'd like.
Baking powder.
Salt.
Water.
Vegetable oil. Feel free to substitute your favorite baking oil. Corn oil, canola oil, and even olive oil will all work.
Russet potatoes. These are also referred as plain old baking potatoes. They're starchy, so they give our filling a great texture. Less starchy potatoes such as red or golden varieties can be substituted if necessary, though. For less traditional samosas, experiment with other veggies and/or legumes. Sweet potatoes, cauliflower, chickpeas and lentils would all be delicious!
Onion.
Garlic.
Ginger.
Serrano pepper. You can skip this for milder samosas, or substitute another variety of hot pepper like a jalapeño if that's what you have on hand.
Spices. We're using a mix of garam masala, whole cumin seeds, ground cumin, turmeric, and coriander. Cayenne pepper is optional and can be used just if you'd like some extra heat.
Asafoetida. This is another optional ingredient that will add some savory, oniony flavor to the filling. It's often referred to as hing. You can get it at Indian markets. Feel free to skip it if it's not available to you.
Frozen peas.
Roasted peanuts.
Lemon juice. This will add some flavor to your filling. Use freshly squeezed juice for the best flavor.
Salt & pepper.
Fresh cilantro. Cilantro haters can skip this ingredient.

How They're Made

The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make vegan samosas. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!

Make the Dough

Dry ingredients for samosa dough in a glass bowl with wooden spoon.

Step 1: Combine dry ingredients. Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl.

Step 2: Add wet ingredients. Stir water and oil into your dry ingredients, forming a dough.

Hand kneading dough on a floured wooden surface.

Step 3: Knead the dough. Turn it onto a lightly floured surface, then knead it for a few minutes.

Hand placing a tea towel over a bowl of dough.

Step 4: Let it rest. Roll the dough into a ball and place it in an oiled bowl. Cover the bowl and let it sit while you make the filling.

Make the Filling

Step 1: Boil your potatoes. Cover chopped and peeled potatoes with water in a pot, then boil them until they're fork tender. Drain them into a colander.

Diced onion cooking in oil in a skillet.

Step 2: Cook the onion. Sweat diced onion in a bit of oil until it starts to soften up, which should take about five minutes.

Diced onions, garlic, ginger, and spices cooking in a skillet.

Step 3: Add aromatics and spices. Stir in minced garlic, grated ginger, minced serrano pepper, all of your spices, and asafoetida, if you're using it. Cook the mixture briefly.

Chopped potatoes cooking in a skillet with spices.

Step 4: Add the potatoes. Stir in your cooked potatoes, and briefly cook them in the spices.

Potato masher mashing spiced potatoes in a skillet.

Step 5: Mash the potatoes. Just hit them a few times with a potato masher, leaving the mixture chunky.

Samosa filling in a skillet with cilantro, peas and peanuts.

Step 6: Finish the filling. Take the skillet off of heat, then add the peanuts, peas, lemon juice, salt, pepper and cilantro.

Make the Samosas

Step 1: Get ready. Preheat your oven and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cutting board set with rolling pin, bowl of water, and partially assembled baked samosas.

Steps 2-4: Assemble the samosas. Use a rolling pin to roll a bit of dough into a circle, cut it in half, and place some filling in the center. Wet the edges, then close it up, first folding the straight edge in half, then pinching the remaining edge closed.

Unbaked samosas on a baking sheet with a pastry brush.

Steps 5-7: Finish and bake. Arrange the samosas on your baking sheets as you assemble them. Brush them all with oil, then bake then until they're golden brown.

Tip: You can wrap your samosas in any shape you like, but if you want those cute little triangle-shaped samosas you get at restaurants, this is the way to go!

Hand dipping half of a samosa into a bowl of chutney.

Your homemade vegan samosas are done and ready to serve. You can enjoy them alone or with your favorite chutney.

Variations

Quick and easy samosa wrappers. In a hurry? Skip the whole process of making your own dough and use premade pie crust or puff pastry. Just make sure it's vegan before you buy!
Sweet potato samosas. Swap out the russet potatoes with sweet potatoes. You can keep the spice mixture the same, or add a pinch of cinnamon.
Cauliflower white bean samosas. Replace the potatoes with a mixture of roasted cauliflower and cannellini beans, kind of like I did for my samosa burritos.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can these be made gluten-free?

I haven't tried making a gluten-free version of this recipe, but I think that an all-purpose gluten-free flour would work in the dough. You could also use a premade vegan gluten-free pie dough.

Can these be assembled in advance and baked later?

Yes, as long as you seal them up tightly. Place them in an airtight container or bag, or, better yet, on baking sheets tightly wrapped in plastic. Store them in the fridge for up to a day before baking.

Is there a substitute for peanuts?

Roasted cashews also work great. If they don't work with your diet, simply leave the nuts out. Your samosas will still be delicious.

Leftovers & Reheating

Leftover baked vegan samosas will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 3 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months.

To reheat them, thaw (if frozen), then bake them in a 400°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes. You could also microwave them, but they might get a bit soggy.

More Vegan Indian Recipes

Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!

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5 from 13 votes

Baked Samosas

Make your own, 100% vegan samosas at home! These little dumplings are stuffed with spiced potatoes, peas, and crunchy peanuts. The best part: they bake up golden and delicious (no frying required!).

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American, Indian

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1 35

Servings samosas

Calories 127kcal

Author Alissa Saenz

Ingredients

For the Dough

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup + 1 tablespoon water
¼ cup vegetable oil, plus more for brushing or spraying the samosas

For the Filling

1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
½ serrano pepper, seeded and minced, optional
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¾ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon ground coriander
Pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste, optional
Pinch asafoetida, optional
⅓ cup frozen peas, thawed
⅓ cup roasted and salted peanuts
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

To Make the Dough

Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.
Stir in the water and oil to form a dough.
Lightly sprinkle a work surface with flour. Turn the dough onto the surface, then knead it for 3 to 5 minutes, until it becomes smooth and elastic.
Lightly oil a mixing bowl large enough to hold the dough. Roll the dough into a ball, then place it into the bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and let it rest for at least 30 minutes, and up to 60 minutes. You can proceed to the next steps of making the filling while the dough sits.

To Make the Filling

Place the potatoes into a medium pot and cover them with water. Place the pot over high heat and bring the water to a boil. Lower the heat and allow the potatoes to cook just until fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes into a colander and return them to the pot.
Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with oil and place it over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion. Sweat the onion for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it becomes soft and translucent.
Add the garlic, ginger, serrano pepper, garam masala, cumin seeds, ground cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne pepper, and asafoetida. Continue to cook the mixture until the garlic and spices are very fragrant, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
Add the cooked potatoes to the skillet. Stir to coat the potatoes in the spices, then cook everything for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove the skillet from heat.
Lightly mash the potatoes with a potato masher, leaving some chunks.
Stir in the peas, peanuts, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and cilantro. Taste-test the filling and adjust any seasonings to your liking.

To Make the Samosas

Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper.
Lightly flour a work surface and gather a small glass or bowl of water.
Grab a 3-4 tablespoon handful of dough and roll it into a ball. Place the dough onto your work surface and roll it into a 5 to 6 inch circle (about ⅛ inch thick) with a lightly floured rolling pin. Cut the circle in half. Dip your fingers in the water, then moisten the outer edges of one of the half circles.
Place about 1½ tablespoons of filling into the center of the dough half circle. Bring the two ends of the straight edge together to form a cone, and pinch the seam to seal. Pinch the top opening of the cone closed to enclose the filling, forming a triangle. Press all the seams well to make sure they’re fully sealed and the filling won’t escape during baking.
Place the samosa on the baking sheet and repeat until all of the dough and filling are used.
Brush or spray both sides of each samosa with oil.
Bake the samosas for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Serve with your favorite chutney.

Notes

I served this batch of samosas with some mango and garlic chutneys that I had on hand, but the cilantro mint chutney from this samosa burrito recipe would be delicious too.

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About Alissa Saenz

Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors! You can read more about me here.

I'd love to connect with you on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

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5 from 13 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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Baked Samosas

Ingredients You'll Need