The samosa has its roots in the Middle East and reached India in the thirteenth or fourteenth century through the cooks of the royal kitchens of the Delhi Sultanate, and the poet Amir Khusrau recorded nobles enjoying them around 1300. It was then filled with meat. India, characteristically, adopted the idea and made it its own, and the Punjabi samosa of today is a tall pyramid of flaky pastry around potatoes and peas spiced with ginger, chili, cumin and garam masala.

Every railway platform, office tea break and street corner in North India has a samosa within reach, and so should a race day. The pastry is the craft: rubbed with fat so it turns short and crisp, then fried slowly in moderate oil so it cooks right through without blistering. Patience at the stove is rewarded, which is a lesson motor racing teaches too, usually more expensively.

The pastry

Ingredients

• 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon ajwain
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) neutral oil or melted ghee
• 6 to 7 tablespoons (90 to 105 ml) cold water

The filling

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds (570 g) russet or Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1/2 cup (70 g) frozen peas
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
• 1 to 2 green chilies
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder or paprika
• 3/4 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon amchur
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro

Shaping and frying

Ingredients

• 6 cups (1.4 liters) neutral oil

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