Samosa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Samosa

Pakistani style fried Samosas during Ramadan.
Alternative names	Samsa, somsa, sambosak, sambusa, samoosa, singada, samuza
Region or state	Indian Subcontinent, Central Asia, Western Asia, Horn of Africa, North Africa, South Africa
Main ingredients	Maida or plain flour, potato, onion, spices, green chili, cheese, meat

Samosa is a popular snack originally from Central Asia. It further travelled, with the help of Muslim merchants of trade routes to India. It is famous in the Indian subcontinent as well as Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Southwest Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, the Mediterranean, the Horn of Africa, North Africa, as well as South Africa.

It is generally prepared in the shape of a triangle, however, the shape and sizes tend to vary from region to region. It can be either baked or fried and has an outer hard crust made of plain flour. It usually has a filling of potatoes and spices. It is usually eaten with a spicy sauce called chutney.

Samosa is also an appetiser in Pakistan.

It is commonly available in canteens, sweet shops and is also prepared at home.

Samosa can be vegetarian or non-vegetarian.

Origins

It is believed to have originated from the Central and West Asia. The word samosa originates from the Persian word sanbosag.

Images for kids

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  Samosa in a frying pan in North India.

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  Persian manuscript Nimatnama-i-Nasiruddin-Shahi explain how the samosas being cooked

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  Medieval Indian Persian manuscript Nimatnama-i-Nasiruddin-Shahi (c. 16th century) showing samosas being served

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  Bangladeshi samosas, snack food

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  Burmese-style samusa are flat and triangular, and usually smaller than their Indian counterparts.

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  Indonesian-style samosa identified as kue kering.

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  Somali Sambuus being deep-fried

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  Sambousek

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  Sambuseh at a bazar in Ahvaz, Iran

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  Israeli sambusak filled with cheese and pesto

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  Samosas before being fried, at a sweet shop in Kolkata.

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  Samosas in India

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  Samosa with sauce available at Indian coffee houses in Kerala

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  Vegetable samosa

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  Vegetable samosa

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  Goan chamuças

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  Portuguese chamuças in a café in Ponta Delgada

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  Angolan chamuças

See also

In Spanish: Samosa para niños