Calories & Carbs in Samosa (Is Samosa Keto?)


Who doesn’t love samosas? They’re truly one of the tastiest foods out there! Filled with spicy minced meat, veggies, and a mix of earthy seasonings, samosas are guaranteed to make your mouth water.

Whether homemade or enjoyed at your favorite Indian restaurant, samosas are a favorite among many. You may ask if Samosa is keto friendly? Unfortunately, the traditional dough wrapper along with the potato and pea filling make them off limits for a low-carb diet.  But that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t enjoy one from time to time… Or attempt to make your own low carb variation of the traditional samosa.

How Many Calories in a Samosa?

Although it depends on what you add to the filling, a typical 100 gram deep-fried samosa containing potatoes and peas is 380 calories and 17 grams of fat.

How many carbs in Samosa? There are 32 grams of carbs in a 100 gram samosa. Samosas are fairly high in carbs because of the potato and peas contained in the filling and of course the white all-purpose flour used to make the dough.

What is Samosa? 

Samosa is a triangular-shaped pastry fried in oil that contains a filling of spiced vegetables and/or meat.  The samosa is normally made with white flour and stuffed with a filling of meat, mashed potato, onions, green peas, lentils, and a mixture of spices. The entire pastry is then deep-fried in vegetable oil until golden brown.

Samosas are typically served as an appetizer; however, they also make a great main course. They’re great served with soup or a side salad for a complete lunch or dinner.

Origin:

The samosa originated in medieval times in the Middle East prior to the 10th century, where it is known as the “sambosa”. It was introduced to the Indian subcontinent in the 13th or 14th century by traders from Central Asia.  The Indian style samosa is the most widely-known of a broad range of recipes from Africa to China.

Samosas are a popular entrée, appetizer, or snack in the local cuisines of the Indian subcontinent, Western and Southeast Asia, the Mediterranean, and many parts of Africa.

Can I Enjoy Samosa Occasionally While on the Keto Diet?

As long as doing so will not take you above your daily carb intake, you may wish to eat one small samosa on occasion or better yet, make low carb substitutions to your favorite samosa recipe. 

The best way to lower the carbs in a samosa recipe is to use almond flour for the dough as it is substantially lower in carbs than white flour. You should also choose low carb fillings, like meat and spinach instead of high carb fillings like potatoes and peas. 

How Can I Make Samosas Lower in Carbs?

no carb keto sambosa

A medium-sized potato Samosa contains roughly 25 to 30 grams of carbs and will likely spike your blood sugar levels more than eating bread.  Try filling your samosas with chicken and spinach instead as this filling is lower in carbs.  Or you may want to use spicy minced beef and onions, another great low carb filling choice, (See the low carb recipe included later in this article)

Other Keto-friendly fillings include any type of meat, cauliflower, and your favorite blend of aromatic spices. But cauliflower isn’t the only low carb alternative to potatoes. 

Turnips can make you feel full without the abundance of starch as they are not part of the same root vegetable family as potatoes. Turnips belong to the Brassicaceae family and are actually a cruciferous vegetable, in the same family as broccoli, kale, cabbage and Brussels sprouts.

Turnips are extremely low carb and keto-friendly. For a 100 gram serving, there are only 4 grams net carbs and 128 total calories! Additionally, they are an excellent source of antioxidants and fiber, vitamin C, iron, calcium and vitamin K.  Turnips make a great doppelganger for potatoes, as they’re light and fluffy, have a mild taste, and replicate the texture of the potato.

If you simply must use potatoes, you may wish to try incorporating a small amount of mashed purple potatoes into your samosa filling.  These are less starchy than white or yellow potatoes.  A half-cup of diced, raw purple potatoes contains about 52 calories and only 12 grams carbohydrates.

The purple potato is an excellent spud for your health. They eliminate chemical intake in the body and contain useful phytonutrients and powerful antioxidants that help with inflammation.  In addition, purple potatoes can help eliminate possible blood clots and they provide useful fiber to help move your bowels and improve digestion.

Mix mashed purple potatoes together with a turnip to make “turbinates” to cut your carbs even lower.

These low carb veggie substitutions will fool any palate once you spice up your low carb filling with garlic, cumin seeds, coriander, parsley, garam masala, fresh ginger, and cilantro.  With the right spice combinations, your filling will begin to give off that earthy aroma and take on the flavor of the traditional samosa.  

Trust me, these samosas taste so good, you’ll find it hard to believe are low carb!

Low Carb Samosa Recipe

These samosas are only 250 calories, 14 grams of fat, and 8 grams of carbs each.  The spicy beef and vegetable filling is wrapped in a dough made from mozzarella cheese and almond flour. The mozzarella dough, which is lightly scented with cumin, is so delicious and versatile. It is truly one of the best doughs to use in low-carb cooking and baking.

Once you’ve eaten these homemade samosas, served fresh and crisp from an air-fryer and stuffed with healthy low carb fillings, you’ll never want to touch those soggy, grease laden, high-calorie store-bought ones again!

Ingredients:

Dough:

  • 2 cups mozzarella
  • 1 cup almond flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • Pinch salt

Filling:

  • 2 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon coriander
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • ½ cup boiled turnip, mashed
  • 3 small purple potatoes, boiled, mashed (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon chili flakes
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1/2 pound lean minced beef
  • 1/2 small onion – chopped
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste

Instructions:

  1. In a pan, add olive oil, garlic and onion. Cook on medium heat until fragrant.
  2. Add in your minced beef. Stir frequently while your meat cooks. Once the meat is cooked, add in mashed turnip, mashed purple potatoes, and seasonings.
  3. Add in tomato paste.  Once and heat through until spices cook. Mix well and then set aside to cool.
  4. In a separate bowl, mix almond flour, turmeric, and baking powder.
  5. Melt your 2 cups of mozzarella in the microwave and spoon it into the almond flour.
  6. Mix it well until it forms a dough.
  7. Place on a piece of parchment paper and roll flat. Cut out square pieces, spooning some of the meat mixtures into the middle.
  8. Take one corner and fold it over onto the other to form a triangle. Seal the sides with water and press tightly.
  9. Bake at 350 degrees for half an hour or air fry until crisp and cooked through.

What is the Healthiest Way to Cook Samosas?

Using an air fryer can help cut fat.  Air-fried foods are a healthy alternative to deep-fried foods because of their lower fat content and reduced calories.

low carb samosa

Instead of completely submerging the food in oil, air-frying requires just a tablespoon of oil to achieve a taste and crispness similar to deep-fried foods.  Deep-fried foods are exponentially higher in fat than foods prepared using other cooking methods.  If you don’t have an air-fryer, you can bake them on a lined baking sheet. Baked samosas taste great; however, the texture isn’t quite the same.

What Type of Oil is Best to Make Samosas?

Extra light olive oil and sunflower oil are great options to use when you fry foods, as they have a high smoke point.  They are also heart-healthy unsaturated fats. Other healthy oils for frying include canola, safflower and peanut oils.

Melissa Marshall

A litigation paralegal and writer. Her first novel debuts this fall. She lives with her kitten, Zoey overlooking the waterfront in beautiful Dartmouth, Nova Scotia - also known as the “City of Lakes”.

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