Southern Africa · Street food

Chamussas de Carne (Mozambican Spiced Beef Samosas)

Name: Chamussas de Carne (Mozambican Spiced Beef Samosas)
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Mozambique
Ingredients: 400 g lean minced beef (90/10 lean-to-fat ratio); 250 g all-purpose wheat flour; 150 ml lukewarm water; 15 ml vegetable oil (for dough); 150 g finely minced yellow onions; 15 g freshly grated ginger root; 15 g finely grated garlic cloves; 2 whole fresh red piri-piri chillies (African bird's eye), finely minced; 5 g ground cumin; 4 g ground turmeric; 4 g garam masala; 20 g fresh coriander leaves and tender stems, finely chopped; 30 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice; 6 g fine sea salt; 30 g all-purpose flour mixed with 30 ml water (sealing paste); 500 ml sunflower oil (for deep frying)

Crisp, wafer-thin triangular pastries filled with dry-cooked aromatic spiced minced beef, spiked with fresh ginger, garlic, and fiery piri-piri.

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The story

Originating with the historic Goan and Gujarati merchant diaspora along the coasts of Maputo and Beira, chamussas have become Mozambique's quintessential street snack. Sold from roadside stalls and bakery counters, they are enjoyed from mid-morning tea breaks to sundown aperitifs. Unlike subcontinent varieties, Mozambican filling is deliberately dry-braised until every trace of moisture evaporates, preventing steam from softening the ultra-delicate wheat wrapper during deep frying.

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