‘Experience the change’ reads the tagline of Bengaluru-based food startup, Samosa Singh. What could possibly be different about samosas ? That is precisely the challenge that Shikhar Veer Singh (founder) and Nidhi Singh (co-founder) of Samosa Singh took on to introduce several innovations to the humble samosa , making it a global snack to be reckoned with.
“The one thing that everyone eats is samosas. It unites all Indians,” says Nidhi. The mass appeal of samosas notwithstanding, the duo focussed on two aspects: taste and health. With a background as biotechnologists, Shikhar and Nidhi invested in R&D to prepare a healthier version of samosas while retaining the traditional essence of it. “Our samosas aren’t baked,” Nidhi asserts, “If they were baked they would be a puff, not samosa. So we fry our samosas.”
Their USP is the shape of the slightly puffed samosa . It is the cooking methodology, a result of intensive research, that is particularly interesting. “The samosas have an interlocked shape, so that on cooking, the oil doesn’t go inside. They are only surface fried,” she explains, adding: “This cooking method makes the samosas 56% less in fat and 43% less in calories than a regular samosa . The crust is also flavoured with sprinklers such as lemon-chilli sprinkler on the classic aloo samosa and tikka sprinkler on the panneer tikka samosa .”
As she holds up a classic aloo samosa , we notice yet another feature. “I had once told Shikhar I wish we had ‘Samosa Singh’ branded on our samosas . He conducted research on it, and now we have the brand name embossed on the aloosamosas ,” says Nidhi. “We didn’t want to create just another business,” says Shikhar, “We wanted to create a brand. We are not driven by money, but our passion for the product.”
Samosa Singh started in February 2016. “We started from a 300-square-foot kitchen,” says Nidhi. “I used to deliver samosas ,” says Shikhar. They now have seven outlets across Bengaluru, and plan to expand to Hyderabad by December 2017, then to Pune and Mumbai by 2018.
The Samosa Singh outlet in Electronic City features bright yellow tables shaped like samosas and a map tracing the history of the snack. Try the classic aloo samosa, kadai panneer samosa , and chicken makhani samosa (with a butter chicken filling). True to how Nidhi describes them, the snack is non-greasy, crisp, and tasty. You don’t bite into excess dough, thanks to the ratio maintained between the crust and the filling.
Their chicken kebab roll deserves a mention for its thin covering and kebab infused with an emulsified sauce, which they state is a secret recipe. The chocossa (desserts), their trademarked product, comes in three flavours: caramel, peanut (the most popular), and orange. It subverts expectations by not piling out as chocolatey goo, allowing you to savour the samosa in small bites. And the samosas are affordable, priced approximately priced between ₹15 and ₹100.
Still in the mood for further innovation? They have a Chinese manchurian samosa, Sam-chaat and — brace yourselves — a Sam-burger!
