Recipe- Spicy Crushed And Tangy Dahi Aloo

Spicy crushed potatoes dunked in a tangy yogurt curry – that’s my favorite Dahi Aloo for you!

At my home, mom made dahi aloo whenever we were bored of eating the same veggies. This was a great change to our usual meals and we really relished it.It feels like yesterday when I signed the contract with the publishers. The next few months just flew by with testing recipes and photography. I won’t lie, writing and photographing a cookbook is tons of work!

We are talking about hundreds of recipe testing and thousands of pictures here. It’s a lot of work but now when I hold my book in my hands, it all seems worth it.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon ghee or use oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1-2 green chilies chopped, adjust to taste
3 medium potatoes around 600 grams, boiled and slightly crushed
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste
1 cup whisked plain yogurt 245 grams
2 cups water 16 oz
3/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
cilantro to garnish

Method

* Whisk the yogurt until smooth before you start.

* Boil 3 medium potatoes. You can either boil them in a pressure cooker or a stove-top. If using a traditional pressure cooker, cook on high heat for 7-8 whistles. If using a stove-top, cut into quarter and cook for 20-25 minutes until done.

* Peel the skin of the potatoes and crush them slightly. You just want to break them into pieces, best done by your hands. Do not mash them. Set them aside.

* Heat a heavy bottom pot or kadai on medium heat. Once hot, add ghee to the pot and then add the cumin seeds, chopped ginger and chopped green chili.

* Saute for 1 to 2 minutes until the ginger starts turning golden brown in color. Stir in the crushed boiled potatoes into the pot.

* Give a quick stir and then add the spices- coriander powder, turmeric and red chili powder. Toss the potatoes until well coated with the spices.

* Now remove the pot from heat and then stir in the yogurt, one tablespoon at a time and stirring continuously.

* Keep stirring for 2 minutes until all the yogurt is well combined, this prevents the yogurt from curdling. This is also why we also remove the pot from heat while adding the yogurt.

* Transfer the pot back on to the stove and add in 2 cups water. Let it come to a slight boil.

* Lower the heat, then add the salt and mix. Cover the pot and let dahi aloo simmer on low heat for 3 to 4 minutes.

* Garnish dahi aloo with cilantro and serve with roti/rice/poori or paratha. I add quite a bit of water as it thickens as it cools down.