Dum Aalu

This recipe is part of the traditional Kashmiri Pandit cuisine and is cooked on auspicious occasions like birthdays and weddings. This version of Dum Aalu is different from the Punjabi or Bengali version; the only thing common is that whole potato is used in the recipe. This recipe is a bit time consuming as one needs to make sure that the potatoes are tender once served and the spices have completely seeped in.

The key ingredients as you know are patience and commitment, and the rest of everything can be purchased online or at the supermarket.

The recipe mentioned below serves two people, but you can adjust the proportions if you want to cook for more.

Ingredients

1. Aalu/Potatoes – 6 ( medium size)

2. Mustard Oil – for deep frying 6 medium potatoes

3. Heeng/Asafotieda – ½ tsp

4. Zeera/Cumin – 1 tsp

5. Tej Patta – 1

6. Laung/Cloves – 2

7. Badi Elaichi/ Black Cardamom – 1

8. Dahi/Curd – 5 tbsps

9. Lal Mirch Powder/ Red Chilli Powder – 1 ½ tbsp

10. Saunth Powder/ Dry Ginger Powder – 1 tsp

11. Saunf Powder/ Fennel Powder – 1 tsp

12. Vaer/ Kashmiri Tikki Masala – ½ tsp

13. Salt – 2 tsp

Procedure

1. In a saucepan, boil the potatoes (skin on) for 15-20 mins. Another alternative is to use a pressure cooker. Add the potatoes and some water to a pressure cooker on a high flame. After the first whistle, turn off the pressure cooker and wait for the pressure to ease up before opening.

2. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl of cold water and then peel off their skin.

3. With a fork prick the potatoes uniformly and deep-fry them till they become brown and crispy. While frying the potatoes sprinkle some cold water a couple of times into the oil. This helps the potatoes become crisp, and you will know it when the potatoes come up and start floating. Set aside the potatoes on tissue paper so that they absorb the excess oil.

4. In a bowl add Dahi, Lal Mirch Powder, Saunth, Saunf, and whisk till the ingredients are mixed homogeneously.

5. In a pressure-cooked add ½ tbsp of mustard oil and smoke it,(you can use the same oil used to deep-fry the potatoes), add Heeng, Zeera Tej Patta, Laung, Badi Elaichi and saute till the ingredients start to smoke.

6. Immediately add the Dahi-Spice mix and mix with a wooden spatula.

7. Add the fried potatoes followed by Vaer and salt.

8. Mix the ingredients before covering the lid and wait for 2 whistles.

9. Serve with Rice or Roti.