Puneri Aloo (Potatoes with Peanuts n' Curry Leaves)

Earlier this year, while working on the recipe archive of the blog I realized that I haven't shared too many Indian recipes. Weird. Because I am an Indian. Grew up eating Indian food all my life. Love my spices and enjoy their aroma and flavors in all that I cook. Yet when it came to blogging I shared so little of my food and culture. So I decided to share at least one Indian recipe each week..

Keeping with the spirit I chose to share Puneri Aloo with you today. It is a traditional potato preparation flavored with curry leaves and peanuts. The name suggests that the dish is from the city of Pune in Maharashtra. Must be so. But I haven't  had this dish in Pune.  I have only tasted the version that came in "The Samsung Book of Indian Microwave Cooking by Tarla Dalal," the book that I often referred to in my early days in kitchen.

You see, I began to cook on a regular basis only after marriage. My mother believed that anyone who appreciates good food will eventually learn to cook. So she neither encouraged me to experiment in her kitchen nor assist her as a sous-chef. Later when I went to college, the hostel canteen took care of all our meals. In India, hostel accommodations always come with food, meaning there is always a canteen associated with every hostel, and the multi-tasking "bhaiyas" there take care of all the kitchen ordeals.. shopping, cooking, serving and washing... You only have to appear in the canteen in time and eat your meals. Being part of the system, which we all took for granted,  I never learnt to cook until I was forced to. As a result my initial kitchen-days were quite a ride. Back then,  rolling a "round" roti used to be a big accomplishment and a compliment from husband on my cooking a big achievement. The latter came in easily with this dish.. Thus it remained one of our favorites for a long time and then became part of a happy memory...
Puneri Aloo

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Recipe adapted from "The Samsung Book of Indian Microwave Cooking by Tarla Dalal

Prep time: 35 minutes                                                                               Cook time: 30-35 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 10 minutes                                                                    Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cup potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 ½ tsps cumin seeds
• 5-6 curry leaves
• 2 green chilies, slit
• 3 tbsps roasted peanuts, crushed
• pinch of sugar
• 2 tbsps vegetable oil
• salt to taste
• 1 tbsp coriander, chopped

Cooking Directions

1. Soak the diced potatoes in water for at least 30 minutes.
2. When ready to cook, center the rack and preheat oven to 425 ° F.
3. Drain the soaked potatoes, pat them dry and put them in a medium sized oven proof bowl .
4. Add 1½ tbsps of oil and salt to the bowl and toss well so that the potatoes are coated with the oil.
5. Transfer to the preheated oven and bake uncovered for 20 minutes.
6. In the last 5 minutes, heat the remaining oil in a frying pan.
7. Add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and split green chilies to it and cook until fragrant.
8. Add the cooked spices, roasted peanuts and sugar to the semi-roasted potatoes. Mix well and cover the bowl loosely with an aluminium foil. Return the bowl to the oven and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are well cooked.
9. Garnish with coriander and serve as a side dish with dal and roti .

I shall be sharing this at the following parties.

p.s: I used dried  curry leaves and very little coriander, so you hardly see the green in my photographs. Using fresh curry leaves and coriander brightens up the dish further.