A Potato Delight..Dum Aloo Kashmiri

Although I have been very fortunate to live in NYC where such a plethora of diverse and creative food and dining options are available, I am yet to find a dum aloo that matches the one I had in India. The flavors combined in a delicious tomato curry filled with potatoes that were filled with nuts and paneer. The spiciness that made it feel it was summer in between a very cold December night. Alongside naan prepared in a proper Tandoor Oven at the restaurant Punjabi Angithi.

Now, I wanted to have the same culinary experience half way across the world (without having to take a 16 hour flight in the middle of a work week) and because I couldn't find any restaurants that quite met the expectation, I ran through each recipe online. Unfortunately, most recipes were of Banarasi Dum aloo and not Kashmiri Dum Aloo. The difference is Banarsi dum aloo does not contain stuffing in the baby potatoes mixed in the curry while Kashmiri one does. Also, Kashmiri Dum Aloo is served in a gravy that is more like Punjabi butter chicken's gravy rather than the traditional gravy that is heavily based on an onion paste. So, the way I make it, it's very specific to a region in India. Don't come for me if it isn't exactly what you were looking for!

Although I had to modify it to match my taste, I used queen Tarla Dalal's recipe as my base for spices and measuring. 

The Spices & Making the Curry:

1. 2 tbsp salt
2. 2 tbsp garlic or Garlic Powder
3. 2 tbsp Deshi Ghee
4. 1 red onion chopped or 3 tbsp onion powder
5. 1 tbsp Garam Masala
6. 1/2 teaspoon Red Mirchi (Kashmiri Laal Mirch)
7. 2 tomatoes chopped
8. 2 teaspoons tomato paste (optional)
9. 1/2 cup Heavy Cream - now this is what makes my recipe more specific like the Dum Aloo I had in India. It gives it a more butter chicken like gravy texture or while keeping it vegetarian

Before you get started, in a saucepan, add water and boil 8 baby potatoes. Then, in a fry pan, mix together items 1-7. This is your masala mix. Sautée them them until brown (but not burnt!). Then place the masala mix in the blender along with the heavy cream. Blend it all together, adjust the amount of heavy cream if needed.

Once it is all blended completely, see if you need to add more tomato paste (taste test time!), if so, go ahead and add it now! On low heat, mix the curry together and make sure it is smooth. Turn off the heat and let it rest.

The Potatoes & The Filling

1. 8 Baby potatoes (that you should be boiling at this point ;) )
   
2. Paneer - this is based on your preference of how much you want to fill the potato
   
3. Garlic Powder
4. Salt
   
5. Nuts (optional)
   

​Carefully take out your boiled potatoes from the water. Stick a fork through it to make sure they are boiled properly. Let them cool down.

Once cooled down, cut the bottom and top of the potato so it's flat. Peel the potatoes.You can save both of these to mix with the paneer. Cut a whole in the center of the potato very gently where you will add the the filling. Once you have the whole cut in, some people fry the potato in olive oil to remove any excess water but I have been able to skip this step and it has turned out amazing still. 

Add salt and garlic powder to the paneer and mix. If you want, you can also add nuts to it. I have eaten it with raisins, walnuts, and cashew nuts mixed, before. Fill the potatoes with the filling you just made and add it to the curry!

Serve it with some naan. I got the one from Trader Joe's (don't have a tandoor oven...yet) and I actually love it (thanks to my bestie Lindsey who actually introduce me to it!). And...bone apple teeth 😁

Also food is inherently political. I cannot talk about an Indian and Kashmiri dish without acknowledging the community that gave us this version of the dish. If you want to learn more about the culture, cuisine, and the resilience of this amazing community, my go to source is KOA Youth website and Instagram!