#potatocurry Archives - The Fat Foodie

Aloo Palak (Potato and Spinach Curry) by The Fat Foodie

I love aloos, potato-based Indian dishes, because they’re so hearty and flavoursome and they make a lovely light alternative to heavy dairy and meat-based curries. I’m particularly a fan of aloo palak, a potato and spinach curry, because the addition of spinach leaves makes the dish very fresh tasting and brings out the natural sweetness of the potatoes.

I know a lot of people who would never dream about making a curry from scratch because they think it’s too hard or that it involves too many ingredients, an attitude I can understand because some curries are pretty labour and ingredient intensive. However, this aloo palak is really easy to make and its ingredients list isn’t that extensive either.

The beauty of making a curry yourself lies in the fact that you can use fresh flavours that really pack a wallop, such as minced ginger root and fresh coriander leaf. Accordingly, you’re rewarded with an aloo palak that tastes much nicer than a curry sauce that comes from a jar. As an added bonus there’s no onion or garlic in this recipe because asafoetida powder is used to impart those flavours instead, so it’s FODMAP friendly.

Although this aloo palak is vegetarian, it’s substantial, requiring little more than some crisp and crunchy poppadums to accompany it, but even though there’s no meat in it it’s rich and stuffed full of a variety of flavours. It’s a vegetarian curry that’s well worth making.

Ingredients:

800g potatoes cut into small cubes (peeled weight)

3 tbsps vegetable oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp fresh minced ginger

1 tsp asafoetida powder

1 tsp hot madras powder

1 tsp ground turmeric

2 tbsps sesame seeds

2 tbsps dessicated coconut

140g large leaf spinach (English spinach)

Fresh coriander and poppadums for serving

Method:

Parboil the potatoes in generously salted boiling water until just soft and then drain.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan and add all of your spices and cook for a minute.

Add the potatoes and desiccated coconut and cook for a couple of minutes before adding the spinach.

Cook until the spinach has wilted down and add a little water if you’d prefer the curry to be a bit saucier. Taste for seasoning (it might require a generous seasoning of salt at this point).

Serve with freshly chopped coriander and crisp poppadums. (It’s also lovely with fresh chopped chilli and a cucumber and mint raita.)

Aloo Palak (Potato and Spinach Curry) by The Fat Foodie

Vegetable Coconut Curry by The Fat Foodie

Yesterday, in a determined effort to eat a bit healthier, I made a cracking vegetable coconut curry. The main reason for making it was to use up some mangetout I’d had sitting in the fridge, but sadly I forgot to add them! Although the curry lacked a bit of greenery (hence its overall orange glow!) it was still packed to the gunnels with mixed vegetables and was held together with the addition of coconut, making it taste really creamy and decadent even though it was dairy-free.

Most curries rely on a base of fried onion and garlic to add that sweet, caramelised background note that’s so prevalent in Indian cooking, but they’re like napalm to my digestive system so there was no way I’d put them in my curry. However, I’ve recently discovered a fantastic spice called asafoetida powder which tastes exactly the same as onion (and has garlic flavoured tones through it too) and it genuinely adds the flavour of garlic and onion into my cooking without having any negative effects on my tummy. Try it, guys. Asafoetida is amazing!

I made quite a large pot of the vegetable coconut curry, so there were plenty of leftovers. I froze a couple of portions to take to work for lunch throughout the week, but I think we’ll also be having this for dinner tonight too. I’m really looking forward to it though, because the flavours and spices will have been marrying overnight so it’ll taste even better today. (I always think curries taste better the next day, don’t you?)

I’m also having a bash at making my own naan breads for the first time. The dough is rising in the kitchen as we speak (so to speak). I intend on making two types: a sesame seed one and one sprinkled with nigella seeds (aka black onion seeds). Sadly, as much as I’d love to give it a whirl, I think attempting a peshwari naan (a filled naan stuffed with a mixture of ground pistachios/almonds, raisins/coconut, and sugar) might be a little ambitious at this stage.

I’m sure you’ll hear in a future blog post how I get on, but in the meantime wish me luck!

Ingredients:

1 tsp of asafoetida powder

400g of tinned chopped tomatoes

1 thumb-sized piece of ginger (crushed/minced)

4 tbsps of oil

2 large potatoes (cubed)

200g sweet potato (cubed)

2 large carrots (cut into bite-sized pieces)

1/2 a chilli (seeds removed and diced finely)

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 1/2 tbsps curry powder (I used madras)

1 tsp of salt (add more to taste if necessary)

1/2 tsp black pepper

400g of coconut milk

60g of desiccated coconut

Method:

Put the oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat and add the asafoetida powder, ginger and chilli and continue to fry for 5 mins, stirring frequently.

(Have a good ol’ sniff at this stage because it smells fantastic!)

Add the tin of chopped tomatoes along with the turmeric, curry powder, desiccated coconut and salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 5 mins, stirring frequently.

Add all of your prepared vegetables followed by the tin of coconut milk. Gently simmer until the potatoes are soft to the touch and cooked through.

Sprinkle with chopped fresh coriander and serve with rice, naan breads or poppadums.

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The Fat Foodie

Making Low FODMAP Food Good!

Tag: #potatocurry

Aloo Palak (Potato and Spinach Curry) (serves 4)

Vegetable Coconut Curry (Serves 6)