Maya’s Potatoes

Servings: 6
Ingredients:

8 md Potatoes
Oil for deep frying
1 ea Onion, coarsely chopped
4 ea Garlic cloves, pressed
6 tb Oil
1 pn Asafetida
7 ea Fenugreek seeds
1/2 ts Fennel seeds
1/4 ts Black onion seeds
1/4 ts Black mustard seeds
1 ea Bay leaf
3 ea Dried red peppers
1/2 ts Turmeric
2 md Tomatoes, chopped
1 pn Sugar
1 1/2 ts Salt

Boil potatoes at least 2 hours ahead. Leave to cool. Just before cooking
the dish, cube them into bite-sized pieces.

Heat oil over a medium flame. Fry potatoes in small batches till golden
brown on all sides. Drain and set aside. Save some of the oil for later
use.

Blend onion and garlic with 3 tb water. Heat 6 tb oil in large pot. When
very hot, add asafetida, fenugreek, fennel, onion, and mustard seeds and bay
leaf and red pepper in quick succession. Fry 20 seconds till bay leaf
darkens. Add paste from the blender and turmeric. Fry, stirring for 5
minutes. Add tomatoes and sugar. Gently stir in 2 c water, salt and
potatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover and simer for 10 minutes. Turn each
potato over and simmer another 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Madhur Jaffrey, ‘An Invitation to Indian Cooking’

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