I love Indian food. It is my absolute favorite food in the whole wide world.
Unfortunately I can never make it as well as the restaurants do. But I’ve been following this amazing guy on youtube, ‘Vah Chef’. And I’ve made a few of his recipes now, and they have came out tasting really great. This below is from his ‘Chicken Tikka Masala’ recipe, but obviously I don’t eat chicken, and so I needed to alter it to my own diet. So I added potatoes or ‘Aloo’ instead of chicken, and unfortunately the ‘Tikka’ part is the skewed vegetables or meat, and I don’t know if you can really skew potatoes, so I left that part out and followed his instructions on how to make the creamy tomato spiced sauce. We’ve been finishing this dish all week, it makes a lot. My friend John just came over last night and ate some, and said ‘Nina you nailed it! Send me the recipe for this one!’. And when I warmed it up for lunch at work, people said it smelled like an indian restaurant in the kitchen lol!
I like to crush up my own spices because the flavor is more powerful and more nutritious than spices that have been dried and sitting in a bottle for months or years.
So I actually have this amazing spice grinder (I think it’s basically a coffee grinder?) that we found on the side of the road one day in a box that said ‘free’! It was in Perfect condition, took it home and washed it good, and now it’s changed the way I make indian food. If you have one, I really suggest grinding your own spices fresh so you can enjoy the aroma that it creates. If you don’t have one, you can use a mortar and pistol to grind everything up. Or else just use what you can find lol. I buy my spices at a local indian grocery store, why? Because A. I like to support small businesses, B. the spices are 10x cheaper than buying it at ANY local grocery store we have ever been to, and C. you can get bulk, and D. you often leave learning about or buying a new indian product you never tried before (like the tasty pre-made dosa mix that I loveeeee making doas with)! So it’s a win-win for me to shop there:)
Ingredients
- 4-6 - Golden or White Potatoes
- 1 Tbsp - Coconut Oil
- 1 - Onion, Chopped
- 1 Tbsp - Garam Masala
- 1 Tbsp - Cumin Seeds
- Dash of Sea Salt
- 1 Tbsp - Filtered Water
- 1 Tbsp - Turmeric Powder
- 1 Tbsp - Ginger Garlic Paste
- 1 Tbsp - Coriander Powder
- 1 Tbsp - Cumin Powder
- 1 tsp - Chilli Powder
- 1/2 Tbsp - Sea Salt
- 1 Cup - Filtered Water
- 4 Tomatoes - Medium Sized
- 1 Tbsp - Soaked Cashews
- 1/2 Can - Coconut Milk
- Garnish with Finely Chopped Cilantro
Instructions
- Begin by washing your potatoes and chopping them into bite sized cubes. Place a pot of 2" water to boil, toss your potatoes in a metal colander and place in the pot (don't let the water touch the potatoes though). Cover to steam for approximately 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender to poke with a fork (check half way to make sure the water did not all boil off).
- Place your oil, super finely chopped onion (you can use a blender like I did if you want to make it into a paste), garam masala, and a dash of salt in a wide pot over medium-low heat. Stir and cook together for a few minutes, or until the onions become fragrant. Be careful not to burn any spices.
- Now add turmeric, ginger garlic paste, coriander powder, cumin powder, chili powder and water and stir. Cook for a few more minutes.
- Blend together your cashews and tomatoes into a cream sauce, pour into your pot, bring to a rolling simmer and cover. Let it sit and cook to mix the flavors. About 20 minutes (check once in a while that you are not burning the sauce!).
- Add coconut milk (add more coconut milk or water if the sauce is too thick for your liking). Taste to adjust spices and turn off heat. Add in your cooked potatoes and cilantro, mix together.
- Eat with a side of rice, bread or roti skins.