Chatpate Aloo is spicy & tangy baby potatoes, you may call it Achari Aloo too if you wish as the recipe calls for an Indian pickle to form the base of this dish. The fun fact about this recipe is that you can change the way it tastes by changing the type of the main ingredient used. Confused? Don’t be!! This recipe calls for a pickle, so you can actually use your favourite one. There is no dearth of pickle recipes in India, isn’t it? We seem to use a whole range of ingredients to make pickles. Most of us love Mango pickles, whether homemade or store bought and it works best for this recipe. So far I have tried making this dish with homemade Kosrache Lonche (shredded mango pickle) and store bought mango & lime pickle (both with a reddish gravy base) and it always turned out great.
Why we love baby potatoes so much
Chatpate Aloo is a bit of a rookie dish in our culinary repertoire. It was first introduced in our family menu as a failed attempt to rescue baby potatoes that were bought to make dum aloo and since that dish didn’t see the light of day the husband quickly sauteed the pre boiled potatoes into this ridiculously easy dish. This was a couple of years ago and now it features at least once in three months on our menu. This is mainly because the little fellow is super fond of baby potatoes in any form.
A few years ago Braa’id Baby Potatoes (a South African grilled potato & bacon dish) had taken his fancy and later on it was the Baby Potatoes in Savoury Butter. If I find good ones I always buy and boil a few in their jackets. Then I refrigerate them till I need to use them (which is generally within a couple of days)
Serving suggestions
While these Chatpate Aloo go really well with some simple dal & rice it also tastes good with chapathis or pulaos. If you want to serve it as a starter it will be such a quick and easy option for you. Especially if you have guests who like potatoes. I know a lot of people like that 🙂
How to pick the right sized potatoes
When you pick the potatoes do ensure that you pick those are that more or less of the same size and colour. This is because you want all of them boiled at the same time. If you have a bag of potatoes in varying sizes then big ones will take longer to cook leaving the tiny ones close to being mushy. Secondly, the colour of the potatoes should also be the same to ensure that the crop (new and old) are not mixed by the vendor.
So what are you waiting for? I really hope you like this dish. Do try it out and let me know!
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Chatpate Aloo
Ingredients
To boil
- 1/2 kg baby potatoes with skin on
- Salt
To season:
- 2 tablespoons mustard oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 2 tablespoons Indian pickle (achar of your choice (one with some gravy in it)
- 1/4 teaspoon red chilli powder if required
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 tablespoons thick tamarind juice
- 1/4 teaspoon of chaat masala powder if required
- 2 tablespoons chopped coriander
- salt only if necessary
Instructions
- Thoroughly clean the baby potatoes. Do not peel them. Set aside.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil, add some salt and toss in the potatoes and boil them till they are tender but not mushy. Depending on the size of the potatoes it should take 7-10 minutes. Drain and keep aside
- In a wide based wok/kadai heat the oil till it smokes (this is an important step as it helps tone down the sharp flavour). Reduce the heat and add the mustard seeds. When they stop spluttering, add the cumin seeds.
- Add the 2 tablespoons of the pickle along with some of its gravy. Reduce the heat to prevent burning. Add the boiled potatoes and the chilli powder if required. Toss in the turmeric powder and the tamarind juice. Sprinkle the chaat masala if desired
- Add the chopped coriander and cook till the potatoes absorb the flavours and the mixture looks dryish. There is no need of adding salt as the pickle has salt so sprinkle some only if necessary
Disclaimer
The nutritional values are only indicative.
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