Anda and Aloo Curry

I had a goal to find a new recipe that would (1) feed four adults and a child, (2) use inexpensive ingredients, and (3) not be pasta.  I specifically thought to look in my Indian cookbook because I'd remembered most of the recipes served 12 (hello leftovers!) and a lot of the dishes had rice bases (rice being something we can afford in abundance). As it was I decided on a recipe that was potato rather than rice based. Luckily my pocketbook is as much a fan of potatoes as of rice. Plus, it was delicious.

     Anda and Aloo Curry (Egg & Potato Curry)

        from The Spice Box by Manju Shivraj Singh

• 4 Tbls oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 4 medium onions, grated
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 4 fresh tomatoes, chopped (or 1 Tbls tomato puree)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• salt to taste
• 1 cup yogurt (or 1 cup hot water)
• 6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped
• 6 boiled potatoes, peeled and quartered
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• juice of 1 lemon
• fresh mint leaves, chopped, for garnish

     Heat oil in a wok or saucepan. Add cumin seeds and fry 1 minute. Add the onions and garlic and fry till golden. 

     Add 1/2 cup hot water, tomatoes, spices and salt. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. 

     Add 1 cup of yogurt or hot water, then the eggs and potatoes. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes.

     Turn off the heat. Add garam masala and lemon juice. Stir. Garnish with mint leaves.

     

     Serves:  12

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A few comments~

I grated the onions in the food processor (the ONLY way. My goodness. Cannot imagine grating them by hand!) and then dumped them into the wok. What I wish I'd done was drain the onion juice after grating. As it was, without draining it was extremely soupy and there was no golden action. I had to pour out the boiling hot onion water before the onions could have a chance to brown. Not safe. So don't be like me. Drain the onion juice after grating.

We enjoyed this dish the night I made it, but a great unexpected perk was that it made great leftovers. Served cold it's transformed from Anda & Aloo Curry to Curried Potato Salad. I think it'd be a tasty addition to a picnic (cook and eat 1/2 the recipe as a hot meal the night before, pack the remainder to share with friends the next day).

Garam Masala

I made curry this weekend and the recipe called for garam masala.

Penzey's will sell it to you, but you can make it yourself, if you have the inkling.

From The Spice Box: A Vegetarian Indian Cookbook 
by Manju Shivraj Singh:

Garam Masala, Powdered

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns 

16 whole cloves

6 whole cardomom seeds (green)

1 inch piece of cinnamon stick

1 teaspoon whole black, small cumin seeds

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds

The directions say to grind all of the above in a coffee grinder or pepper mill, but I went old school and used my mortar and pestle. (Also: I don't have a coffee grinder.) 

Took a few minutes, but I was pleased with the results (though my arm was too tired to take any more photos). 

According to the cookbook, households in northern India insist upon grinding garam masala fresh daily.  If I had to do that... I would probably invest in a coffee grinder. ;-)