Potatoes - 300 - © 2022 Via Wikipedia

Exotic Potato Options: Aloo Sabzi = Vegetarian Bliss…

Sister Erin has been dropping an increasing number of India Potato dishes on my desk, lately. She says that’s because there are multiple dishes featuring the universal tuber in almost all 23 distinct culinary regions of the sub-continent…

Aloo Sabzi - © 2022 indianambrosia.com

So it’s high time we got the water boil-ing, and began mining this rich vein of exotic culinary gold… Today: One of the most common potato dishes in India: Aloo Sabzi…

Anywhere, any veg…

Sabzi, or subji, is an Indian term that simply defines ‘a vegetable dish’,” The Spruce Eats tell us. “Sabzi comes from the Persian word ‘sabz’, which means ‘green’, and is similar to the English expression ‘greens’. However, all veg-etables can be included in a sabzi, and the preparation can take many forms, such as serving it with or without liquid.”

Today’s version is Aloo Sabzi. As faith-ful readers will know, ‘Aloo’ means ‘po-tato’ in Hindi. So, ‘Aloo Sabzi’ means ‘the simplest form of potato dish’. But that doesn’t mean it’s simple (much less boring!) in flavour or character.

The closest western dish I can compare it to is cast-iron skillet home fries… But you’ve never tasted home fries like these!

The flavour’s the thing!

The main ingredient in this dish is par-boiled, then stir-fried potatoes. The rest is flavouring com-ponents. In the Indian tradition, the potatoes are really just there as a blank canvas (there’s that ‘canvas’ metaphor again!) on which to paint flavours in the broad, bold sub-continental manner.

Would you believe there are 11 distinct flavouring components in the masala (spice blend) for this dish? And that’s not even close to some I’ve had the temerity to recommend to you preciously. I recall one that listed 29! So, today’s ‘dry’-rubbed potato side is relatively simple in yet another sense…

It’s also relatively quick to assemble – if you already have a supply of the masala mixed up, stored in a glass container with a tight-fitting lid.

The recipe

The recipe is warranted authentic by its author, and contains lots of background info on the Sabzi tradition. And there’s a section on tweaks you can try to customize the flavour to suit your personal preferences for heat and umami. There are also links to other Sabzi-style recipes she recomends, if you like this one…

Unlike some Indian dishes – particularly soups, curries and stews – this one, being a stir fry, is really quick. Prep time is estimated at only 25 minutes, even if you have to assemble all the ingredients and measure them out one at a time, from scratch. And actual cooking time is only around 10 minutes, once the potatoes are par-cooked.

My take

I knew I’d love this dish the first time I read through the recipe. Actually, they had me at my first sight of its official ‘mug shot’ photo.

And I loved even more the fact that the author anticipated my desire to tailor the spiciness to my own preference. There are not 1 but 2 chilis in the blend. And at the amounts called for in the basic recipe, it’s way too not for me.

If you like cumin, coriander seeds, turmeric and garlic as much as I do, you’re going to fall in love with this dish just like I did!

~ Maggie J.