Restaurant Style Dum Aloo Kashmiri (Stuffed Potatoes in a Creamy Tomato Sauce)

Potato is one of the most versatile ingredient that literally takes so many forms – bhajiyas, casseroles, gnocchi, fries, cutlets, you name it. There are so many different ways to cook them too. This recipe is a tribute to my most favorite vegetable.

There are different types of Dum Aloo – kashmiri, Punjabi, Bengali and so on. Even with kashmiri dum aloo, there are many versions that I have tasted over the years. I like dum aloo which have stuffed potatoes rather than simply deeply fried ones.

This recipe has been on my list of to-dos for so so long now. Every single time I buy baby potatoes, I think “maybe this time, I will make dum aloo” but nope, never happened – until TODAY. After a hard work out at the gym, I was famished. I was quite motivated to make something scrumptious for dinner (okay okay, it is not the most ideal post-workout food, but hey, at least I made it healthy 😉 )

When you take a spoonful of the stuffed potato along with the gravy, you will get a taste of some the crumbly paneer, fresh fennel seeds and dry fruits. It simply does NOT get more stunning than that!

As always, my version is healthy but feel free to fry the potatoes, add more butter or cream if you wish to.

Cook time: 45 minutes – 1 hour; Recipe Source: Self; Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

For the stuffed potatoes:

Small to medium sized potatoes – 8 to 9
Paneer or Cottage Cheese – 1/2 cup, crumbled
Fennel Seeds or saunf – 2 tsps
Salt – to taste
Cashews, raisins and almonds – few, crushed, optional
Turmeric powder – just a pinch

For the gravy:

Onion – 1, chopped roughly
Tomato – 2 big, pureed
Green Chilly – 1
Cashews – 1 1/2 tbsps, soaked in water for 15 minutes
Fresh cream – 2 tbsps (I used half and half)
Garam masala – 2 tsps
Kashmiri Red Chilly powder – 2 tsps
Sugar – 1 tbsp
Ginger and garlic – 2 cloves and 1 big piece, respectively
Whole spices – cardamom, cloves, cinnamon (2 each)
Kasuri Methi – 1 tsp, crushed

Instructions:

First we will make the stuffed aloo, for which you will have to start by peeling off the skin from the potatoes. Next, take a fork and poke into the potatoes.

Heat water in a pan, add salt and cook the potatoes til they are 80% cooked (just enough to scoop out some portion of the potatoes). Allow it cool down, then scoop out the center portion of the potatoes carefully – use a butter knife to cut through the potatoes and use a fork to scoop.

TIP: Wait for the potatoes to completely cool down. If the potatoes are hot when you are trying to scoop out the middle, they WILL break!

Next, mix the scooped out potatoes with paneer and all other ingredients mentioned for the stuffing. Gently, place this prepared stuffing back into the partially cooked potatoes.

If you are going to deep fry, then place the other half of the potatoes on top and use a tooth pick to bind the potato. Heat a pan with oil and fry the potatoes.

As usual, I chose the healthier version and heated my kuzhi panniyaram pan. Place the stuffed potatoes in the pan and cook until brown and crispy. Set aside.

Now lets move on to preparing the gravy.

Grind together – onion, green chilly, ginger, garlic, cashews soaked in water. Make a smooth paste. In a pan, heat oil or butter. Saute whole spices. Saute the ground onion paste. This paste has to cook for 5-10 minutes, until it becomes dry and slightly changes color.

Add the tomato puree. Stir well. Add the dry spices – garam masala, kashmiri red chilly powder, salt, sugar. Add water if you want and cook well until the raw pulpy taste of tomato disappears. Once the tomato gravy has cooked, add cream and simmer for another 2 -3 minutes.