Are you tired of eating the same old potato curry? Give this Kashmiri Dum Aloo recipe a try!
Kashmiri dum aloo curry is made with baby potatoes and spiced with fennel, ginger, and whole spices. This curry pairs well with rice, roti, paratha, or naan.
This Dum Aloo is one of the iconic dishes of Kashmiri cuisine. It’s spicy, hot, and oh-so heavenly. It is GLUTEN-FREE and can be made VEGAN FRIENDLY.
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About this recipe
Dum means to ‘pressure,’ and Aloo means Potato.
Dum Aloo is a spicy curry usually made with baby potatoes and is widely popular in India.
There are many types of Dum aloo, like Punjabi Dum Aloo and Bengali Dum Aloo from Bengal state—Kashmiri dum Aloo, etc.
Punjabi dum aloo is made with tomatoes, cream, onion, garlic, and many other spices. In contrast, Kashmiri Dum Aloo Recipe is a semi-gravy recipe with no cream, tomato, onion, ginger, or garlic!
Plus, Kashmiri dum aloo uses spices like fennel powder, ginger powder, and Kashmiri red chili powder.
Today I am sharing a Traditional Kashmiri dum aloo recipe with you.
It is one of that delicious and flavorful curries that one can make when we run out of veggies and for days when we want to have NO ONION GARLIC meals.
Also, you can make and serve at your parties and special occasions. This creates a delightful vegetarian dish!
Kashmiri Dum Aloo is a traditional Kashmiri recipe where baby potatoes are parboiled, fried, and then added to a spicy and rich yogurt-based gravy.
Then The potatoes are slow-cooked on low heat. It slowly absorbs the fantastic flavor of the aromatic spice blend.
The gravy looks vibrant but much lighter as it does not contain cream or a lot of cashew paste. Kashmiris prefer food with a lot of spice and heat because of the cold climate.
This curry is subtly flavored with dry ginger powder and fennel powder, giving it a distinct taste.
Ingredients required to make Kashmiri Dum Aloo
Below is the ingredients list and possible substitutions. The exact ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Baby Potatoes: Traditionally, baby potatoes are used to make this curry, but if it is not available, then you can use your regular potatoes. Cut them into big pieces. You can use either baby gold potatoes or red potatoes. They’re both great! I have used both varieties.
- Curd/Yogurt – Use fresh curd/yogurt. Avoid using sour curd in the recipe, as it spoils the taste of curry.
- Fennel Powder: In Kashmiri recipes, fennel seeds play an important role. It gives a distinct taste to the gravy in Kashmiri Dum Aloo. You can find fennel seeds in Indian grocery stores or online on Amazon too. To make fennel powder, crush the whole fennel seeds in the grinder to make a fine powder.
- Kashmiri Chilli Powder: Make sure you use ONLY Kashmiri chili powder. It lends a beautiful color to curry without making it very spicy. Kashmiri chili powder is readily available in the Indian store and on Amazon.
- Ginger powder: Ginger powder is also an essential ingredient for this recipe. This can be found in Indian grocery stores and on Amazon.
- Whole Spices: Cumin Seeds, Bay Leaf, Cloves, Cinnamon sticks, and Green Cardamom are whole spices.
- Mustard Oil: Traditionally, mustard oil is used for frying potatoes and used in curry. Mustard oil has a very intense taste and should be heated to its smoking point. I highly recommend you use mustard oil to get the authentic flavors. If you can’t find mustard oil, use any other cooking oil. But the taste will be different.
- Others- Salt as per taste and cilantro for garnish.
Step-by-step process
Step no. 1 parBoil the potatoes
- Add the potatoes to a pressure cooker with 1.5 cups of water. Pressure cook the potatoes over a high flame for one whistle, then switch off the flame and let the cooker de-pressurize naturally.
- Take out the potatoes from the cooker and peel them once cooled.
- Using a toothpick, poke holes into the potatoes. This step is crucial. Pricking them will help to fry them properly.
Step no. 2 Fry the potatoes.
- Set a kadhai over the flame and add ¾ cup or sufficient mustard oil to it.
- Note – the oil should be enough to cover the potatoes when you add them.
- Switch on the flame to high heat. Heat the oil until it reaches its smoking point, then lower the flame and allow the oil to cool down slightly.
- Add the potatoes and fry them over a medium-high flame until they turn golden and crispy from all sides.
- Once fried, transfer the potatoes to a paper towel-lined plate. Let them cool down.
- Now poke the potatoes again using a toothpick. This step will help the spices and gravy seep into the potatoes and become flavorful from the inside.
Step – 3 Make Curry
- Heat 4 tablespoon oil in a pan/pot.
- Add the cumin seeds, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom. Saute for a few seconds.
- Now add hing and chili powder. Then immediately add curd.
- Note – add curd immediately after adding the chili powder. Otherwise, chili powder will burn.
- Stir well and cook everything for 1-2 minutes or until oil separates, over low flame.
- Further add fried potatoes, ½ cup water, fennel powder, dry ginger powder, salt, and turmeric powder. Stir everything well.
- Now Add 1 cup of water or till the surface of the potatoes and bring it to a boil.
- Cover the pot with a lid once the gravy comes to a boil.
- Note: Ensure the lid is tight and steam is not escaping from the pot. This is very important for Dum cooking. If the lid is not tight, place some weight on the lid; you can also use foil paper to cover the kadhai for dum cooking.
- Cook the dum Aloo over a very low flame for 20-25 minutes.
- Once cooked take off the lid, you’ll see that the gravy has reduced. Authentic dum Aloo’s sauce is thick, but you can adjust the consistency as per your preference.
- Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.
- Your authentic Kashmiri Dum Aloo is ready. Serve it hot with rice roti or paratha.
Notes, Pro-tips, and quick FAQs
- Since this dum aloo recipe is made without onion and garlic, it is a satvik dish perfect for Navratra days.
- You can add less or more water as per how you want the gravy of Kashmiri dum aloo.
- You can keep the skin of potatoes on if you want to. If you are keeping the skin of the potatoes, you have to make sure that the potatoes are scrubbed and cleaned correctly so that there is no dirt on them.
- The hard part of this recipe is to boil the potatoes perfectly. DO NOT over-boil them. Over-boiled potatoes will break while you prick them. You need to boil them just to the point that you can remove the skin easily. So pressure cook it for one whistle only, and switch off the flame after one whistle.
- I highly recommend you add Kashmiri red chili powder or deghi mirch as they are not very hot or intense and give a nice red color to the final dish.
- If you cannot handle the heat, reduce the amount of Kashmiri red chili powder.
- It is best enjoyed with hot roti, parathas, or steamed rice.
- You can easily double or triple the recipe for a bigger crowd.
Traditionally the baby potatoes are supposed to be deep fried. But If you want to avoid deep frying the potatoes, you can. Once the potatoes are parboiled, air fry them for 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Make sure to coat the potatoes with 2 tablespoon of mustard oil. Toss them midway once or twice during baking and keep checking to make sure they don’t get overdone or burned.
Substitute dairy curd/yogurt with plant-based yogurt to make this curry vegan.
More Baby Potato recipes to try
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Kashmiri Dum Aloo
Ingredients
- 450 grams Baby Potatoes
- 3 tablespoon Curd Dont use sour
- 2 tablespoon Fennel seeds powder see notes
- 1 teaspoon Dry GInger powder dry ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt or to taste
- 3 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 4 tablespoon Mustard oil + for frying the potatoes
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 3 Cardamom pods
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 2 Bay leaf
- ¼ teaspoon hing Use gluten-free hing
- 3 cups water or as required
- Cilantro/coriander for garnishing
Instructions
Step no. 1 par Boil the potatoes
- Add the potatoes to a pressure cooker with 1.5 cups of water. Pressure cook the potatoes over a high flame for one whistle, then switch off the flame and let the cooker de-pressurize naturally.
- Please take out the potatoes from the cooker and peel them once cooled.
- Using a toothpick, poke holes into the potatoes. This step is crucial. Pricking them will help to fry them properly.
Step no. 2 Fry the potatoes.
- Set a kadhai over the flame and add ¾ cup or sufficient mustard oil to it.
- Note – the oil should be enough to cover the potatoes when you add them.
- Switch on the flame to high heat. Heat the oil until it reaches its smoking point, then lower the flame and allow the oil to cool down slightly.
- Add the potatoes and fry them over a medium-high flame until they turn golden and crispy from all sides.
- Once fried, transfer the potatoes to a paper towel-lined plate. Let them cool down.
- Now poke the potatoes again using a toothpick. This step will help the spices and gravy seep into the potatoes and become flavorful from the inside.
Step – 3 Make Curry
- Heat 4 tablespoon oil in a pan/pot.
- Add the cumin seeds, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom. Saute for a few seconds.
- Now add hing and chili powder. Then immediately add curd.
- Note – add curd immediately after adding the chili powder. Otherwise, chili powder will burn.
- Stir well and cook everything for 1-2 minutes or until oil separates, over low flame.
- Further add fried potatoes, ½ cup water, fennel powder, dry ginger powder, salt, and turmeric powder. Stir everything well.
- Now Add 1 cup of water or till the surface of the potatoes and bring it to a boil.
- Cover the pot with a lid once the gravy comes to a boil.
- Note: Ensure the lid is tight and steam is not escaping from the pot. This is very important for Dum cooking. If the lid is not tight, place some weight on the lid; you can also use foil paper to cover the kadhai for dum cooking.
- Cook the dum Aloo over a very low flame for 20-25 minutes.
- Once cooked take off the lid, you’ll see that the gravy has reduced. Authentic dum Aloo’s sauce is thick, but you can adjust the consistency as per your preference.
- Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.
- Your authentic Kashmiri Dum Aloo is ready. Serve it hot with rice roti or paratha.
Video
Notes
- To make fennel powder, crush the whole fennel seeds in the grinder to make a fine powder.
- Since this dum aloo recipe is made without onion and garlic, it is a satvik dish perfect for Navratra days.
- You can add less or more water as per how you want the gravy of Kashmiri dum aloo.
- You can keep the skin of potatoes on if you want to. If you are keeping the skin of the potatoes, you have to make sure that the potatoes are scrubbed and cleaned correctly so that there is no dirt on them.
- The hard part of this recipe is to boil the potatoes perfectly. DO NOT over-boil them. Over-boiled potatoes will break while you prick them. You need to boil them just to the point that you can remove the skin easily. So pressure cook it for one whistle only, and switch off the flame after one whistle.
- I highly recommend you add Kashmiri red chili powder or deghi mirch as they are not very hot or intense and give a nice red color to the final dish.
- If you cannot handle the heat, reduce the amount of Kashmiri red chili powder.
- It is best enjoyed with hot roti, parathas, or steamed rice.
- You can easily double or triple the recipe for a bigger crowd.
- This post is updated with new content, images and video, originally published in 2016
Nutrition
Warm regards,
Dhwani.
Sound great and I’d like to try. Just one question about the coriander and cumin powder. Is that two tablespoons of each powder or is that two tablespoons of a mixture of both powders? And if it is a “composite” powder – what’s the ratio of each component? I ask because in one of my cookbooks they use coriander-cumin powder that you mix up in a 2:1 ratio. Thanks.
It is mixture of both powders. Ratio is 2 (Coriander Powder) : 1 (Cumin Powder).
Let me know how it turns out for you.
thanks. 🙂
Thanks. I just finished make this dish. Yum! It was so nice and saucy that I got the idea to add some other vegies. Of course Cauliflower goes great with potatoes but since I didn’t have any on hand, I added some lightly cooked edamame (soy beans). Of course either the cauliflower or peas would be a more authentic Indian combination but the edamame worked very well! I did cut back on the chili powder (my husband is a wimp when it comes to hot). But I put enough to give it some zing. I think you could also throw green beans in. I will definitely add this dish to my list of “for company” dishes. (I’ll also put a comment out on Google.)
Thank you QueenLalique for trying and sharing feedback. Loved the way you customize it to make it more colorful!! I will surely try with edamame next time.