Dum Aloo Recipe

Baby potatoes, cooked and then fried in the most deliciously spiced Indian gravy, is what a dum aloo recipe is all about. We’ve taken the traditional Punjabi dum aloo and the Kashmiri dum aloo and tweaked them to create our perfect blend, and judging by all the empty plates; our family thinks we’ve done a good job!

Why you’ll love this dum aloo recipe

• Your friends will think you’ve ordered a takeaway, and they’ll want the name of it.
• It’s bursting full of Indian flavors.
• It’s great as a main course or as a side dish.
• It’s 100% vegetarian and vegan.

We’ve created an Indian restaurant style aloo and experimented with it until it’s perfect and after extensive testing with our family and friends, we think you’ll agree that we’ve got it just right!

What is dum aloo called in English?

In English, Dum means to be slow-cooked, and aloo means potato.

What is Dum Aloo?

It’s a potato curry that contains baby potatoes in spiced Indian gravy.

What are the different types of dum aloo recipes?

The wonderful thing about Indian cooking is that it’s fluid and it’s reactive.

Recipes can change from one town to another due to ingredient availability and traditions.

When we traveled around India, one recipe would have so many different variations depending on where you were in the country and who was cooking for you.

You should try this Tandoori Aloo; it’s delicious.

There are three main dum aloo recipes, Kashmiri dum aloo, Punjabi dum aloo, and Indian restaurant dum aloo.

What is dum cooking?

Dum cooking is simply cooking slowly and in a pot with a lid to keep in the aroma.

Indian restaurant dum aloo

This recipe is Indian restaurant aloo, it’s been tweaked and isn’t traditional Kashmiri or Punjabi, but some would argue that it’s more universally appealing because it’s sweeter and creamier.

Typical spices used include turmeric, cloves, coriander powder, ginger, garlic, red chili powder, cumin powder, garam masala, and ground fenugreek.

Kashmiri dum aloo recipe

Kashmiri dum aloo is a popular Indian dish; this variation of dum aloo is made to be spicy and sour.

The baby potatoes are spiced; this recipe doesn’t use garlic or onion.

Typical spices include Kashmiri red chili powder, Cumin seeds, garam masala, ginger and garlic paste, turmeric powder, and Kasuri methi.

Whether you make a Punjabi dum aloo recipe, Kashmiri dum aloo, or our restaurant dum aloo, we’re certain you’re going to love it!

Punjabi dum aloo recipe

You’ll need to cook with spices and cream to recreate a typical Punjabi dum aloo recipe.

Typical spices used in Punjabi-style dum aloo include ginger powder, cardamon, fennel powder, and caraway seeds.

Do I have to deep-fry the baby potatoes?

It’s not essential, and we didn’t; we shallow fry our potatoes.

Why do you have to prick the baby potatoes?

You need to prick the potatoes so that you get maximum flavor.

The potatoes absorb all the delicious gravy they are cooked in by pricking a small hole.

What do I serve dum aloo with?

Dum aloo is a fantastic potato curry that goes incredibly well with a variety of side dishes.

• Raitas – try a bhindi raita, a boondi raita, or a cucumber raita, perfect for cooling down the spices of this aloo recipe.

• Rice – steamed rice, pilau rice, or jeera rice.

• Dal – try a chawal dal, tarka dal, or cauliflower dal.

• Bread – try naan bread, a peshwari naan, roti, or chapati.

Recipe notes and tips

• Don’t skip pricking the baby potatoes
  By pricking the fried potatoes, you’re allowing the flavor of the dum aloo gravy to be absorbed by the potato.
• Get ahead
  Make homemade ginger garlic paste the day before and store it in the fridge; check out our paste recipe.

More aloo recipes that you’ll love

If you love our dum aloo recipe, then you should give these aloo recipes a try; aloo gobi, saag aloo, aloo palak, aloo tikki, and jeera aloo.

How to make dum aloo with step-by-step instructions

Making our aloo recipe is easy if you follow our simple instructions.

Over medium-high heat, bring a pot of salted water to a boil, then add the baby potatoes and boil for 20 minutes.

When the potatoes are cooked, drain them, rinse them under cold water, and then peel the boiled potatoes.

In a skillet over high heat, add vegetable oil, then add your potatoes and fry, occasionally stirring to ensure an even browning.

Set aside and allow to cool, then in preparation, prick each potato 3-4 times with a cocktail stick so that the curry sauce can absorb the flavors into your potatoes.

Then, in the same pan, over medium heat, fry your green chilies, cloves, cinnamon stick, cardamom, and bay leaves for approximately 30 – 60 seconds.

Now, add your cashew nuts and cook for approximately 2 minutes.

Next, add onions, ginger, garlic, and tomatoes, then cook until the onions are soft and translucent for approximately 10 minutes, then remove from the heat.

When cool, remove the cinnamon stick and bay leaves, add the ingredients to your blender, and blend until a smooth paste has formed.

Now, add the paste to the pan, then add red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, fenugreek powder, and turmeric, stir to combine, cook for approximately 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, and don’t allow it to burn.

Next, add your whisked yogurt and stir to combine, then add water stir and cook for approximately 2 minutes.

Then, add garam masala, heavy cream, fennel seeds, salt, and pepper to taste and stir to combine, and simmer for approximately 2 minutes.

Now, add your cooked potatoes, and stir to ensure they are fully coated with your sauce; they need to be dum cooked, so place the lid on the pan and simmer for 5 – 10 minutes.

Next, tear up some fresh cilantro leaves, and scatter them over your cooked dum aloo.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

We hope you enjoy making and eating our dum aloo recipe and would love to know how you got on with making it.

Please leave a comment below and feel free to ask any questions you may have,

Why not try this Filipino fruit salad with cream cheese from So Simple Ideas.

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