Shahi Dum Aloo / Alur Shahi Korma

In my opinion this is the ultimate rich curry one can make for potatoes. With cream, khoya and cashew nuts paste...the term “shahi” or royal before the name of the dish can’t be more apt!!   

This pure vegetarian recipe is a pure bliss for meat lovers like us, who can’t think beyond macher jhol and kosha mangsho. But lure us with luchi and alur dom and we will happily sacrifice the above two. New potatoes or baby potatoes are perfect to make alur dom / dam alu but in case of unavailability do away with normal potatoes but make sure you pick only those potatoes which has a good amount of starch in them, which will make the potatoes soft and fluffy and will give the curry a nice sticky texture.

Fry the potatoes until golden and crisp from outside.

Heat the ghee and tempwr it with green cardamoms, cinnamon stick, bay leaves and cloves. Saute for half a minute and then add the tomato puree.

Cook the tomato puree until oil separates and add ginger paste to it.

Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt. Add some water and cook for a minute.

Add cashew nuts paste, heavy cream and khoya. Mix everything well.

Add the potatoes, garam masala powder, broken cashew nuts and raisins.

Mix everything well and simmer for 2 minutes more or until the curry thickens and the oil starts to separate.

And also use homemade garam masala. It was love at first sniff I tell you, when I made garam masala in my tiny little mortar and pestle because I ran out of my readymade garam masala. And I must tell you that it was breathtaking. The gorgeous bursting smell of the freshly ground whole spices are just out of the world. Do sneak in some nutmeg and mace if you can and it will be better than any store bought garam masala in the world.

Shahi Dum Aloo / Alur Shahi Korma

Serves 6

Ingredients:

500gm baby potatoes

4 tomatoes – pureed

½  inch ginger – paste

10 whole unsalted cashew nuts

½ cup of heavy cream

2-3 tbsp crumbles khoya / evaporated milk

1 small cinnamon stick

3 green cardamoms

3 cloves

2 bay leaves

1 tsp turmeric powder

2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp homemade garam masala powder

2 tbsp white oil

2 tbsp pure desi ghee

Salt

1 tsp sugar

Method:

Make a smooth paste of the cashew nuts with some water. Grind them until the paste turns smooth and velvety without any coarse grainy residue.

Scrap the paste out of the grinder and keep in a bowl.

Boil the potatoes with their skin on in a heavy bottomed saucepan with some salt until you can poke the potatoes easily with a fork and the fork can be inserted smoothly to the centre of the potato.

Drain the water and keep the potatoes in a colander until cool enough to handle.

Once the potatoes cool down peel off their skin and keep them in a separate bowl.

Heat the oil in a kadai and shallow fry the potatoes until nice and golden from the outside. Keep them aside.

Add the ghee to the oil and add the cinnamon stick, green cardamoms, cloves and bay leaves. Before adding those to the ghee pound them a little using mortar and pestle.

Sauté the whole spices for half a minute or until the ghee becomes aromatic.

Now add the tomato puree and sprinkle some salt over them.

Cook the tomatoes, stirring often until they become thick with oil oozing out and then add the ginger paste.

Stir to mix and simmer for another minute.

Add the turmeric powder and red chilli powder and sauté for a minute allowing the spices to cook.

Add ½ cup of water and let it come to a boil.

Add salt and sugar to season the curry.

Add the cashew nuts paste that we have already prepared, followed by the heavy cream and khoya.

Mix them well and you will see the curry thickening almost instantly.

Now add the fried potatoes.

Add the garam masala powder, broken cashew nuts and golden raisins.

Mix them well and simmer on low flame until you see the oil separating from the curry.

Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Put off the flame and serve hot with hot paratha / luchi / naan.