Kari Pata r Badam Diye Alur Jhuri Bhaja / Shredded Potato Fries with Curry Leaves and Peanuts

Now that Durga Puja is just a few days away...I am missing badly my aunt’s julienne Potato Fries / Alur Jhuri Bhaja. Some also addresses them as jhiri jhiri alu bhaja. I don’t mind! After all...'what’s in a name??'

This beautiful slim and trim potato fries are made for dal- bhat or rice and lentils. Specially, Macher Matha Diye Bhaja Muger Dal. Ohh....what a delicacy!! And with some curry leaves and peanuts that ordinary fries got some real good features...flavours and crunch. Do you need more??M....nope!!

But this potato fries comes with a gallon of oils in it..downside...!! But of course...if you are a Calcatian...you will know that puja and pet puja (worshipping the appetite...in other words, eating as per the desire) are so synonymous for us!! We starve all the year so that we can get fit into those gorgeous dresses for the five days and can eat whatever we want!! So...yes...you are right!! That calorie...that oil does not count!! Keep reminding yourself that.

Kari Pata r Badam Die Alur Jhuri Bhaja / Shredded Potato Fried with Curry Leaves and Peanuts

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

4 medium starchy potatoes

7-8 curry leaves

A handful of peanuts

Enough white oil to deep fry

Salt

Method:

Peel the potatoes and wash with water.

Then with the help of a grater grate the potatoes.

Get all those grated potatoes in a big bowl and fill the bowl with water. Now start to squeeze and rinse the potatoes with hand. You will see the water turning whitish in colour. Drain the water and fill the bowl again with clean water. Again squeeze and rinse the potatoes. Repeat this process until you have clean water and the potatoes does not feel slippery to touch.

Drain the water and keep the potatoes in a colander or fine sieve to get rid of as much water as possible.

Heat the oil in a saucepan or kadai. The oil should not be too hot as that will brown the potatoes easily without making them crisp.

Add just a handful of those grated potatoes to the oil and let it fry. After almost 2 minutes, when the sizzling sound reduces a bit, stir the potatoes very gently so that they can cook evenly.

Fry for another minute and take them out of the kadai. Place those fries on a tissue paper or kitchen towel.

Follow this process until you are finished with all the grated potatoes.

Finally reduce the flame to low and add curry leaves and peanuts to the oil.

Fry until the peanuts turn a little brown.

Take them out of the pan and add them with the fried potatoes.

Transfer all of them into a container and sprinkle some salt over them.

Close the lid and give a good shake so that the salt gets distributed evenly.

Serve with lentils and rice.