Ingredients
6 medium potatoes
5 tbsp vegetable oil
1/8 tsp ground asafetida or 1/8 inch lump a, safetida
1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds
2 1/2 tsp whole black mustard seeds
1 dried red peppers (1-3)
1 medium onion-coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
2 tbsp lemon juice
Directions
Boil potatoes in their jackets. Peel them and mash coarsely with
a fork or hand masher.
Heat the oil in a 10-12 inch skillet over medium heat. When hot,
first put in it the asafetida; after it has sizzled for a few
seconds, add the cumin and mustard seeds; then in 10 seconds or so,
the red pepper(s). Use 1 for mildly hot, 3 for very hot. When pepper
changes color (1 to 5 seconds), put in the chopped onions and
turmeric. After the onions have cooked 3 to 5 minutes and turned
brown at the edges, put in the mashed potatoes, salt, garam masala
and lemon juice. Fry, stirring and mixing, for 5 to 7 minutes.
To serve: Place in a warm dish and serve with Indian bread or
remove whole red pepper and serve as an appetizer on top of Melba
rounds.
: An Invitation to Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey
: uploaded by Diane Lazarus
Note 1: the Indian name of this dish is Pyazwale Sookhe Aloo. Note 2:
use a salt-substitute instead of salt Note 3: I've made this without
the asafetida because I don't know where
to find it.
Servings: 6 servings
Potatoes With Onions Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Potato; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
Academics have proved the existence of recipes way back into distant history, in truth as far back as the Egypt of the Pharoahs, and potentially, even further back. Having said that, sadly, these old recipes were just basic hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for preparing meals.
Fascinatingly, the most ancient recipe in existence, according to food historians are a few tablets in the Sumerian language which recount the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made those who drank it feel blissful. As we move into The time of the roman empire 25BC a roman called Apicius assembled a few documents which described recipes cooked by the Romans. In his works, Apicius tells us how the meals were divided into appetizers, main course and afters, a style of dining still practiced today. This early Roman chef recounts how the cooks of his times used a wide range of aromatic flavors, including some that we all recognise for example thyme, mint and asafoetida. As our culinary historical trip moves to more modern times there were two interesting recipe books published in the fourteenth century ; a cookery book published under the title `Forme of Cury`, and another called `Curye on Inglish`. Amusingly, these two books are not about the curry that is popular today, but instead recipes for the types of meals enjoyed by the rich and wealthy people of the time. In the 15th century, knights returning from the crusades brought back many new foods and spices from Arab countries, including spices like basil and coriander. These new spices and herbs created a torrent in manuscripts on cooking, many of which are kept safe in private collections. Over the next few centuries, the upper-class families of Wesstern Europe tried to offer the most extravagent banquests, and as a consequence, the best chefs and their recipe collections were at a premium. Even so, it was during the nineteenth century that formal cookery and recipe collections reached a high level of popularity. Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and the equally famous Fannie Farmer in the US, devoted their lives to assembling, trying out, and writing down the recipes of their peers. By the arrival of the twentieth century, cookery publications were starting to become popular as a result of more people being able to read, people having increased leisure time and having more money to spend. The introduction of television brings us celebrity TV chefs and the demand for the spin-off recipe books. Which brings us neatly up to date and the invention of the internet, allowing everyone to access thousands of recipes just like those on sites such as this. |
We hope you enjoy this Potatoes With Onions recipe.
