ALOO MATTAR (CREAMY PEAS & POTATOES) - INDIAN

I will give you an algorithm to make your very own pot of
aloo mattar, with a slight variation on the main recipe.
For those of you who reckon Indian dishes in western
terminologies, this is the same as Curried Potatoes and
Peas in a creamy sauce with tomatoes and fresh coriander.
It may sound a little odd for a South Indian to give the
recipe for a typically North Indian dish - sort of like
males trying to sing Meera Bhajans. But let the
finger-licking results speak for themselves.

Let us start with chopping about five medium sized onions.
My grandmother always told me that you can tell a lot
about a person by the way he or she chopped onions. I mean
there are those machisimos who shed no tears while
chopping them by the dozens, the impressionists-cubists
who refine it to an art-form and the messy ones. Hold the
onion by their non-bushy end, chop the hairy cap off.
Oops, you should have kept your finger slightly away from
the knife. It is always easy to peel off the skin once the
onion is cut into two halves. Make those longitudinal
incisions first and then while holding the onion firmly
and gently, make perpendicular cuts. Make sure the pieces
are finely chopped. Then chop about two tablespoons of
fresh ginger and about five cloves of garlic. Chop fresh
coriander and set aside a third of it for later
garnishing. Don't forget the tomatoes. Take about three of
them and chop them finely.

It is potato time now. Nothing seems so commonplace and
lowly like the potatoes. It may come as a surprise to you,
but in the ancient times, potatoes were considered to be
aphrodisiacs in India and were cultivated everywhere.

Well, chop about five potatoes to bite size pieces. Saute
them in medium heat in oil or margarine or a little
butter, turning them every once in a while. Set aside when
they are browned. Indian cooking is always done at low to
medium heat and you take all the time in the world about
it. One wrong move, you would have already made a gravy
error of gastronomical proportions. Self, for example, is
a slow cooker, not a 'pressure'cooker.

Now heat some oil in a pot and when slightly heated, add a
teaspoon of jeera. (and don't pronounce it as 'kyoomin',
it is 'cumin') When the seeds crackle, add the onions and
fry in medium heat until they almost become brown (about
five minutes) add the tomatoes and fry for a while (about
ten to twenty minutes) until the whole thing becomes one
solid glob with oil separating out on the sides. When it
is almost on the verge of getting burnt, add
ginger-garlic, coriander. Don't forget to keep stirring.
Add also ten cloves, about six cardamoms (or one black
elaichi) two teaspoons of coriander powder and about three
(broken) two-inch sticks of cinnamon and cook for
additional two minutes. Once all this is fried, set aside
and let it cool a while.

Then blend this mix in a blender, in two installments if
necessary, to a coarse, but homogeneous pulp, with an 8
oz. of whipping cream. (you can find this in the dairy
section) For a change, you can add ten almonds while
blending. Then return the blended glob to the pot. Heat it
to medium low, add water, 6 oz. of tomato paste, about a
teaspoon and a half of chili powder, salt to taste and
stir it to homogenize. Add water to make your gravy watery
or thick. Add the potatoes and also a cup of thawed frozen
peas. Cover the top and let it cook and stir every once in
a while, with tender loving care. Don't stand too close to
the pot, my dear, or you will get those little red spots
splattered all over your white shirt. You will see that
the gravy changes color from a dull rose to an appetizing
brown. When you think it has cooked enough, take it off
and let it cool. Check for spicyness. Since this has a
lot of cream and tomato paste, it may taste a little weak
for some bold people. In that case, add some more spices
and let it cook some more. Garnish with chopped coriander.

This is also a generic gravy to which you can add other
things and make other dishes. Instead of potatoes, you can
add bite-sized chicken pieces shallow-fried in butter. Or,
you can bake riccotta cheese in a cookie tray at 250
degrees for a half an hour and cut it into small paneer
cubes and fry them in butter and make mattar paneer. See,
it is simple.

And friends, like most Indian dishes, Aloo Mattar too
tastes better the next day, after a little fermentation.
Reheat it slowly, since the dish would have become quite
solid after sitting in the fridge overnight. And as
always, remember to share it with your friends. Enjoy!