Alu Mattar (Braised Potato and Peas)

Curry Bible, p. 207

2 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil

½ teaspoon cumin seeds

2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes

1 fresh hot green chili, slit and deseeded

¼-inch piece fresh ginger, shredded

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

Salt and black pepper

½-3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 cup frozen peas

1 teaspoon sugar

You can chalk up peeling the potatoes as your upper-arm workout for the day.

As always, "cubes" is a relative term when you're cutting up something round.

Don't chop him up this time - he's just there to sit in the pot and be flavorful.

In a medium-sized saucepan heat the oil and fry the cumin seeds until they pop and splutter. Add the potatoes, chili, ginger and garlic, and toss in the oil to seal. 

Being cheap, I just threw some ground cumin in with that first set of ingredients. 

Then add ½ cup water, plus the coriander, cumin, tomatoes, salt, pepper and turmeric.

Chillin' chili.

Cover the saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes, then uncover the pan and allow everything to gently boil until the potato is almost cooked and the sauce well reduced. 

Watch the biggest pieces of potato, since they take the longest to cook. 

Add the peas and sugar and cook for a few minutes until soft. 

Accidental pea-face on the chili. :)

Gotta love a golden potato.

Check seasonings and serve.

I ate it over some rice and made it a complete meal. 

My Rating: 3/5 "This keeps wonderfully well, and if you're eating it with rice it makes for three or four nice, hearty meals. My rating here is mitigated by the fact that I'm not wild about potatoes OR peas - the fact that I rated these this high means that this was a damn good combination of spices."