Savory Aloo Fry

I could eat a LOT of this stuff.

Scratch that—I do eat a lot of this stuff when I make it. Simple as it is, aloo fry is one of the best Indian dishes. And that's a fact, not an opinion. Aloo means potato in Hindi. And fry means... fryyy? Yeah, I think it's just code for fried potatoes and those are the best.

Whether potatoes are considered paleo, I care not. Let the debate rage on. Everything in life is subjective except the thing I just said about aloo fry being the best. So if potatoes are on your personal menu, you should be making them this way.

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Simple Aloo Fry

Paleo, Whole30, Gluten-Free, Vegetarian, Vegan
 

Ingredients

• 6 medium potatoes, cubed
• 2 small red onions, sliced very thinly
• 2 jalapeños, minced very tiny
• zest of one lemon
• lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon (up to one lemon, depending on how tangy you like it)
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 T ghee (you could make this vegan by using olive or coconut oil)
• optional: fresh cilantro, chopped
• optional: a couple of whole curry leaves
   

Instructions

1. Start browning onions in a large frying pan on medium-high heat with ghee or olive oil. They don't need to be perfectly caramelized onions (you're not making French onion soup after all), but they should have a nice sweetness to them. Patience.
2. Boil potato cubes in salted water until almost cooked through, about 8 minutes (check them often to avoid overcooking!).
3. When the onions are starting to brown nicely and the almost-fully-cooked potatoes are drained, add more ghee to the large frying pan and let it heat up. Add the jalapeños and let them sizzle for a minute.
4. Then add the cumin and mustard seeds to the pan (now would be the time to add the curry leaves if you have them). Let the seeds pop for a few seconds.
5. Then stir in the turmeric, lemon zest, salt, pepper into the pan party.
6. Finally, add the potatoes and let them fry, pushing them around as needed to evenly brown them on as many sides as possible (and cook them thoroughly).
7. When the potatoes are cooked through, add the lemon juice and adjust salt if needed. If the jalapeños were milder than usual, feel free to add some cayenne pepper to spice it up too.
8. Garnish with fresh cilantro. 

P.S. If you like Indian dishes, I have a whole bunch on this blog like Keema, Gobi Masala Soup, Mint-Coriander Chutney, Shrimp Vindaloo, Goan Fish Curry and Carrot-Cardamom Halva Bars.