Aloo Phujia

Wow. Where has the week gone? Seems like it just disappeared in a whirlwind of monthly reports, mountains of invoices and precarious piles of to-file's. Oh how I long for the simpler days of long weekends... Erm.. wait, didn't we just have one?

Mmmm... I really need to have a look at this memory loss problem I'm experiencing. Because we did actually have a pretty relaxing long weekend at the West Coast, so I can't legitimately blame exhaustion much longer, can I? Well, let's just call it the midyear crazies then, shall we? And on top of that, I have to juggle various secretive missions for TheHusband's upcoming 30th in September. Can you believe I will be married to someone not in their twenties anymore (i.e. an official "oldie") soon? *Sigh* These are tough times, I tell ya.

Thank goodness for low maintenance feel-good meals like this potato curry. It's got just the right amount of bite, balanced by the mild starchiness of potatoes and the occasional pop of green courtesy of the peas. Although, if you are an ardent lover of all things tear-inducing you might want to dial up the heat on this one, as it is fairly mild.

In the meantime, I will be dialing up my sneaky activities just a notch. TheHusband is going to be pleasantly surprised I should think...

Aloo Phujia
Adapted from allrecipes.com

Serves 4

2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
5 - 6 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into cubes

1 tsp salt (or to taste)

1/4 tsp ground ginger

2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cumin

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 tomatoes, chopped 

1 cup frozen peas (optional)

1. Heat oil in a medium sized saucepan, then add onion and garlic, sauteeing over medium heat until softened.

2. Add potatoes, salt, ginger, garam masala, turmeric and cumin and stir to coat the potatoes with the spices. Cook, uncovered over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring a few times to prevent the potatoes sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add a little bit of water, if necessary, to prevent burning.

3. Stir in the tomato paste and chopped tomatoes, bring to a boil, then turn heat down to a simmer, cover and cook another 10 - 15 minutes or until potatoes are soft.

4. Add peas and mix through. Cook another 2 -3 minutes to defrost peas and distribute heat evenly. 

Serve as is or with rotis and basmati rice if you want to carb it up even more.