Chaat masala potatoes with yoghurt and tamarind

This dish is inspired by aloo chaat, an Indian street food that has many regional variations, all of which are not for the faint-hearted because they are loaded with sweet and sour and a fair bit of crunch. This is a slightly tamer version, though still pretty ‘noisy’, both in flavour and in looks.

Credit: Ebury Press

• serves

  4

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  45 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

It’s absolutely perfect for a weekend lunch, alongside other vegetables… You can also serve it as a side with roasted lamb or chicken. Both the coriander chutney and the tamarind sauce are great condiments to have on hand to brighten up sandwiches and wraps, to spoon over eggs, or to serve alongside tofu or fish. Double or triple them, if you like – the coriander chutney will keep in the fridge for up to a week and the tamarind sauce for up to 2 weeks.

Ingredients

• 750 g baby new potatoes, cut lengthways into 1cm-thick slices
• 1½  tbsp (30 ml) olive oil
• 1 tsp chaat masala (see Note)
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 250 g Greek-style yoghurt
• ½ small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced into rounds on a mandolin, if you have one, or by hand (45 g)
• 1 green chilli, thinly sliced into rounds (10 g)
• 1½ tsp coriander seeds, toasted
• 1½ tsp nigella seeds, toasted

Coriander chutney

• 30 g fresh coriander
• 1 green chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped (10 g)
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 60 ml olive oil

Sweet tamarind dressing

• 1 tbsp shop-bought tamarind paste, or double if you’re extracting it yourself from pulp
• 1½ tsp caster sugar
• ¼ tsp chaat masala (see Note)

Serves 4 as a side

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C fan-forced.

2. Put the potatoes and 2 teaspoons of salt into a medium saucepan and top with enough cold water to cover by about 4cm. Place on medium-high heat, bring to the boil, then simmer for 6 minutes, or until they’re almost cooked through but still retain a bite. Drain through a sieve and pat dry, then transfer to a large parchment-lined baking tray and toss with the oil, chaat masala, turmeric, ⅓ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper. Roast, stirring once or twice, for 35 minutes, or until deeply golden.

3. Meanwhile, make the coriander chutney. Put all the ingredients and ¼ teaspoon of salt into the small bowl of a food processor and blitz until smooth. Set aside until needed.

4. For the tamarind dressing, whisk together all the ingredients in a small bowl with 1½ teaspoons of water and set aside.

5. Spread the yoghurt out on a large round serving platter. Top with the coriander chutney, swirling it through without completely incorporating. Drizzle with half the tamarind dressing, and top with the potatoes, onion and chilli. Drizzle over the remaining tamarind, then sprinkle over the seeds and serve.

Note

• Chaat masala is the slightly tangy spice mix that gives this dish its distinctive flavour. It gets its sharpness from amchoor, dried mango powder, which is used widely in Indian cooking as a souring agent. You’d recognise the flavour from samosas and pakoras, where it is often used.

Extracted from Ottolenghi Flavour by Yotam Ottolenghi and Ixta Belfrage (Ebury Press, hb, $55)

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

It’s absolutely perfect for a weekend lunch, alongside other vegetables… You can also serve it as a side with roasted lamb or chicken. Both the coriander chutney and the tamarind sauce are great condiments to have on hand to brighten up sandwiches and wraps, to spoon over eggs, or to serve alongside tofu or fish. Double or triple them, if you like – the coriander chutney will keep in the fridge for up to a week and the tamarind sauce for up to 2 weeks.