The Spiced Life

Musings & Recipes From My Kitchen

  • Home
  • About Me
  • FAQ
  • Dishes By Region
  • Archive and Index
  • Creative Cookie Exchange
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
You are here: Home / chickpeas / Potatoes & Chickpeas: Food That Is Good For The Soul

Potatoes & Chickpeas: Food That Is Good For The Soul

November 7, 2009 By Laura 13 Comments

Sharing is caring!

  • Facebook
  • Yummly
  • Twitter
  • Email


I have discovered that, second to Mexican/Latin flavors, Indian flavors are fast becoming one of the things I crave when I am sick. Hearty, warming, homey, soul food. No doubt my parents are staring at this in some confusion wondering how Indian food has come to be comfort food for me since I had never even tried Indian food until after college. My family, escept my sister, has a strong aversion to Indian food, so of course I waited until my mom had left, but then the first thing I made for us was this dish of chickpeas on rice with potatoes. A little starchy, yes, but I crave starch when sick AND I started with the potato dish, but everything else I looked at and felt up to making seemed to need rice served with it. So 2 starches it was.


Both of these dishes were wonderful. The chickpeas were the more exciting discovery as I had never cooked with amchur before (dried green mango powder) and unsurprisingly I loved it (it is sour). It was somehow earthy and sour at the same time–which I had read but not really grasped until trying it, since that seems like opposing flavors to me. If you like sour foods I cannot urge you strongly enough to pick up some of this “spice” (it’s not really a spice). Expect to see more dishes with it on this blog. Even now as I write this, several days later, I am craving more of those chickpeas, and there is a pot of dried chickpeas simmering away on the stove, waiting for me to try a new variation.

But I don’t mean to shortchange the potatoes. The simmering makes them much creamier than regular sauteed potatoes, and the onions and mustard seeds are the perfect complement to the tubers. And if you are wondering, both my kids devoured both these dishes. I guess no one will be surprised if they think Indian flavors are comfort food!


I said a while back that with fall my pictures get sadder–wow, with the time change I had forgotten what it was like to serve dinner in the dark! I need to get the photo box set back up in the dining room (we eat in the kitchen) so that it is always ready and waiting for photos. These pictures are the sad result of photographing on a crowded counter with absolutely no daylight to supplement the kitchen lights. But I was hungry, tired and coughing, so dim pictures are pretty much what you get.


Urala Kilangu (Potatoes With Onions and Mustard Seeds)
Adapted from Shoba Ramji’s recipe of the same name in Madhur Jaffrey’s Flavors Of India

2 T vegetable oil
1 T ghee
1 heaping t brown mustard seeds
20-25 fresh (or frozen) curry leaves
2 medium-large onions, thinly sliced
salt to taste
1/2 t turmeric
1/2 t paprika or cayenne pepper
1 lb boiling potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1 medium tomato, chopped (I used a frozen tomato)
1 pinch of asafetida

Heat the oil in a large nonstick or well seasoned pan over medium high heat. Add the ghee. When hot, add the mustard seeds. When they start to pop, add the curry leaves (stand back! they will splatter). Stir a few times. Now add the onions and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Cook until they are starting to brown at the edges. Add the turmeric and paprika/cayenne powder with another pinch of salt. Stir fry another 2-3 minutes. Add the potatoes and toss, coating the potatoes evenly with onions. Add the tomato and asafetida. Stir. Add 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of water and bring to a boil.

Cover the potatoes and reduce the heat to medium or medium low depending on your burner–you want a vigorous simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the water is absorbed and the potatoes are fork tender (this is why I recommend boiling potatoes–I am concerned baking potatoes might fall apart). Remove the cover and fry the potatoes, stirring occasionally, on medium low heat for 5 minutes, to completely rid the dish of water and also to brown the potatoes a little. Sprinkle with salt to taste.


Amchur Chana
Closely adapted from 660 Curries, Raghavan Iyer

2 T vegetable oil
1 t cumin seeds
2 green cardamom pods
3 cinnamon sticks (3 inches long)
3 medium tomatoes, crushed (or use 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes, but I used frozen from the summer tomatoes)
2 T amchur powder
1 scant T ground coriander
1 t ground cumin
salt to taste
1/2 t paprika or cayenne
1/4 t turmeric
3 cups cooked chickpeas (I used 2 cans rinsed and drained)
2 T chopped cilantro, divided in half
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

Heat the oil in a medium sized saucepan over medium high heat. Add the cinnamon stick and cardamom pods and roast until fragrant. Add the cumin seeds and continue to roast until the seeds are fragrant and browning–but do not burn. This will be a matter of seconds. Add the tomatoes, mango powder, coriander, ground cumin, cayenne/paprika and turmeric. Sprinkle a pinch of salt in to taste as well. Bring the sauce to a simmer and lower the heat to medium or medium low. Continue to simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until the oil starts to separate from the sauce. This will take 5-10 minutes.

Stir in the chickpeas, 1 cup of water and half of the cilantro. Cover the pan and simmer the curry, stirring occasionally, until the flavors blend and the sauce thickens, about 20-25 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle with remaining cilantro and chopped red onion, and taste for salt. Serve with rice or bread.

Filed Under: chickpeas, curry, Indian recipes, potato dishes, potatoes, vegetarian

« (Leftover) Pumpkin French Toast
Sour Cream Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake »

Comments

  1. Gloria says

    November 7, 2009 at 6:35 pm

    Love chickpeas this look really tasty! gloria

    Reply
  2. Grace says

    November 8, 2009 at 7:53 am

    green mango powder? wait, green mangos? ah, the number of things out there that i've never tried continues to astound me. the chickpea dish sounds interesting and tasty–comfort food indeed!

    Reply
  3. Simran says

    November 8, 2009 at 8:16 am

    I crave chickpeas too when I am sick (but then I crave chickpeas most of the time anyway).

    You couldn't have said it better – amchur is sour and earthy at the same time.

    Reply
  4. Joanne says

    November 8, 2009 at 10:55 am

    I never had Indian food until college but, like you, it is up there among potential comfort foods. Similarly, sweet potatoes and winter squash never set foot into my house as a child and yet they are the foods that I crave constantly. It goes to show you can't account for taste!

    These two dishes look delicious. I am having a hard time adjusting to the time change/lighting issues as well. Sigh.

    Reply
  5. Daily Spud says

    November 8, 2009 at 4:59 pm

    Potatoes and chickpeas are two of my absolute favourite things to eat and I adore amchoor, so these dishes would be right up my street!

    Reply
  6. That Girl says

    November 8, 2009 at 10:29 pm

    I crave starch when I'm sick too. And when I'm not sick

    Reply
  7. Amy says

    November 9, 2009 at 10:53 pm

    Ditto on the starch, ThatGirl! As usual this sounds awesome and I'm sad not to live at your place because I am definitely too lazy to try it. Also, my parents are like yours and I am LIVING with them now! The other day I offered to make black bean soup for dinner and got shot down. Sigh…

    Reply
  8. Vicci says

    November 13, 2009 at 8:01 am

    I am definitely making this over the weekend. Once more, Laura, thanks for posting!

    Reply
  9. Mother Rimmy says

    November 14, 2009 at 1:17 pm

    This recipe looks wonderful. I love chickpeas. I'll be trying this dish.

    Reply
  10. Kathy Gori says

    November 14, 2009 at 9:57 pm

    this looks great!

    Reply
  11. Andrea@WellnessNotes says

    November 14, 2009 at 9:59 pm

    I love chickpeas. The flavors in both dishes sound great!

    Reply
  12. No-Frills Recipes says

    November 15, 2009 at 10:38 am

    This is a very healthy dish. Looks great too.

    Reply
  13. Linda says

    November 23, 2009 at 7:09 pm

    What a great blog! I've been checking out some of your recipes, and you impress me as a very creative, adventurous cook and baker. I like that you are so fearless in your use of the spices and seasonings that scare me–you really make it look delicious! 🙂

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi! I’m Laura and I am a recovering history major who has re-channeled all of my passion for learning about the history of different countries to learning about their food culture. That doesn’t mean every dish on here is strictly authentic, but it does mean that even my adaptations are not undertaken lightly. My goal is to show you–by doing–that these dishes are possible in your kitchen. Including desserts because I have quite the sweet tooth! Read More…

Twitter Facebook Pinterest Instagram
Enter your email here and never miss a post!

Popular Posts

  • Restaurant Style Beef Vindaloo
  • Taralli Dolci di Pasqua (Southern Italian Easter Cookies): #CreativeCookieExchange
  • Mexican Ramen Bowl
  • Grandma’s Beef and Noodles
  • New Orleans Style Pain Perdu (French Toast)
  • Saag Gosht (Beef in Fragrant Spinach Sauce)
  • Moroccan Inspired Couscous Bowl with Ground Beef, Veggies and Caramelized Onions (redux)
  • Middle Eastern Scrambled Eggs with Meat and Onion: Review of An Edible Mosaic
  • North Indian Baked Eggs: Review of Seven Spoons
  • Goan Influenced Goat Stew in the Slow Cooker

Copyright © 2008–2023 The Spiced Life