Serves four as a side dish, 2 as a generous main
Over my life time I must have eaten this curry more often than any other. In Nepal, when times are tough potatoes and cauliflowers are always still available. We lived on this curry for 2 months after the monsoon floods in 1993 when the whole of Kathmandu was dependant on US and UK food aid. Then again in the last days of the Nepalese Monarchy during the 24 hour curfews, we’d sneak out and follow drainage ditches to buy supplies from farmers, ‘aloo cauli’ was our staple diet.
Ingredients
- 275 grams | 9 oz cauliflower equal sized florets plus a few of the leaves
- 275 g | 9oz waxy salad potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
- 80 g | 2½ oz shallots, finely sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger (approximately10 g), cut inti very fine matchsticks
- 1 green finger chilli, finely sliced (optional)
- 1 large tomato, roughly chopped
- 120 ml | ½ cup rapeseed or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon Panch Puran
- 1 ½ teaspoons Yak Yeti Yak or garam masala
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 400 ml | 1½ cups water
Method
Heat a wok or a heavy bottomed pan and add the oil, as soon as the oil is medium hot add the Panch Puran and chilli. Once the seeds begin to pop, turn the temperature down a little and add the potatoes. Cook the potatoes stirring them for 4-5 minutes until they are well covered in the oil. Add the shallots, garlic, ginger and salt and gently fry until the shallots start to turn translucent then add the masala. The masala will quickly stick to the base of the pan so once this happens add half the water and turn the heat back up, put a lid on the pan. Boil the potatoes until they are cooked but a little al dente, add the cauliflower florets, leaves and chopped tomato. Add more water as needed and continue to cook until the cauliflower is slightly al dente, check for salt and serve.