Potato (Batato) ~ Curd Gojju.

“Potato (Batato) ~ Curd Gojju” … Batate Gojju is a side dish we love to have in my home and I add either curds / bimbul / tomato / ambado / star fruit for tartness … Delicious simple gojju that goes very well as an accompaniment with other yummy dishes … Yummy Yumz … 

** Both hubby and me are potato lovers. We love potato added to any dish be it sambar / kolumbo or ambat or upkari … any item you name it and we are fine with it. Though in my Mom’s place potato was something not enjoyed very much. As I loved it I got a huge share of it as nobody else wanted to relish it. Ha ha and I enjoyed any amount with glee. After marriage I was happy to know hubby also loved potatoes very much … bassss shuru hogaya silsila batate ka dishes ka … this gojju is one of his favorite. He either loves it with tomato or curds. I have already posted the one with tomato but it was a surprise when I searched for the same with curds. 

** I must somehow have missed posting it thinking I already have coz. this is one dish that is often made at home and it cannot so happen that I have not prepared it for 3 years of my blogging period. Anyways here is the simple recipe if you love potatoes like us. By the way it is a misconception that potatoes make you fat. It’s all in the mind. It really depends on how you cook it. Boiled one’s are safer, it’s the deep fried one’s that are not so good. For that matter any deep fried dish should be consumed in limit. So enjoy this potato gojju without guilt. 

** Ingredients : 

Potatoes / Batato / Aloo : 2 large sized or 4 medium sized. 

Curds / Dahi / Yogurt : 1 cup thick curds. 

Hinga Uddaka / Water prepared out of Asafoetida in gummy form : 1 tblsp 

(Check how to prepare hinga uddaka at the bottom of this recipe) 

OR 

Hing / Asafoetida Powder : 1tsp 

Green Chillies : 2-3 cut to pieces 

Salt for taste. 

** For Tempering : 

Coconut Oil : 1 tblsp or you can use any edible oil.

Urad Dal / Black Gram Dal : ½ tsp 

Methi / Fenugreek Seeds : ¼ tsp 

Jeera / Cumin Seeds : ½ tsp 

Mustard Seeds / Rai / Sasam : 1 tsp 

Dry Red Chilly : 1 

Curry Leaves / Kadi patta : 2-3 

** To Cook the Potatoes : Peel off the skin of the potatoes and cut them into 1-2 inch size pieces. Wash under running water and put them in a pressure cooker pan with one cup of water. Cover and pressure cook on medium heat for one whistle. Now lower the heat to minimum and let cook for 3-4 minutes. In between if the cooker leaves out whistle do not worry. Off the heat and let cool till the pressure in the cooker falls down on its own. Once you are able to open the lid without difficulty. Open and let cool to room temperature. 

** Put the cooked potatoes in a wide stainless steel bowl along with the water in which it was cooked. Mash it properly and evenly with hands or back of a spoon. You can also use a potato masher or fork. See to it that you mash it all over. If there are small pieces, don’t worry its ok, in fact nice to munch on those small potato pieces if you like them. Beat the curds with half a cup of water well and add it to the potato along with hing water, chopped green chillies and salt to taste. Mix well. If too thick you can add a little bit of boiled and cooled water. Keep the consistency little bit on thicker side. 

** For Tempering : Heat coconut oil (you can use any edible oil). When hot lower the heat and add in the urad dal, when the color changes slightly add in the methi, jeera, mustard seeds and fry for a few seconds. Now add in the red chilly cut to pieces along with curry leaves, stir fry and then add it over the prepared potato-curd gojju. 

** Cover and keep the gojju aside for a few minutes for the flavors to seep in. You can garnish with a few finely chopped coriander leaves if you wish. I did not. Also if you are not using hinga uddaka / hing water remember to add in hing into the oil when tempering. 

** “Potato (Batato) ~ Curd Gojju” is done and ready to be served as side dish. Serve this while you serve thali as a side dish or with any other accompaniment of your choice. It tastes delicious along with rice if you keep the spice level slightly higher. A delicious and healthy gojju that is sure to be loved by your family. Children love it and its best served with dal chawal. 

** You can use the search option for "Gojju or Bajji" where you will get many more dishes prepared in similar lines. Do try out various types of dishes to relish with dosa / Idly / roti etc. or with dal-chawal too. Enjoy the dishes with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible. 

** For Preparing of Hing / Asafoetida Water From Gummy Hing : Hing water is prepared by putting a small marble sized gummy hing (available in South Indian Stores) into a glass bottle and adding about a small cup of boiled and cooled water to it. Within a few hours the hing will slowly melt and you will get a thick whitish liquid. This is hing water. You can keep this in the fridge and use sparingly as and when needed. We GSB / Saraswat Konkani people usually prepare the same and keep it in the fridge always and use the same for dal, patrado or any other hummana etc. You can add hing / asafoetida powder if you do not have access to the gummy form of hing. 

** An Earnest Request : There are many more recipes of similar type in the blog. For all my Recipes, use the search option or the label section in the Blog. If you are still not able to find it please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. You can also go to my page (add on the left side of blog) and leave a message and I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible … Thank you. I have also started a food group for "Konkani Saraswats" by the name "KONKANI DELICACIES" the link of which is posted on the left side of the blog page. Do join us in our culinary journey. I strongly believe in Sharing and always endorse that "Sharing Is Caring".