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Aloo makala
crisp whole fried potatoes
Whole potatoes simmered, then fried slow and low until glassy-crisp outside and soft within — the Baghdadi-Bombay table's most fought-over dish.
- 15 min
- 35 min
- 50 min
- 4
- Moderate
This is the dish that tells you someone is from a Baghdadi-Bombay family. The community carried it from Iraq to India and never let it go — golden potatoes that crackle when you press them and give way to something almost creamy.
The trick is patience and dryness. Boil the potatoes only until barely tender, dry them like your reputation depends on it, then fry low for half an hour. Rushing the heat gives you brown, not glass.
Ingredients
- 12 small waxy potatoes, peeled and left whole
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tbsp salt
- Neutral oil, for deep frying
Method
- Simmer the whole potatoes in salted, turmeric-stained water for 10 minutes, until just yielding but not soft.
- Drain very well and let them steam-dry completely — any water will spit in the oil.
- Heat oil in a deep pan to a gentle 150°C / 300°F.
- Lower in the potatoes and fry low and slow for 25–30 minutes, turning now and then.
- Raise the heat at the very end to set a deep-gold, glassy crust.
- Lift out, drain, and finish with a little more salt while hot.