ALOO DUM (a thick Potato curry)

Hellloooo,

One of the traditional and favorite Bengali recipes is Aloo Dum. No doubt that it's a favorite in my house as well. today, while my mom made chapatis for breakfast, I wanted to have aloo dum with it. But then, my mom had strict instructions not to use ginger, garlic and garam masala, and rather keep it light and less oily because of her indigestion issues. So, there I was, left with a challenge, to prepare Aloo Dum without onion, garlic and garam masala. In short, I had to prepare the curry without it's important ingredients. But tell you what, I felt so good when I saw my mom and dad relishing the aloo dum I prepared. How did I prepare? Well, here's how:

Ingredients:

4 medium size Potatoes, 1 tbsp White Sesame seeds, 1 tsp Ginger paste, Puree of 1 medium size Tomato, 2 tsp Fennel seeds (saunf), 1 tsp Cumin seeds, 1 tsp Coriander powder, 1 tsp Red Chili powder, 2-2 Green Chilies, 2-3 dry Red Chili, 3 Bay leaves, 3 tbsp Mustard oil, 1 tsp Turmeric powder, ½ tsp Sugar, Salt to taste, 3 cups warm Water, a dollop of fresh Cream for garnishing.

Procedure:

Peel and wash the potatoes, and cut them into equal halves. Roast the sesame seeds on low flame, making sure it doesn't burn. When it starts releasing a nice aroma, bring it off the flame. In a blender, drop the roasted sesame seeds, 1 tsp fennel seeds, green chilies and a little water; and blend them to a fine paste. Now heat oil on a pan. Add the bay leaves and dry red chilies. Once the chilies start turning brown, add cumin seeds and 1 tsp fennel seeds. Wait for 5 seconds, and then add the potatoes. Sprinkle salt and turmeric powder, and mix well. Now cover the lid and allow the potatoes to cook on medium flame. Check if the potatoes have grown tender. Then add the tomato puree, ginger paste, coriander powder, red chili powder, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Finally add the sesame-fennel paste and mix properly. Add 3 cups warm water and ½ tsp sugar. Cover the lid and cook on medium heat until the curry thickens. Garnish with a dollop of fresh cream.