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Chaat Masala Potatoes with Yogurt and Tamarind

This punchy and kicky potato dish is a riff on an Indian street food classic. The flavours are wonderfully intense, with a balance of sweet, sour, and a bit of crunch as well. This makes a great side to grilled meats.

Course Side Dish
Cuisine Indian
Keyword chaat masala, green chutney, potatoes, tamarind, turmeric
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 lb 10 oz 750 grams baby new potatoes, cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch/ 1 cm thick slices
  • salt
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Chaat masala
  • 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
  • black pepper

Cilantro Chutney

  • 1 1/2 cups 30 grams cilantro
  • 1 green chile seeded and roughly chopped (2 Tbsp)
  • 1 Tbsp lime juice
  • 1/4 cup 60 ml olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Sweet Tamarind Dressing

  • 4 1/2 tsp store-bought tamarind paste
  • 1 1/2 tsp superfine sugar
  • 1/4 tsp Chaat masala
  • 1 1/2 tsp water

Final Dish

  • 1 cup 250 grams greek yogurt
  • 1/2 small red onion thinly sliced into rounds
  • 1 green chile thinly sliced into rounds
  • 1 1/2 tsp coriander seeds toasted
  • 1 1/2 tsp nigella seeds toasted

Instructions

Potatoes

  1. Preheat the oven to 450F (220C) and ine a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Place the potatoes and 2 tsp salt into a medium pot and cover with cold water by about 1 1/2 inches (4 cm) Place the pot on medium high heat and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 6 minutes, or until the potatoes are almost cooked through but still have some resistance. Drain these through a sieve and pat them dry. Transfer them to the baking sheet. Toss them with the olive oil, chaat masala, turmeric, 1/4 tsp salt and a good grind of black pepper. Roast, stirring about once or twice for 35 minutes or until deeply golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Chutney

  1. In a bowl of a small food processor, combine the cilantro, chopped chile, lime juice, olive oil and salt, and whiz till smooth. Set aside. This can be made earlier in the day and stored in the fridge.

Dressing

  1. In a small bowl whisk together the tamarind paste, sugar, chaat masala, and water till combined. Set aside. This can be made ahead and stored in the fridge.

Assemble

  1. Spread the greek yogurt on a large round serving platter. Top with dollops of the chutney, swirling it together artistically with a spoon (don't completely blend together, the yogurt should still be visible)
  2. Drizzle with some of the dressing over the yogurt mixture.
  3. Layer the potatoes evenly over the yogurt mixture. Top these with the red onions and sliced green chile. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and then sprinkle with the coriander and nigella seeds.

Recipe Notes

You can toast the coriander seeds and nigella seeds in advance.
Make the chutney and dressing in advance and store in the fridge till needed.  In fact double the recipes for each of these components and use them in sandwiches, wraps, or spoon over eggs etc.  They will last in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

This will mean that you are really only par-boiling and roasting the potatoes in advance, and then asssembling everything.