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Aloo achar
Aloo ko achar: Nepali potato salad with toasted sesame, lemon and a sizzling fenugreek tempering
Aloo ko achar is the potato salad of Nepal, but tangy, nutty and hot rather than creamy. Boiled potatoes are tossed with ground toasted sesame, lemon juice, green chilli and timur, then finished with mustard oil in which fenugreek seeds have been fried dark. You find it everywhere: in tiffin boxes on the way to school, at picnics and on the long leaf plates of Newar feasts, alongside beaten rice and spicy beans, and it is a fixture at Dashain and Tihar gatherings when food has to sit out for hours. It keeps well, and the flavour improves after a rest. Dressing the potatoes while still hot is the usual mistake: they soak it up and turn mushy, so let them cool first. Chef's tip: toast the sesame until it just starts to pop and smells like popcorn, then grind it to a coarse sandy powder; it thickens the dressing and gives the salad its nuttiness.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the tempering
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Boil 1 ⅓ lb waxy potatoes in their skins in salted water over a medium-high heat for 15–20 minutes, until a knife slides in with little resistance but they don't crumble.
18 minStep 2: Meanwhile toast 3 tbsp white sesame seeds in a dry pan over a medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes, shaking, until golden and starting to pop. Tip onto a plate to cool, then grind to a coarse powder in a spice grinder or mortar.
4 minStep 3: Drain the potatoes and leave them until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. Peel and cut into 2 cm cubes. They should be barely warm before you dress them.
15 minStep 4: Put the potatoes in a bowl with ½ cucumber, 2 green chillies, the ground sesame, ½ tsp chilli powder, ¼ tsp timur (Nepali Sichuan pepper), 1 tsp salt and 3 tbsp lemon juice.
Step 5: Heat 3 tbsp mustard oil in a small pan over a medium-high heat until it smokes lightly. Off the heat, add ½ tsp fenugreek seeds and 2 dried red chillies and let them fry for 15–20 seconds, until the seeds are dark reddish brown. Stir in ½ tsp ground turmeric; it will foam and turn the oil bright yellow.
1 minStep 6: Pour the hot oil over the potatoes and fold everything together gently until every cube is yellow and coated. Taste for salt and lemon; it should be sharp and hot. Fold in ½ oz fresh coriander.
Step 7: Leave for at least 15 minutes before serving so the potatoes take up the flavours. It keeps 3 days in the fridge; bring it back to room temperature before eating.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 240 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does aloo achar take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of waxy potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of white sesame seeds?
- Poppy seeds or finely chopped pumpkin seeds, same amount.
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