Aloo 65 (South Indian Snack Potato 65)

Ingredients

For battered potato

Potato: 1 cup, peeled and cut into cubes

Corn flour: 2 tbsp

Plain flour: 1/3 cup

Kashmiri red chilli powder: 1/4 tsp

Oil: for deep frying

Water: 1/3 cup (you may need a little less or more based on the quality of flour)

Salt: as required

For Seasoning

Oil: 2 tbsp

Cumin seeds: 1 tsp

Garlic: 1 tsp, finely chopped

Red chillies: 2, broken

Kashmiri red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp

Curry Leaves: few

Yogurt: 2 tbsp

Coriander: handful, chopped

Salt: as required

Step By Step Instructions

In a wide bowl add cornflour, plain flour, salt, Kashmiri chilli powder.

Combine water and whisk well until you get a smooth and lump-free batter.

Add potato cubes and coat with the batter.

Heat oil in deep kadai, fry battered potato cubes until crisp and light golden colour.

Remove the fried potatoes and drain over a kitchen towel.

To make a yogurt-based sauce, heat oil in a pan and saute cumin, red chillies, curry leaves, garlic.

Reduce the heat to the lowest setting, add yogurt, chilli powder and stir until well combined.

Toss fried potato cubes and coriander until well coated with the sauce.

Enjoy delicious potato starters potato 65 on its own or pair it with rice.

Serving Suggestion

Serve it as an appetiser/starter.

For kids, serve it with a glass of mango lassi to compensate the spiciness of potato 65. It pairs well with chapati and naan as it has a little bit of sauce.

This potato starter goes well with mildly flavoured rice such as Jeera Rice, Coconut rice.

Notes

Kashmiri red chilli powder gives a nice and bright colour to the dish. It is not necessary to use an artificial colouring agent. Adjust red chillies and chilli powder as per your preferred spice levels.

I have used only Kashmiri chilli powder which is not so HOT but imparts vibrant colour and the spice levels of this dish are perfect for my family. If you prefer your dish to be a little spicy, add a little hot variety chilli powder or a couple of chopped green chillies.

Allow cumin to crackle before you add the rest of the ingredients.

Based on the quality of the flour, you may need little less or more water than mentioned here. Add a little water at a time and work through to make a smooth batter. Ensure the batter is neither too runny nor too thick.

Reduce the heat to the lowest setting, add yogurt and mix well quickly to prevent curdling. Alternatively, take the pan off the heat, add yogurt, mix well and then put the pan back on the burner and continue to cook on low heat.

For the past few weeks, curry leaves are not at all available in stores, so I had to use frozen ones that I stored long ago. I would recommend fresh leaves as they impart the lovely flavour and aroma.

Add finely chopped onions to the seasoning for added flavour (I just forgot to add them in the video!).

How did aloo 65 get its name?

This is an adapted recipe of chicken 65 for vegetarians. Funny name, great taste, chicken 65 has an interesting history of its origin.  Some say the dish has derived its name from being item number 65 on the menu of an army canteen in Chennai.

Some claim the dish was introduced by the Buhari hotel in 1965, so named after the year of introduction. Regardless of the history, chicken 65 became very popular along with Potato 65, Gobi 65 and Paneer 65.

Although there are many variations of the aloo 65 recipe, I have shared the Indian restaurant-style aloo 65 recipe here.