Afghan Potato RecipesTry a Potato Recipe from
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The Afghan recipes in this cookbook include Afghan potato recipes adapted for the North American kitchen including potatoes with yogurt, potatoes deep fried in batter and potato-stuffed pastries.Afghan Food & Cookery: Noshe Djan
Also included is a section entitled "The Afghan Kitchen," which provides essentials about cooking utensils, spices, ingredients and methods.
Here are several of our favorite Afghan potato recipes:
Tamarind Potatoes
Ingredients:
8 small boiling potatoes
1 1/2 tbsp. Tamarind paste
2 cups water
1/4 cup corn oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. ground fennel
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Salt
Directions:
Dissolve tamarind paste in 1 cup water. Let the paste stand for 30 minutes. Strain and reserved the tamarind liquid.
Boil potatoes in their skins until they are just tender. Cool completely, then peel. Pierce each potato in four places with a wooden skewer.
Heat corn oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until crisp and lightly browned, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Remove from skillet. Place potatoes in skillet and brown well on all sides. Remove from skillet.
Pour off all but 1 tablespoon oil from skillet. Add ginger and garlic and stir 1 minute. Stir in pepper flakes and turmeric. Blend in 2 tablespoons water. Mix in onion then add the potatoes, tamarind liquid and remaining 14 tablespoons water. Stir in cardamom, fennel, cinnamon and pepper.
Cover and simmer all ingredients together until the sauce has thickened slightly...about 15 minutes. Season with salt and serve.
Serves 4
Afghanistan Golden Potato Slices with Cilantro Chutney These Afghan batter dipped potatoes, and other Afghan potato recipes, are often served with a chutney known as chutni gashneetch.
Ingredients:
4 medium potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 egg
Vegetable oil
Salt
Cilantro Chutney (recipe below)
Potatoes: In a large kettle, heat 1 inch salted water (1/2 teaspoon salt to 1 cup water) to boiling. Add potatoes. Heat to boiling; reduce heat, cover and simmer until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and cool. Cut potatoes into 1/4 inch slices.
Batter: Whisk together the flour, 1/2 cup water, salt, turmeric, red pepper and egg until smooth. Cover and let stand 30 minutes.
In a large skillet, heat oil (1 to 1 1/2 inches) to 375 F. Dip potato slices into batter, allowing excess batter to drip back into bowl. Fry a few potato slices at a time, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon. Drain and sprinkle with salt.
Cilantro Chutney for Afghan Potato Recipes:
1 cup fresh cilantro, snipped
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoon fresh mint , snipped or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried mint leaves
1 teaspoon gingerroot, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 green jalapeno pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/2 small onion, chopped
Directions:
Place all ingredients in blender container or food processor. Cover and blend on high speed, stopping blender to scrape sides occasionally, until smooth, about 1 minute.
Serve with Golden Potato Slices or other potato recipes.
Serves 8
Afghan Potato Recipe for Boulanee (Mashed Potato and Meat Turnovers)
Ingredients:
4 large potatoes
1 bunch cilantro
1/2 tsp. coriander
1 Tbsp. corn oil
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Eggroll Skins 1 pound ground beef
1/2 bunch of green onions
Directions:
Wash the potatoes, then boil them until they are tender (approx. 20 minutes.) Brown one pound of ground beef with one-half teaspoon black pepper, one-half teaspoon salt, and one-half teaspoon of coriander.
When the potatoes are are tender, drain, peel and mash thoroughly. Mix the cooked ground beef with one-half teaspoon of salt, one-half teaspoon of coriander, one-quarter teaspoon cayenne pepper, one-half bunch of cilantro, and one-half bunch of chopped green onions.
To wrap the boulanee, place the eggroll skin on a flat, clean surface. Place a portion of the potato and meat filling in the middle of the eggroll skin. Dip a finger into water, and lightly wet the edges around the eggroll skin. Fold the eggroll in half to make a triangle, and seal the edges.
Heat about 1 tablespoon of corn oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute boulanee for 4 or 5 minutes, until lightly browned. Add a bit more oil to the pan when necessary. This potato recipe, and many other Afghan potato recipes, can be served with with yogurt sauce.
Jewish Afghan potato recipes include this recipe for Stuffed Potato Fritters (Kartoff Mumulay)
Stuffing Ingredients:
1/4 cup corn oil
3 medium (1-1/2 cups) onions, chopped
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Potato Fritters Ingredients:
3 pounds potatoes, cooked in jackets until soft
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup matzoh meal
Directions:
Heat oil in a skillet and stir-fry onions over moderate heat until golden. Add ground beef, salt, and pepper, and stir-fry until mixture is dry and all liquid has evaporated. Cool.
Peel potatoes and mash well. Mix together all fritter ingredients to prepare dough.
Shape 1/2 cup of potato dough into a circle in palm of hand. Place 1 generous Tbs. stuffing in center and fold the dough over into a slightly flattened sausage shape (3-inches long, 1-inch wide, and 1-inch thick.)
Pan-fry potato fritters in oil over moderate heat until brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels and serve warm.
Makes about 25 potato fritters.
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