Culinary Chronicles
By Yasmin Rahul Bakshi
Many dishes are in common with Assamese and Bengali cuisines. Like Aloo Pitika in Assam is Aloo Bhorta in the second. Called by different names yet the recipe remains identical.
An uncomplicated entree that almost took me a week to grasp!
During our tenure in Guwahati, each dawn the cab picked me up and, later, a colleague for work. While I waited for her to arrive, a camp of road workmen caught my fancy where the preparation for their first meal of the day was going on.
I noticed a heap of steaming hot mashed potatoes with julienned onions on top; was confident enough that it could not be for “Aloo Paranthas”. Left me wondering what it could be for.
The following day the scenario was alike except for a pot of boiled rice that was placed on the side. The combination of steamed potatoes and rice did not click.
On the third day there was an advancement, I observed crisp fried whole chillies on the top of the potatoes and the onions.
I could not control the curiosity, hence asked my workmates as we took a break for coffee. Though locals, they still could not understand what I was trying to figure out.
The fourth day – I saw something more. The cook of the camp was crumbling the fried chilies and mixing in the potato mash.
I returned home and asked the domestic help if he knew of anything regional of that sort. He seemed ignorant.
Got slightly delayed on the fifth day, spotted the man pouring hot oil over the potato mixture. As days passed by, the curious cat within me became stronger. Had to find out what it was.
Once again, I made an effort to ask my colleagues. And! Eventually got the answer – Aloo Pitika. When one replied, the entire pack seemed to be aware of this comfort food.
Ingredients:
- Potatoes – ½ kg
- Onions – 2 medium sized (julienned)
- Whole dried red chilies – 3 to 4
- Mustard oil – 3 Tbsp
- Salt – according to taste
- Coriander leaves – 1 Tbsp (chopped)
Steps:
- Wash and boil the potatoes with skin in a pressure cooker.
- While hot, peel and mash them.
- Place the julienned onions, salt and chopped coriander leaves on the top of the mashed potatoes.
- Heat the mustard oil, fry the whole red chilies until crisp.
- Pour the hot oil with the chilies over the potato mash.
- Crumble the chilies with fingers.
- Mix the entire mixture evenly.
- Make small balls out of this.
- Serve as a side dish. Compliments well with dal and rice or even with a parantha.
(Yasmin Rahul Bakshi is a food historian and an accomplished Chef. She is a widely travelled Army wife from the Mussoorie hills with exposure to international cuisines & preserving recipes with the medium of food photography and digital content creation in the form of stories to reach the readers.)
