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Indian Roast Bombay Potatoes or Aloo

Roast Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo featuring roasted & lightly crushed baby spuds cooked in whole spices with red onions and tomatoes.

The wonderful recipe is a fantastic way to change up your sides for an Indian curry, ditch the rice and add these wonderful vegan Bombay aloo instead!

Oven roast Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo with fresh coriander.

Bombay Aloo

I think that potatoes are all too often an overlooked ingredient in Indian and Pakistani cooking by folk in the “west”. To be fair, I may be biased as I think that potatoes are all too often overlooked in “modern” cooking.

Spuds appear in loads of classic Indian dishes, everything from mains like saag aloo to sides like aloo methi and curries like the classic dum aloo and the wonderful Bengali dish of chanar dalna.

Arguably the most well-known Indian potato dish is Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo, a name that covers a whole spectrum of recipes.

Everything from a dry spiced potato dish like this to a wet curry with a masala-style sauce. If that is your thing you should definitely check out my aloo matar recipe.

My version is the latter, we take potatoes and parboil them with dried chillies to get the flavours started.

Then we crush them and toss them in oil with some whole spices.

Fennel, cumin, mustard and onion seeds join curry leaves and asafoetida to maximise the flavour in this recipe.

Then it is all roasted in the oven whilst you prepare whatever you want to serve with your Bombay aloo.

Overhead oven roast Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo with fresh coriander.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the type of potatoes matter?

Yes and no! You can use any type of potato and the dish will taste awesome and your timings will be the same.

But using a waxy new potato as I do here will lead to a Bombay potatoes dish with more of robust texture. Perfect if serving with a dahl or something like my rajma masala.

Floury potatoes I think work better with a meaty wet curry like my classic pork vindaloo.

Where can I get curry leaves?

You will likely need to hunt down an Indian store for these.

They will often be sold frozen and this is the perfect way to use them and store them. Try and avoid dried curry leaves, they have practically no flavour.

What is Asafoetida?

It is an ingredient derived from the fennel plant, it does not taste like fennel and it is also known as hing.

Often presented in a small plastic tub that looks like something from a pharmacy rather than a grocery store.

It has an odd indescribable flavour and an insane aroma and it is THE “secret” ingredient that is most often left out of Indian food.

Particularly vegetarian or vegan Indian food and it is a real star in these Bombay potatoes. Just drop some in hot oil and you are instantly transported to your favourite Indian restaurant!

Overhead tandoori lamb chops with roasted Bombay potatoes, raita and kachumber salad.

Serving Suggestions

My roast Bombay potatoes are a dish that I cook when I can be bothered to serve Indian food with something other than rice and naan bread.

They have made cameo appearances alongside my roast spiced chicken legs (pictured below) and tandoori lamb chops (pictured above) as well as my Nargis kebabs on my site.

But they are also awesome alongside a wet curry like a chicken pathia, garlic chilli chicken or lamb madras.

I also think that Bombay potatoes make a great side dish for dahl recipes like this mung dahl.

There is definitely life beyond Indian flatbreads, although if I were honest I usually serve both.

Oven roast Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo served with an Indian spiced roast chicken leg.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

  • Stovetop.
  • Oven.
  • 15cm or 6″ saucepan.
  • 28cm or 11″ frying pan or skillet.
  • Kitchen knife chopping board.
  • Chopping board.
  • Kitchen knife.
  • Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.
  • Stirring and serving spoons.
Roast Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo with onions and tomatoes.
Yield: 2 Servings

Roast Bombay Potatoes Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Bombay potatoes or Bombay aloo are an Indian side dish that provides a wonderful alternative to rice or flatbreads as a side for a curry.

Ingredients

  • 375g (2 Cups) New Potatoes
  • 1 Tsp Salt
  • 3 Dried Kashmiri Chilli Peppers
  • 1 Tbsp Oil
  • 150g (1 Cup) Red Onion
  • 200g (2 medium) Tomatoes
  • 3 Garlic Cloves
  • ⅛ Tsp Asafoetida
  • 8 Curry Leaves
  • 1 Tsp Black Mustard Seeds
  • ½ Tsp Fennel Seeds
  • ½ Tsp Cumin Seeds
  • ½ Tsp Black Onion Seeds
  • ½ Tsp Turmeric
  • 1 Tsp Dried Fenugreek Leaves

Instructions

  1. Bring a 15cm or 6" pan of water to a boil add the salt and throw in the dried chilies and potatoes and boil for 10 minutes to soften.
  2. Peel and slice the red onion into 2-3mm (⅛") thick half-moon shapes.
  3. Roughly chop the tomato into a 1-1½cm (½") dice.
  4. Pele the garlic cloves and slice them as finely as you can.
  5. Heat the oil in a 28cm or 11" frying pan or skillet and add the seeds and asafoetida.
  6. When your seeds start to pop add in the onion and curry leaves then cook for 2-3 minutes.
  7. Drain your potatoes making sure you reserve the chilli peppers.
  8. Lightly crush your potatoes, you do not want the squished just broken open a little. I use the bottom of a glass to do this.
  9. Chop as much of the chilli as you want to add, I usually add all of them.
  10. Add the tomatoes and stir until they start to break down which will take a few minutes.
  11. Add the turmeric to the onions followed by the chilli, garlic, and crushed potatoes, then crush the fenugreek leaves over the dish with the palms of your hands and toss to coat.
  12. Transfer to the oven and roast at 200°C or 400°F for 30-35 minutes.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 402Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1199mgCarbohydrates: 61gFiber: 9gSugar: 12gProtein: 9g

Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.

Did you make this recipe?

If you made this recipe, I'd love to see what you did and what I can do better, share a picture with me on Instagram and tag me @krumplibrian and tell me how it went!

Will

Friday 16th of September 2022

I came across your site by accident and I’m so glad that I did. I’ve just made these tatties in an Instantpot with an air fryer lid. Didn’t change anything other than reduce the cooking time by 10 minutes. Stunning, simple accompaniment that will become a staple in our house. Thanks for sharing.

Brian Jones

Tuesday 20th of September 2022

So glad you enjoyed them Will, fab hint on using an air fryer lid for an Instant Pot.

Thanks for taking the time to tell me :)

Carol Ryan

Sunday 22nd of August 2021

It's Sunday here and yet again curry day as requested by the family so it's got to be your amazing Bombay potatoes . I'm finally going to have a go at the naam bread to compliment all the other curries from your site. Your recipes are so well thought out and taste just like the takeaway. Keep the curries coming I'll try anything once and most probably a few times. Have a great day xxx

Brian Jones

Friday 27th of August 2021

There are more than a few curries to choose from, over 60 at the last count :o Glad you enjoyed these,I love em :)

Carol Ryan

Friday 20th of August 2021

Hi Brian After discovering your site purely by accident i am in awe. tonight I've cooked chicken saagwala beef bhuna and roasted Bombay potatoes. Just amazing tbh.loved it all. Ty xxx

Brian Jones

Saturday 21st of August 2021

So glad you stumbled on my site, that sounds like a proper feast and they are some of my favourite recipes, in fact, I made the Bhuna last night for dinner :)

Julie Toy

Monday 20th of July 2020

This is, hands down, one of my family's favourite side dishes for weekend curry nights. Thank you Brian, your recipes never fail to delight.

Brian Jones

Tuesday 21st of July 2020

Thanks Julie, glad you like it, it's one of my favourites too!

paul edwards

Monday 30th of July 2018

I'm short of Fenugreek here in Thailand But I'm going to go for it this week. Would you have a recommendation for a replacement ? Difficult because Fenugreek is so distinctive. Regards Paul

PS. Those moving pictures were a bit scary at first haha !!!!

Brian Jones

Tuesday 31st of July 2018

Haha. I personally think that Fenugreek is very difficult to substitute... I have read that a combination of mustard seeds and fennel seeds toasted off and then ground does an ok job although I am a little skeptical. Many Indian curry powders contain fenugreek so you could play around with the balance of seeds and add a little curry powder that you like, although make sure that curry powder is fresh as it loses its flavour really quickly.

The great thing about Indian food is that you can be driven by your nose, I use a sense of smell to work out when the balance is correct when I start a new Indian recipe and then tweak from there.

If you really can't get it then omit and increase the mustard which will change the flaovur but will still taste great!

Enjoy :)

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