Kongunadu Urulai Dates Recipe (Curried Potatoes from Kongunadu)

Kongunadu, the areas around Coimbatore and Erode is a fertile region. Every home in the village has their own garden and the people are passionate about growing their own fruits and vegetables. In the Kongunadu Cuisine lots of coconut and tomatoes are used as they are widely grown in these areas. Of course the taste of tomatoes grown there cannot be matched with the ones available in cities. The masalas are mildly spicy, tangy and tasty. Their dishes can be made quickly with simple ingredients in your pantry with very less effort. Potatoes are cooked in a tangy tomato-onion gravy .  Potato (Aloo), Homemade tomato puree, Onion, Ginger, Garlic, Turmeric powder (Haldi), Oil, Salt, Coriander (Dhania) Leaves, Chana dal (Bengal Gram Dal), Dry Red Chillies, Fennel seeds (Saunf), Cumin seeds (Jeera), Whole Black Peppercorns, Cloves (Laung), Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini), Bay leaf (tej patta), Fresh coconut   2 Potato (Aloo) , boiled and cubed 1 cup Homemade tomato puree 1 Onion , finely chopped 1 inch Ginger , grated 3 Garlic , grated 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric powder (Haldi) 1 tablespoon Oil , or ghee Salt , to taste 4 sprig Coriander (Dhania) Leaves , finely chopped To roast and grind 2 teaspoon Chana dal (Bengal Gram Dal) , roasted 3 Dry Red Chillies , adjust according to tasted 1/2 teaspoon Fennel seeds (Saunf) 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera) 1/2 teaspoon Whole Black Peppercorns 2 Cloves (Laung) 1 inch Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini) 1 Bay leaf (tej patta) 1/2 cup Fresh coconut , grated     15   40     To begin making the Kongunadu Urulai Kurma Recipe, in a small pan, lightly dry roast all the ingredients given under ‘to roast and grind’ till they turn fragrant. Once roasted, allow it to cool a little and grind into a smooth paste adding a little warm water.Keep the paste aside.Heat a wide pan or kadai with ghee. Add the grated ginger and garlic and saute them for a few seconds. Add the chopped onions, little salt and keep stirring over low flame for one minute or till the time the onions turn glossy and lightly brown.Once the onions are done, add the tomato puree, turmeric powder, the ground masala and the boiled potatoes.  Turn the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer the Kurma for about 5 minutes until the spices come through into the potatoes. After 5 minutes, once done, check the salt and adjust to suit your taste and turn off the heat. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.Serve Kongunadu Urulai Kurma along with Dosas for a quick weeknight dinner or even for parties.