Aloo Matar (आलू मटर) | Potato Peas curry - Winter Special

 Come winter, the market is flooded with fresh vegetables which are very tempting. Most of the times,I will hoard my fridge with the fresh produce and then struggle to consume it before the freshness withers away .

Winters at home means fresh green peas ,carrots,cauliflower and radish in abundance.  Of course the evergreen , doodhi aka lauki makes it presence in the menu atleast once a week . 

Aloo mutter is easy and simple to make,but packed with a riot of flavors. You can make with fresh peas or the frozen ones .Try and avoid the dried peas which needs to be soaked overnight . The dried peas don't blend well in to the curry is my opinion. 

In winters, I make this curry with fresh peas and during off season ,the frozen peas comes handy . We can easily make this Aloo Matar gravy for year end parties , get togethers and office pot luck.  

I learnt this recipe from my amma and she used just simple basic spices to make this curry and it would be served with piping hot fulkas just off the pan . I enjoy it with some thick yogurt or cucumber raita while hubby loves it with onion raita. 

Kulchas and Naan are a best combination too and if serving with rice, simple steamed basmati rice, jeera rice ,peas pulav or vegetable pulao are just the perfect pairing. 

I use the pressure cooker to make and it gets done quickly . Pressure cooker or instapot option is the best choice, if we want to make a large quantity of Aloo Matar.  

Donot forget to use lots and lots of fresh corriander as garnish.  It enhances the flavor of the gravy. Serve with some chopped onions and a wedge of lime.

Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 30 mins
Complexity- easy
Serves - 2 to 3 

Ingredients
3 to 4 medium sized potatoes  peeled & cut into big cubes 
1 medium onion chopped roughly 
2 tomatoes roughly chopped 
1 cup green peas
2 green chillies finely chopped 
Lots of fresh corriander
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric/haldi
1/2 tsp kasuri methi /dehydrated fenugreek leaves
3 tsp oil
Salt as needed 
Whole spices
 1tsp jeera /cumin
small piece  cinnamon /dalchini 
3 cloves /lavang
 2 cardamom / elaichi

Method

• Heat oil in a pressure cooker .
• Crackle the cumin seeds ,followed by the whole spices until you get a nice aroma of fried spices .Take care to roast over low flame,that is the key to bring out the essence from the whole spices. 
• Add in the onions and green chillies ,saute till the onions turn pinkish .
• Add in the tomatoes , turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt and cook until the tomatoes turn mushy and soft. 
• Once,the tomatoes become soft, add the ginger garlic paste and cook till the raw flavor is lost.
• Slowly ,add in the potato cubes ,green peas and mix it well.Adjust salt if needed and pour 3/4 cup water. 
• Pressure cook on medium flame for 4 whistles .
• Let the pressure release naturally.  Open the lid and gently mix the gravy while you roughly mash a few potatoes here and there.
• Mashing of potatoes will give a nice volume to the gravy.If you find the gravy thick,you can add some hot water and adjust the consistency.
• Lastly add the kasuri methi and fresh corriander.  Serve hot with rotis ,naan, steamed rice etc.

Some winter special recipes which you must try

Aloo Gobhi 

Lauki Channa Dal (video)

Palak Paneer 

Sabz Hariyali (video)

Gajar Halwa

Doodhi Halwa 

Gajar Mooli sabji 

Corn peas pulao 

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