Dum aloo matar is a very easy, simple & delicious curry made in the instant pot using fried potatoes (I fried the already boiled, whole potatoes separately in a pan on stove top) and peas.
Adapted from the famous dum aloo popular (fried potato curry) from India (this is not an authentic recipe), this is delicious with the addition of green peas & light spices in a slightly tangy, tamarind based gravy.
Since I used tamarind, I made this dum aloo matar curry without tomatoes, but you may also use tomatoes in the dish if you wish.
I also have this easy Indian matar paneer curry without tomatoes, and Indian Kerala green peas curry (matar masala) which are also very easy to make and delicious!
Also try this easy aloo pakora (deep fried potato slices dipped in batter), easy Indian aloo paratha (potato stuffed flatbread), potato mezhukkupuratti (Indian potato fry), Indian Kerala style potato curry etc if you like Indian potato recipes!
How To Fry Whole Potatoes To Make Curry?
Is it possible to fry whole potatoes to make curry or any snack or any other dishes?
The best way to fry whole potatoes is to first boil them!
Once you boil the potatoes, discard the water used fo boiling, peel off the skin off the potatoes, remove any water content in the boiled potatoes and then you can carefully fry the whole potatoes.
It is not recommended to directly fry the whole potatoes without cooking or dicing or boiling them first for safety reasons.
What Is Dum Aloo Matar?
Dum aloo matar is adapted from the popular Indian style dum aloo curry, by adding matar or peas to the mix.
It basically means slow cooked potatoes & peas curry since the word 'dum' refers to slowly cooking something in a sealed pot usually, aloo refers to potatoes & matar refers to green peas.
The popular dum aloo famous in India (in Kashmiri & Punjabi cuisines) uses boiled and fried aloo or potatoes in a delicious mix of spices to make curry that goes great with rice or Indian breads like chapathi, naan etc.
In the traditional dum aloo recipes (there are different versions), usually spices are mixed with yogurt or tomato onion based mixture to make the gravy or masala for the curry.
However, as I told, this is a simple, easy version for making dum aloo or aloo matar.
This is an easy dum aloo recipe with matar (boiled & fried potatoes with peas in masala) to make a delicious and easy variation of authentic dum aloo.
Here I am not using yogurt or tomato onion masala for the gravy, but we just use spices along with the cooked peas (matar) & onions to make a delicious gravy for the dum aloo.
However, this easy dum aloo matar is so delicious and it goes great with cooked white rice, brown rice or Indian breads.
The spices used in this recipe, are quite different but mild and its prepared in the instant though I fried the potatoes in a different pan on stove top.
So here is how you can make this easy and delicious dum aloo matar or potatoes & peas curry using an instant pot to help with the process!
How To Make Easy Dum Aloo Matar?
We use the following ingredients to make easy and delicious dum aloo matar.
Ingredients for easy dum aloo matar
potatoes 4 to 6 (medium sized potatoes, if you have baby potatoes you can use about 8 potatoes)
green peas dried 1.5 cups
onions 2 medium sized
salt as needed
tamarind paste 1 teaspoon (or use amchoor/dry mango powder)
water 4 cups
oil enough to fry potatoes
Spice powders
garlic powder 1 teaspoon
ginger powder ½ teaspoon
turmeric powder ½ teaspoon
coriander powder 1 teaspoon
red chili powder ½ teaspoon
garam masala powder 1 teaspoon
Step By Step Instructions
Cooking the dried peas and potatoes
Wash the dried green peas very well, add it to the instant pot.
Slice the onions and add this also to the instant pot.
Add water and place the potatoes (washed and cleaned well) on top of peas and onions in the pot.
Cover the instant pot with lid in sealing position, cook in high pressure for 55 minutes.
Once the cooking is done, the pot will beep and you can wait for a natural release of pressure for at least 15 to 20 minutes. After that, you can gradually and carefully release any remaining pressure.
Once the pressure is all released, carefully open the lid of the instant pot.
Preparing the potatoes
Carefully take the cooked potatoes out the pot using a long tong and transfer to a bowl. Let the potatoes cool down for a while. Meanwhile keep the instant pot with the cooked peas closed with lid.
Once the potatoes are cooled enough, peel the potatoes and discard the skin.
Using a fork or knife, gently poke the potatoes on all sides without breaking the potatoes.
Make sure there is no water content in the potatoes or the bowl used to keep the potatoes, because we are going to fry the potatoes.
If there is any water content, you can use a paper towel to carefully wipe the potatoes and the bowl so as to make sure everything is dry.
Frying the boiled, cooked potatoes
To fry the potatoes, heat enough oil in a frying pan on stove top.
Once the oil is hot enough, carefully transfer each potato to the hot oil (make sure there is no water in the potatoes before transferring to the oil).
Once one side of the potatoes are fried enough, gently flip them to fry the other side too (you can sprinkle salt while frying each side).
If needed, you can flip them a couple of times more (very carefully) and fry for some more time until the potatoes look slightly golden brown in color.
Once fried enough, transfer the potatoes to a different bowl very carefully.
Making the dum aloo matar curry
Open the instant pot and add salt, tamarind paste and spices to the instant pot (which has the cooked peas(matar), onions etc), stir well and press saute. Let the mixture simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes (stir in between).
Once the curry is simmered enough, press 'cancel' to stop the saute function.
Carefully transfer the fried potatoes to the instant pot one by one.
Also, add few tablespoons of oil (about 4 tablespoons) from the pan used to fry the potatoes to the instant pot carefully (the oil could be very hot so its a good idea to transfer the oil to a bowl first and then add this to the instant pot).
Gently mix everything, spoon some of the gravy over the potatoes and keep the instant pot closed with lid at sealing position at least for about 10 to 15 minutes so it will further cook in the residue heat and the gravy will get absorbed into the dum aloo or potatoes.
Enjoy the delicious dum aloo matar curry or fried potatoes and peas curry with Indian breads like chapathi, poori, naan bread etc or with rice as you like.
Substitute For Tamarind In The Curry
If you do not have tamarind, you can replace 1 teaspoon of tamarind with 1 teaspoon of amchoor powder or dry mango powder.
If you do not have amchoor powder too, you can replace the 1 teaspoon of tamarind with about 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
Or you can add about 2 medium sized tomatoes (diced small) along with the onions which should add enough sourness to the dish.
Related Recipes:
instant pot potato & carrot curry/stew
instant pot rajma with sweet potatoes
Dum Aloo Matar (Instant Pot) - Fried Whole Potatoes With Peas
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 medium sized potatoes (if you have baby potatoes or small sized potatoes, you can use about 8 potatoes)
- 1.5 cups green peas dried
- 2 medium sized onions
- salt as needed
- 1 teaspoon tamarind paste or use amchoor/dry mango powder
- 4 cups water
- oil enough to fry potatoes
Spice Powders
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 cloves of fresh garlic peeled & minced or crushed
- ½ teaspoon ginger powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
Instructions
Cooking the dried peas and potatoes
- Wash the dried green peas very well, add it to the instant pot.
- Slice the onions and add this also to the instant pot.
- Add water and place the potatoes (washed and cleaned well) on top of peas and onions in the pot.
- Cover the instant pot with lid in sealing position, cook in high pressure for 55 minutes.
- Once the cooking is done, the pot will beep and you can wait for a natural release of pressure for at least 15 to 20 minutes. After that, you can gradually and carefully release any remaining pressure.
- Once the pressure is all released, carefully open the lid of the instant pot.
Preparing the potatoes
- Carefully take the cooked potatoes out the pot using a long tong and transfer to a bowl. Let the potatoes cool down for a while. Meanwhile keep the instant pot with the cooked peas closed with lid.
- Once the potatoes are cooled enough, peel the potatoes and discard the skin.
- Using a fork or knife, gently poke the potatoes on all sides without breaking the potatoes.
- Make sure there is no water content in the potatoes or the bowl used to keep the potatoes, because we are going to fry the potatoes.
- If there is any water content, you can use a paper towel to carefully wipe the potatoes and the bowl so as to make sure everything is dry.
Frying the cooked potatoes
- To fry the potatoes, heat enough oil in a frying pan on stove top.
- Once the oil is hot enough, carefully transfer each potato to the hot oil (make sure there is no water in the potatoes before transferring to the oil).
- Once one side of the potatoes are fried enough, gently flip them to fry the other side too (you can sprinkle salt while frying each side).
- If needed, you can flip them a couple of times more (very carefully) and fry for some more time until the potatoes look slightly golden brown in color.
- Once fried enough, transfer the potatoes to a different bowl very carefully.
Making the dum aloo matar curry
- Open the instant pot and add salt, tamarind paste and spices to the instant pot (which has the cooked peas(matar), onions etc), stir well and press saute. Let the mixture simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes (stir in between).
- Once the curry is simmered enough, press 'cancel' to stop the saute function.
- Carefully transfer the fried potatoes to the instant pot one by one.
- Also, add few tablespoons of oil (about 4 tablespoons) from the pan used to fry the potatoes to the instant pot carefully (the oil could be very hot so its a good idea to transfer the oil to a bowl first and then add this to the instant pot). You may also add a couple of spoons of heavy cream, a teaspoon of kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves) etc at this point, if you wish to make this dish even more creamy & flavorful.
- Gently mix everything, spoon some of the gravy over the potatoes and keep the instant pot closed at least for about 10 to 15 minutes so it will further cook in the residue heat and the gravy will get absorbed into the dum aloo or potatoes.
- Enjoy the delicious dum aloo matar curry or fried potatoes and peas curry with Indian breads like chapathi, poori, naan bread etc or with rice as you like.
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