Potato Kurma (Aloo Kurma)

Potato Kurma also known as Aloo Kurma is a specialty of Andhra and Telangana Regions of Southern India. Aloo kurma is a dish of potatoes simmered in a delicious, spicy and super flavorful kurma gravy. In the past, a traditional Andhra wedding or a special meal was incomplete without aloo kurma, Vegetable Pulao & a raita (perugu pachadi). Tender potato chunks swimming in this finger-licking good & rich gravy is a favorite among the curry lovers.

In this post I share the traditional way to make potato kurma. It can be served with pulao, Ghee rice, biryani, chapati, parotta or even with any other flavored rice dishes.

Potato Kurma

Korma also known as kurma is a popular dish in the South Asian countries, made with meat or vegetables, nuts, seeds, yogurt, spices and herbs. You will find close to a dozen variations of making korma in India and every region/state has a different way of making this.

In Indian Cuisine, there are so many ways a Potato Curry/side is made. Each one is prepared uniquely such that the flavor, texture and color are unique and are made specifically to go with a special dish.

A Potato Masala for dosa, Poori Masala for poori, Potato Sagu for rava idli, Dum aloo for rice/ roti/naan are all variations of the potato curries. Plenty of whole spices, fresh herbs like mint, the use of coconut and yogurt is what makes this aloo kurma distinct from a regular potato curry.

This is a staple in a lot of Telugu Speaking homes and sometimes boiled green peas are also added. The recipe of aloo kurma shared here is from my Mom. On occasions she would use only yogurt, sometimes poppy seeds with coconut and sometimes all of them together.

The gravy tastes different with all these 3 combinations. The last combination is heavier for digestion and is good if you make it for lunch and not for dinner.

My Mom always parboiled the whole potatoes before adding them to the curry as some kinds of potatoes take a lot of time. It is up to you regarding that.

However if you are using yogurt, I highly recommend boiling them till 90% cooked (slightly undercooked) before adding it to the kurma gravy. Pour lesser water in this case.

I have limited the whole spices to minimum here because I had no access to them. Stone flower (dagad phool), 1 masala elaichi (Black cardamom) and small portion of nutmeg are missing from the tempering. If you want you may add them.

Photo Guide

For more kurma recipes
Soya chunks kurma
Paneer kurma
Mushroom kurma
Cauliflower kurma
Chicken kurma

How to Make Potato Kurma (Stepwise photos)

Preparation

1.Add 3 tbsps of chopped coconut (or ¼ cup grated) and 2 tbsps of poppy seeds to a grinder jar. If you do not have poppy seeds, replace them with cashews or fried gram. Make a smooth and thick paste using little water. If you do not want to use coconut & poppy seeds just use half cup curd/ yogurt. Using only curd gives a different taste to the curry and is not as thick as the coconut one, but tastes good.

2. Heat 2 tablespoon of oil in a pan or pressure cooker. Add 2 green cardamoms, 4 cloves, 1 star anise, 1 inch cinnamon and half teaspoon cumin or shahi jeera. You can also use a bay leaf and a single strand of mace. Let them sizzle.

3. Add 1¼ cup of finely chopped onions and fry until golden.

4. Next add 1½ teaspoon of ginger garlic paste and fry until the raw smell is gone.

5. Add ¾ cup of finely chopped tomatoes, half teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon of turmeric.

6. Fry until the tomatoes completely get mushy and blend well with onions.

7. Add ¾ teaspoon of red chili powder, 1 to 1½ teaspoon of garam masala and ¼ tsp fennel seeds crushed or powdered. Fennel seeds impart a unique flavor. You can pulse them in a grinder with garam masala and use.

Make Aloo Kurma

8. Next add 2 tablespoons pudina/ mint or coriander leaves. Fry everything well for 1 more minute. I suggest not to skip this step as well since this imparts a good flavor.

9. Add coconut paste. If you want to use yogurt, whisk half cup curd in a bowl until smooth. Add 2 tablespoons of the onion tomato masala we made earlier from step 8 to the yogurt. Mix everything well. Reduce the heat completely and pour that to the pan slowly.

10. Mix everything and fry for 2 to 3 minutes until the kurma base begins to smell good.

11. Add 1½ to 2 cups cubed potatoes. If using yogurt, boil potatoes separately until 90% done but not mushy. Add them here.

12. Pour hot water to cover the potatoes. I used 1 ¾ cups hot water. If you have boiled potatoes separately, you can use that water here. Do not add too much water as it makes your gravy runny.

13. Cooking korma on a low flame always yields the best taste. But if you are in a hurry, increase the heat and bring to a rapid boil. Reduce the heat and cover. Cook until the potatoes are completely cooked. If making in a pressure cooker, cook for one whistle. When the pressure reduces, open and stir well. Taste test and adjust salt now. If required to bring it to a thicker consistency, you can cook further on a high flame. Add coriander leaves.

Serve aloo kurma with Vegetable pulao, Roti, Naan, Veg biryani or ghee rice.

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Aloo Kurma recipe first published in November 2014. Updated and republished in July 2022.