Aloo Posto (Potatoes in Poppy Seed Paste)

Posto means poppy seeds, and Bengalis love them. Soaked and ground, white poppy seeds turn into a mild, nutty, creamy coating for simple potatoes – a few ingredients, a lot of flavour.

Video by Bong Eats on YouTube. Our recipe below is our own home-style version, written in our own words – quantities and steps may differ from the video.

• Serves 4
• Prep 15 min
• Soak 30 min
• Cook 25 min
• Vegan · gluten-free · Mild
• Famous in West Bengal

Ingredients

• 5 tbsp white poppy seeds
• 2 green chillies
• 600 g waxy potatoes, cut into 2 cm cubes
• 3 tbsp mustard oil
• ½ tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)
• 1 dried red chilli
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp sugar

Method

1. Soak the poppy seeds in 100 ml warm water for 30 minutes, then grind with the green chillies to a fine paste.
2. Heat the mustard oil until it smokes lightly, lower the heat and add nigella seeds and the dried chilli.
3. Add the potatoes, turmeric and salt and fry for 5 minutes, stirring.
4. Add 150 ml water, cover and cook on low heat for 10–12 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
5. Stir in the poppy seed paste and sugar and cook uncovered for 3–4 minutes until the paste coats the potatoes and smells nutty.
6. Drizzle a few drops of raw mustard oil on top and serve with rice and dal.

Tip: Grind the poppy seeds very fine – a small spice grinder works best.

Shop the ingredients

Everything you need for this recipe is in stock at Farmah’s – order online or pick it up at Annenstraße 41, Graz.