Aloo Methi Anda

Food has a way of connecting people like nothing else. It is common ground especially when you arrive in a land far away home. It brings comfort and brings home closer to the places you are in. When you are far away from home, the feeling of displacement in a new country can be soothed through cooking meals that are familiar to your taste with produce that is commonly found in these foreign lands. Sharing it with newly made friends offers a cure for loneliness. Slowly these friends feel like family and the ingredients feel a part of your being.

When our family moved to Ireland in the early/mid 90s, there was a very small immigrant population and even fewer Pakistanis. Halal meat wasn’t readily available and spices we were commonly accustomed to were rare. We were fresh off the boat (quietly literally) in rainy Cork and the nearest Asian food store was in Dublin or Belfast, a few hours drive. So we adapted to this new environment by stocking up on dried lentils and spices on trips to Dublin. The local vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower and greens were cooked with whole spices, potatoes and finished with dried methi (fenugreek) to give the dishes a fragrant richness. In fact the smell of methi reminds me of Cork and cold rain so heavy it peels your skin away if you get caught up in it. Back then it was always bought dried and its flavour was concentrated with a bitterness to it. I can’t remember if I liked to eat it back then but these days I could eat bunches of the stuff. It is another bitter to add to your list for digestive benefits. This tradition or more accurately an adaptation technique that started off in my childhood in Ireland has followed me to other places. I land in a new city and I will get my bearings within the markets and grocery stores, immediately thinking about dishes I could make using my spice mix (hands up if you travel with your own spices).

This past week, we said goodbye to not one but two people who were a big part of my family’s life in Ireland. One a mentor to my father, who changed the trajectory of my family’s life ( and probably many others) by accepting a foreign person on to a training program. Something that wasn’t heard of in 90’s Ireland. Another close friend like family from another foreign land who like us came to know Ireland as one of his homes . In remembering them , I was taken back to that time when Ireland was a foreign land and where through cooking and sharing these meals with others, it became home. This potato and fenugreek dish with an egg (anda) is a perfect nutritional balance. It seems like a fitting tribute to these people and a place where I spent most of my childhood.

THE RECIPE

Aloo Methi Anda

• Cook time: 15 minutes
• Serves 4
  
  

INGREDIENTS

• 250 grams potatoes (about 2) diced
• 100 grams of fresh fenugreek leaves (a bunch)
• 2 eggs
• 2 whole red chilli
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp black peppercorns
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Handful of fresh curry leaves
• ½ tsp crushed red chilli
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 Tsp ginger and garlic crushed
• 2 tsp tomato puree
• 1 Tbs of yogurt (optional)
• 2 Tbs of olive oil
• Seasoning to taste
• 2 fresh green chilli cut length (optional of garnishing)

method

1. Heat a pan on medium and roast the dry spices (whole chilli, peppercorn, cumin and cinnamon) till aromatic, about 2 minutes.
2. Add the oil, curry leaves and chilli flakes till everything starts to sizzle.
3. Sauté the ginger and garlic in the aromatic spice oil till it looks translucent but before it starts to go brown and crispy, about a minute or so.
4. To the pan add in the potatoes and coat with the oil, then the tomato puree, turmeric and some seasoning to taste. Cook till the potatoes start to look crispy. This will take 3-5 minutes. Now turn the heat to low and place the lid on the pan to cook for 15 minutes (you may need some water at this stage if the potatoes are starting to stick to the pan)
5. Once the potatoes have softened, transfer the fenugreek to them and mix to coat in the spices. Replace the lid and cook for another 5 minutes until the leaves have wilted and soaked in the spicy favour. At this stage, to reduce their natural bitterness, you can add the yogurt and stir.
6. If using yogurt cook another 3 minutes. Otherwise remove from heat.
7. Once ready to serve boil the eggs in hot salty water. Once the water comes to boil, reduce the heat. Slot the eggs in using a spoon and cook for 7 minutes. Remove from heat immediately and run under cold tap water.
8. Serve the Aloo Methi hot or warmed topped with an egg halved.