How to make Bengali Aloo bhorta. There’s nothing more simple than mashing up boiled potatoes and spicing them up with a few ingredients. Aloo bhorta is a classic comfort dish in Bangladesh which is served up with hot steaming white rice. Sometimes aloo bhorta is also accompanied by a side of dhal too. Once in a while aloo bhorta or even other bhorta recipes are tempting and definitely worth a cozy meal.

Bengali cuisine has a variety of bhorta dishes which are made with all kinds of ingredients. It’s always hard to resist any type of bhorta really. They are all extremely tasty and made using similar techniques where ingredients are either boiled, steamed or even fried.

Okay more about Aloo Bhorta….

What makes aloo bhorta so tasty. Well it’s the simple ingredients that bring out all the flavors. Onions, chilies, salt and of course not to forget mustard oil. Just a few ingredients mixed and mashed up together to give you a appetizing meal.

A few key steps to make the perfect Bengali aloo bhorta

First of all boiling or steaming the potatoes. For ease and to speed up the whole process I prefer to cook my potatoes in the microwave it’s just a quicker and easier option really. You could of course boil them in water on a stove and I’ve made aloo bhorta like that many times too. You could leave the skins on or peel the skin prior to cooking the potatoes either way it doesn’t really matter. But for sure take the skins off before mashing the potatoes up.

I like to peel the skin off the potatoes and give them a good sprinkling of salt just before putting them into the microwave. Don’t forget to use a microwave proof bowl or dish. 10-12 minutes of cooking with a quick shake and check halfway during cooking. Use a fork to check if potatoes are done.

Onions, thinly sliced onions work best in every type of bhorta and sautéed in the tiniest bit of oil just for a minute or two.

Chilies, you could use fresh green chilies or dried red chilies. You could even use both. I like to use the red dried chili’s just because they have heaps of flavor. If using dried red chilies then they need to be fried in the slightest bit of oil until nice and crisp. Use the same pan where the onions were cooked.

Extras and something essential

Fresh cilantro if you prefer, I feel like cilantro works better when you use fresh green chilies in the bhorta otherwise it’s not necessary.

Mustard oil, this is the flavor maker in this recipe. Mustard oil mixed in with all the ingredients to bring the bhorta together and give the aloo bhorta that extra depth of flavor.

Best way to eat this delicious dish is of course with a plate full of hot steaming rice!

How to make Bengali Aloo Bhorta

Recipe by Shema Course: MainCuisine: BangladeshiDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Easy Bengali Style Aloo Bhorta

Ingredients

• 3-4 medium/large potatoes

• 1 teaspoon of salt

• 2 teaspoons of cooking oil

• 1 small onion finely sliced

• 5-6 red dried chilies or fresh green chilies (adjust according to spice preference)

• 1 tablespoon of mustard oil

Directions

• Peel potatoes and cut into smaller pieces, quarters
• Transfer into a microwaveable bowl, sprinkle some salt and cook for 10-12 minutes on high power in the microwave, shake bowl halfway through cooking
• You could also boil in water on the stove and cook for 20 minutes on a medium high flame until soft
• Use a fork to check, cook until soft
• In a small frying pan add 2 teaspoon of cooking oil and add in the finely sliced onions
• Cook on a medium high flame until they turn to a light golden color, 1-2 minutes cooking
• Transfer onions into a bowl
• In the same frying pan add in the red dried chilies and cook on a medium high flame until they turn dark in color and crisp up
• Transfer into bowl with onions
• Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes up and transfer into bowl with onions and chilies
• Add a teaspoon of salt to the chilies and crush the chilies up using your hand, wear food gloves to avoid burning from the chilies
• Mix the crushed chilies with the sauteed onions and mustard oil
• Mix in the crushed chilies, onions and mustard oil with the mashed potatoes
• Ensure everything is well incorporated and taste to see if the salt is adequate
• Serve with hot steaming rice
• Enjoy!!!

Notes

• Aloo bhorta is best served on the day although any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days.