This easy-to-make, delicious Punjabi aloo puri makes a great weekend brunch or breakfast. Here ‘Aloo’ refers to the potato curry (boiled potatoes are simmered in perfectly spiced tomato gravy). Puri is the deep-fried puffed Indian bread.
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❤️About This Recipe
Breakfast or Brunch: This aloo puri is usually eaten as a weekend or special occasion breakfast or brunch.
Indulging: Because of the potatoes and deep-fried poori, it is heavy, super filling and indulging.
Lunch or Dinner: This aloo puri can be enjoyed as a meal.
Make it healthy: Replace pooris with plain paratha or tandoori roti. Yes, this aloo curry can be served with other Indian flatbreads. Or it can be enjoyed with plain steamed rice.
No onion No garlic: This aloo puri is no onion no garlic dish. The gravy is made from tomatoes and spices only.
🧾Ingredient Notes
Here is the pic of the ingredients required to make potato gravy of this aloo puri recipe. All of them are simple and easily available in your pantry if you cook Indian food often.
- Potatoes: I boil the potatoes in instant pot. Once they are cool to touch, skin is peeled and discarded. Then cut into small bite-size pieces.
Tip: for Indian cooking, I prefer to use Yukon gold or Red skin potatoes. I prefer to stay away from Idaho or Russet potatoes.
- Tomatoes: I highly recommend using Roma tomatoes or Plum tomatoes. I do not like beefsteak kind of tomatoes.
Here fresh raw tomatoes are chopped and pureed along with a piece of ginger into the blender until smooth.
- Amchur (Dried mango powder): It adds a nice tang to the curry. If your tomatoes are slightly unripe and so gravy is already little sour then reduce the amount of amchur powder accordingly.
Here is the pic of the ingredients you’ll need to make poori recipe. Only 4 ingredients are required to make the dough. Plus, you’ll need more oil for deep-frying.
- Whole wheat flour (aka chapati atta): To my non-Indian readers, this is not the same wheat flour you get in American grocery stores. This chapati atta is finer in texture and easily available in Indian grocery stores.
👩🍳Step By Step Photo Instructions
Making Aloo Curry:
1) Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat. Once hot add cumin seeds and let them sizzle a bit. Then add cloves and saute for 30 seconds.
2) Add pureed tomatoes-ginger and let it cook. If it splutters a lot then you can partially cover the pan.
3) Cook until all the moisture evaporates and it becomes really thick.
4) Add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder.
5) Mix and cook for a minute.
6) Add water and boiled, cubed potatoes and slit green chili.
7) Mix and let it simmer for 8-10 minutes on medium-low heat. If the gravy dries out then add some water and simmer.
8) Then mash a few pieces of potatoes with the back of the spatula. It helps to make a thick gravy.
9) Add black salt, garam masala and amchur. Mix well.
10) Lastly, add chopped cilantro.
Making Puri:
1) Take chapati atta and salt in a bowl. Mix it well.
2) Add a teaspoon of oil and mix by rubbing between your thumb and fingers.
3) Then add little water at a time and start kneading the dough.
4) The dough should be smooth yet semi-soft (Not too soft like roti and not too stiff like mathri). Cover it with a clean napkin or plate and let it rest for 15-20 minutes.
5) After the resting time, again knead the dough 2-3 times to make it smooth. Divide it into 24 equal portions and make smooth balls.
6) Take one ball and flatten it into a disc by pressing between your two palms. Repeat the same for rest and keep them covered, so they do not dry out.
7) Heat the oil in a pan/kadai on medium heat for frying. While it is getting hot, take a rolling pin and rolling board. Roll each disc into a 3-inches diameter circle. If it is sticking then grease the rolling board and pin with oil. But never dust with dry flour for rolling.
8) Roll a few poori and keep them on a plate. NOTE: poori should be rolled at even thickness. If it is thin from one side and at some part it is thick then it will not puff up while frying.
9) Now the oil is hot, slide one rolled puri into the hot oil. Fry it with very gentle pressing using the back of the slotted spatula. And it will puff up right away.
10) As poori is puffed up (bottom side is light brown & no more bubbles forming), flip it.
11) Fry another side until lightly golden. Don’t fry for a long time otherwise, it gets crispy (not soft).
12) Remove it and place on the paper towel lined plate and repeat the same for rest. Serve piping hot puri with aloo gravy.
💭Expert Tips
Ripe tomatoes: Make sure to use red and ripe ones. Unripe tomatoes will result in sour gravy.
Boiling potatoes: Check out this post on instant pot boiled potatoes for details. Or use the stovetop pressure cooker (2 whistles). Once the potatoes are cool to touch, peel and discard the skin. Cut into cubes.
Mash a few potato pieces: this helps to make thick gravy instead of watery consistency.
The gravy thickens: As the curry cools down, it starts to thicken more and more. So if make it ahead of time and serving it later then keep the gravy a little thin and runny. Over time potatoes will absorb the moisture and gravy will become thick.
Poori Making Tips:
- The dough must be medium-soft (slightly stiff) and not soft, loose or sticky like roti dough. So always start with little water, keep kneading and adding the water as needed.
- Never use dry flour while rolling puri. That dry flour will get burn during the frying process and those burnt particles will stick to the next batch of poori.
- Roll the pooris of medium thickness. If it is too thin like roti then it will not puff up while frying.
- Keep rolled pooris and flatten discs covered with a kitchen towel. It prevents them from drying out.
🍽 Serving Ideas
- This aloo puri is usually served as a breakfast or brunch. Because it is filling and heavy, it can be served as a meal (lunch/dinner).
- To cut down the calories, try serving roti, paratha or rice instead of poori.
- A side of laccha pyaaz with aloo puri will perk up the meal.
Check Out Other Indulging Breakfast Recipes
PS Tried this aloo puri recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comment section. I always appreciate your feedback! Plus, Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook for all the latest updates.
📋 Recipe Card
Punjabi Aloo Puri
Ingredients
For Aloo Curry
- 2 small or 1 cup Tomato Pureed with ginger
- ½ inch Ginger
- 2 medium or 2 cups Potatoes boiled, peeled and chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoons Oil
- ½ teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 2 Cloves
- 1 ½ teaspoons Red chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 to 1 ½ cups Water
- 1 Green chili slit
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon Garam masala
- ½ teaspoon Amchur powder (dried mango powder)
- ⅛ teaspoon Black salt (Kala namak)
- 1 tablespoon Cilantro or coriander leaves chopped finely
For Poori:
- 2 cup Whole wheat flour (Chapati atta)
- Salt to taste
- 2 teaspoons Oil + more for deep frying
- ¾ cup Water
Instructions
Making Aloo Curry:
- Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat. Once hot add cumin seeds and let them sizzle a bit. Then add cloves and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add pureed tomatoes-ginger and let it cook. If it splutters a lot then you can partially cover the pan. Cook until all the moisture evaporates and it becomes really thick.
- Add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder. Mix and cook for a minute.
- Add water and boiled, cubed potatoes and slit green chili. Mix and let it simmer for 8-10 minutes on medium-low heat. If the gravy dries out then add some water and simmer.
- Then mash a few pieces of potatoes with the back of the spatula. It helps to make a thick gravy.
- Add black salt, garam masala and amchur. Mix well.
- Lastly, add chopped cilantro.
Making Puri:
- Take chapati atta and salt in a bowl. Mix it well.
- Add a teaspoon of oil and mix by rubbing between your thumb and fingers.
- Then add little water at a time and start kneading the dough. The dough should be smooth yet semi-soft. Cover it with a clean napkin or plate and let it rest for 15-20 minutes.
- After the resting time, again knead the dough 2-3 times to make it smooth. Divide it into 24 equal portions and make smooth balls.
- Take one ball and flatten it into a disc by pressing between your two palms. Repeat the same for rest and keep them covered, so they do not dry out.
- Heat the oil in a pan/kadai on medium heat for frying. While it is getting hot, take a rolling pin and rolling board. Roll each disc into a 3-inches diameter circle. If it is sticking then grease the rolling board and pin with oil. But never dust with dry flour for rolling.
- Roll a few poori and keep them on a plate. NOTE: poori should be rolled at even thickness. If it is thin from one side and at some part it is thick then it will not puff up while frying.
- Now the oil is hot, slide one rolled puri into the hot oil. Fry it with very gentle pressing using the back of the slotted spatula. And it will puff up right away. As poori is puffed up (bottom side is light brown & no more bubbles forming), flip it. Fry another side until lightly golden. Don’t fry for a long time otherwise, it gets crispy (not soft).
- Remove it and place on the paper towel lined plate and repeat the same for rest. Serve piping hot puri with aloo gravy.
Notes
- Instant pot: Add about 1 inch of water in the liner, place the rack and place potatoes on the rack. Cook on manual (high pressure) for 6-10 minutes. The time varies depending on the size of the potatoes. Let it NPR. Once potatoes are cool to touch, peel and discard the skin, cut into small cubes.
- Stovetop pressure cooker: Take potatoes in the cooker, add enough water so potatoes are submerged in the water. Or you can keep the rack and potatoes on the rack just like instant pot method. Cook for 2 whistles on medium heat.
- The dough must be medium-soft (slightly stiff) and not soft, loose or sticky like roti dough. So always start with little water, keep kneading and adding the water as needed.
- Never use dry flour while rolling puri. That dry flour will get burn during the frying process and those burnt particles will stick to the next batch of poori.
- Roll the pooris of medium thickness. If it is too thin like roti then it will not puff up while frying.
- Keep rolled pooris and flatten discs covered with a kitchen towel. It prevents them from drying out.
How can you deep fry Puri with 2 teaspoon oil ? I'm lost !
please read the ingredient list completely.
It says "2 teaspoons Oil + more for deep frying"
1 teaspoon of oil is added to the flour while kneading the dough.
I have not mentioned the amount of oil needed for deep frying as everyone's kadai size is different, so the amount of oil used may vary.
Can I use coconut oil for this recipe which I have extracted at home?
you can use, but it will have taste of coconut oil
Yum, been making this recipe for a few years now after trying a similar meal in Myanmar. we add a little vege stock when cooking the potatoe because we just cook them in the pot. thanks.
Glad to know you liked.
Hi, I love all ur recipes and have done most following ur site. One request I have is all ur dishes are with cream,Could u plz suggest me some alternate for heavy cream or whipping cream. I see most of ur recipes are with that. We don't like using cream. Looking forward for your reply.
I use cream in the paneer curry recipe or restaurant style curry recipes. Because those are supposed be rich.
If you don't like, you can add little milk or half and half or evaporated milk.
Or you can add cashew nut/poppy seeds paste. If nuts paste is added then taste will be different.