Kashmiri Dum Aloo

Boiling Potatoes

1. Rinse the baby potatoes very well in water. Brush or scrub the mud etc from them.
2. Take 3.5 cups water in a pan. Add the potatoes.
3. On a medium to high heat boil the water, so that the potatoes are half-cooked.
4. Drain the water and let the par-cooked potatoes become warm or cool at room temperature.
5. Peel the potatoes. This task takes a lot of time, so do it while listening to music or watching your favorite tv show. If you prefer you can keep the peels too.
6. With a fork, tooth pick or skewer, poke holes in the potatoes all over. Halve them or you can keep them whole if they are small. This is done so that when cooking on dum, the potatoes absorb the flavors of the masala in which they are getting cooked.
7. Whisk the fresh full-fat curd or yogurt till smooth. Keep aside.
8. In a small bowl, take kashmiri red chili powder and 2 tablespoons water.
9. Mix and stir well to get a smooth and even mixture.

Frying potatoes

1. In a pan heat mustard oil on medium to medium-high till it begins to lightly smoke.
2. Add the parboiled peeled potatoes and begin to fry them on a medium-low to medium heat.
3. With a slotted spoon, turn them over while frying, when one side is light golden. Fry the second side until golden.
4. Fry the potatoes until they are evenly golden and crispy. Turn over as needed while frying.
5. Remove the potatoes which are golden and crispy with a slotted spoon and continue frying the remaining potatoes which still need to become crispy and golden. Fry the potatoes well or else they remain uncooked from the center.
6. Place the fried potatoes on kitchen paper towels. Fry all the potatoes until golden and crisp.
7. If you want you can again poke holes in the fried potatoes. This is an optional step.

Making kashmiri dum aloo

1. Heat 2 tablespoons mustard oil in another pan on low to medium-low heat.
2. When the oil is lightly hot, add the red chili + water mixture and stir well. Be careful as the mixture splutters.
3. Next, reduce heat to a low and add the beaten curd. When you are adding the curd, stir it continuously with a spoon or wired whisk in the pan, so that the curd does not split.Add the curd on a low heat or turn off the heat.
4. After adding curd, add water and continue to stir and mix to get an even mixture.
5. Next add the fennel powder
6. Add the whole spices and ginger powder. Stir and mix well.
7. Now add the fried baby potatoes. Again stir to combine.
8. Season with salt and mix again.
9. Cover the pan tightly with a lid. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes on a low to medium-low heat.
10. The gravy should become thick. 
11. You can always opt to add less or more water depending on how thick or thin you want the gravy. Additionally make a note that if you cook for more time, the gravy will reduce more but the potatoes can get overdone and become mushy or fall apart in the gravy.
12. Sprinkle the caraway seeds from top (optional) and serve Kashmiri Dum Aloo hot with steamed rice.