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Aloo Gobi | Pakistani Style Recipe

Aloo Gobi | Pakistani Style Recipe

Getting out a good Aloo Gobi recipe has been something that’s been playing on the back of my mind for YEARS.

Literally, years.

It’s been this one supposedly very simple, basic dish that I just wasn’t able to perfect. I have about 6 different versions of Aloo Gobi recipes I’ve tried to develop and just not liked enough to be able to post here. Here I was out here, impressing people with my lamb and chicken recipes, unable to produce a shareable Aloo Gobi recipe *hangs head in shame*.

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Some Aloo Gobi Mistakes I Made in the Past

  • Added too much water to the Aloo Gobi – generally speaking in my experience, adding water to any quick-ish cooking vegetable dish hasn’t worked out too well. The texture becomes soggy because the vegetables release their own moisture too. I would always notice excess, unnecessary water pooling in the serving dish after taking on the approach of ‘add lots of water and dry it out later’. And of course, soggy cauliflower, ughhhhh! Which brings me onto my next mistake…
  • Adding the tomatoes too early. Hear me out, this may not be how you’ve seen Aloo Gobi being made. Before, I used to make an onion and tomato masala and make sure it was nice and jammy before adding the potatoes and cauliflower. The problem with this, however, was that the potatoes and cauliflower would take some time to release their own moisture, and I would end up forced into adding quite a bit of water to make sure nothing burns. And adding water, like I just mentioned, is no Bueno. Adding the tomatoes later, which have LOADS of moisture, helps us keep additional water to a minimum
  • Been too light-handed on the spices – Lets get real, cauliflower isn’t the most interesting of vegetables. It definitely needs some flavour oomph, I have learnt throughout my trials (and tribulations – ha)
  • Generally just messing up the cauliflower and potato ratio. We like a nice, even ratio of both, right? I’ve usually been guilty of getting the potato ratio too high.

So, I’ve FINALLY gotten down a recipe I’m happy with. I was ever so close to posting the version just before this one, but I just had to have one final go before posting. And I’m SO happy I waited, because my rather picky, high-standards-for-Aloo-Gobi-coz-Maa-Jee-made-it-real-good husband has given it the thumbs up. And now I’m SO psyched to finally share it here!

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

What does this Aloo Gobi taste like?

This Aloo Gobi is…

  • A simple, homely, wholesome recipe. The flavours are simple and comforting.
  • A dry-style vegetable curry. By dry, I don’t mean it’ll have you reaching for gulps of water after every bite. I mean it’s more of a steamed vegetable dish as opposed to a more saucy or creamy affair.
  • The potatoes and cauliflower are tender and soft, but not mushy and soggy

How do you make Aloo Gobi?

I like to start by chopping everything up and getting it ready to use, since the potatoes and cauliflower take a little bit of prep. 

  • Peel the potatoes and chop them up. I prefer them to be medium sized cubes, so they retain their shape. Cut them too fine and they risk getting mashed.
  • For the cauliflower, set aside the stems. You can use them for something else, such a vegetable broth, but they just aren’t so good in this recipe as they remain tough and don’t work so well with the texture of things. Chop the cauliflower into medium-sized florets slightly larger in size than the potato cubes.
  • For the tomatoes, you can either blend them into a puree or chop them finely. In the images shown, I’ve blended them. But I also chop them up too, it’s fine either way.
  • Chop the onions finely – this makes the onions melt into the curry quicker and more easily.

Start off by heating some oil in a pot or pan. Add the onions, ginger and garlic and fry them on a medium to high heat, until the onions just begin to turn golden. Stir often, ensuring everything is browned evenly.

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Add all the spices and green chillies. Allow this to fry for 2-3 minutes.

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Then in go the potatoes and cauliflower. Allow these about 3-4 minutes just to get some frying action with the onions – this helps add a bit more depth of flavour and a more golden colour. 

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Add in the tomatoes. Mine were pureed in the blender, so quite liquid.

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Turn the heat down to low and allow the mixture to simmer for about half an hour, checking in between and giving a stir just to ensure nothing is burning. If needed, added a very minimal amount of water to prevent burning – 1/4 cup or less at a time if and as needed is a safe bet. 

Once the potatoes and cauliflower are tender, the curry is complete. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot. 

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Frequently Asked Questions

Click on the tabs to read the answers

What kind of cauliflower is best to use in Aloo Gobi?

Wait, can I actually use cauliflower leaves in my cooking?

What are the best potatoes to use in Aloo Gobi?

How can I prevent mushy potatoes?

Help! My cauliflower always ends up soggy!

Do I have to make the Aloo Gobi dry? What if I want more sauce?

Can you freeze Aloo Gobi?

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

What to serve with Aloo Gobi

Aloo Gobi has always been a stand-alone dish for us. It’s perfect with a hot, buttered roti or freshly cooked paratha. We also like serving it with some sweetened yogurt – I hear it is meant to make the cauliflower easier to digest.

It also does really well with salad – even having some vegetables just cut up and served as I’ve shown in the images is good enough. Especially the red onions *drools*. A squeeze of lemon also does wonders.

Additionally, Aloo Gobi would go wonderful with some pickle (achaar).

Variations

Some people like to add peas to their Aloo Gobi, to make it Aloo Matar Gobi. If you wanna do that too, I’d say add the peas in about 15 minutes before cook time is up.

You can also add other quick cooking vegetables like spinach (palak), fenugreek (methi) 5 minutes before cook time is over. 

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

How to make Aloo Gobi Paratha with leftovers

One of my favourite things about Aloo Gobi is the delicious leftovers that make for the most delicious parathas the next day. Getting the Aloo Gobi curry ready to use as stuffing for parathas is super easy.

  • First, make sure the Aloo Gobi mixture isn’t moist. If the mixture has too much moisture, your paratha dough will get too moist and may break
  • If your Aloo Gobi mixture is too moist, heat it up over a pan and dry out the excess moisture. The drier, the better.
  • Once you’ve made sure the curry isn’t dry, you can just mash everything up using the back of a spoon or your hands. It doesn’t need to be completely smooth, just mashed enough to be able to roll out without creating holes in the paratha dough.
  • Once you’ve done all this, you can use this mixture as desired to stuff your parathas with. 
Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

What else can you do with Aloo Gobi leftovers?

Aloo Gobi leftovers are the best kind of leftovers. The kind you can do a little happy dance for before tucking it away in the fridge. There are SO many possibilities – including:

  • Parathas, of course, as mentioned above
  • Mash them up and make little Aloo Gobi patties/cakes/tikkis/whatever you’d like to call them
  • Use them to fill sandwiches with. If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know I’m a fan of a good sabzi and cheese toastie 😉
  • They go good in quesadillas too!
  • I’ve actually once gone ahead and baked them with a huge, healthy hand of cheddar cheese. Spicy cauliflower cheese, ftw.

Some additional Aloo Gobi tips

  • Be gentle when handling the cooked Aloo Gobi since it will mash easily once tender
  • Keeping everything on a low and slow flame is really important as it will help coax out all the moisture from the vegetables to help with the cooking process. It may be tempting to cook on a higher flame and add water, especially if you’re in a rush, but trust me, waiting it out is worth it.
  • You can add a heaped tbsp of Achaar if you feel like a bit of a kick!
  • This is a mild recipe in terms of heat. Very child friendly. If you would prefer some more heat than this recipe has, I would recommend chopping up the green chillies as opposed to keeping them whole.
  • Ghee tastes FANTASTIC not only in this, but also in most vegetable dishes! So I highly recommend using that over oil if possible
  • Making sure all your potato cubes are the same size will ensure everything cooks evenly.

Other recipes you may enjoy

Achari Aloo | Mixed Sabzi | Cheats Aloo Paratha | Aloo ki Tikki

Aloo Gobi | Potato and Cauliflower

Aloo Gobi | Delicious Pakistani Recipe

Yield: 4 servings
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

A super easy and simple vegetarian dish, an Aloo Gobi is a classic many of us will remember our Mums making.

Ingredients

  • 1/3-1/4 cup oil (as per preference)
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 1tbsp minced ginger
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 green chillies
  • 1.5tsp salt, or to taste
  • 0.5tsp red chilli powder
  • 0.5tsp turmeric
  • 2tsp cumin seeds
  • 2tsp coriander powder
  • 350g cauliflower (one small head), stems removed and cut into florets
  • 250g potatoes, peeled and in medium-sized cubes
  • 2 tomatoes, chopped or pureed
  • Fresh coriander, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil in a pot or pan. Add the onions, ginger and garlic and fry them over a medium-high heat, till they begin to turn golden
  2. Add the spices and green chillies. Fry for 2-3 minutes
  3. Add the potatoes and cauliflower pieces. Allow these to fry for 3-4 minutes. It may start to smell like roasted spices - this is a good thing!
  4. Add the tomatoes in. Give everything a stir - if things look like they need a splash of water, add some in. We really want to avoid adding excess water in, so please only add water if you think the curry will burn without it
  5. Turn the heat to low, put the lid on and allow everything to steam-cook. Ideally, we want to avoid adding water, but keep checking in between. If you do need to add water, add a very small amount at a time.
  6. Once the cauliflower and potatoes are tender, turn off the heat. Garnish with fresh coriander.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Toby

Wednesday 2nd of February 2022

This is just terrific -- very helpful. I've been making aloo gobi for many years -- now it will be better. I do wish you had provided a link to making that gorgeous paratha ...

Fatima

Thursday 3rd of February 2022

Thank you, Toby! A paratha post is soon in the works :-) nice to know it caught your attention!

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