Don’t just relegate potatoes to a side dish. Crunchy Indian Spiced Potato Wedges, with just the right amount of heat & warm spices, are the perfect sharing appetizer served with chutney or a sweet sauce for dipping.
Potatoes are relatively low in calories – a medium potato contains only about 110 calories & they’re also high in Vitamin C & potassium when eaten with the skin on. They’ve been given a bad rap thanks to multiple low carb diets touting them as evil.
Now, I’ve been on just about every fucking diet there is, including various low carb diets, & I hated not eating potatoes. Okay, so maybe lathering them in butter & sour cream isn’t exactly health conscious but tossing them with a little olive oil, spices & roasting them until crisp then enjoying them with a cold beer or adult beverage of your choice once in a while can be part of a wholesome diet. I read a story about a grossly overweight lady who lost almost 200 pounds eating potatoes. Instead of munching on cakes, cookies, candy & processed food foods, she steamed some potatoes & ate those instead of the other crap. She ate other wholesome foods but she said potatoes saved her.
This recipe was inspired by my Indian food friend, Arun from The Take it Easy Chef. Panch Phoran, the main spice ingredient in my recipe. This 5-spice blend is a combination of nigella, fenugreek, cumin, mustard & fennel seeds. I bought mine at an Indian spice store for $1.49 but if you can’t find it then try a combination of equal parts of all of them. If you can’t find all of them, the just use what you can find. You could even add a touch of curry powder to them. The seeds in panch phoran help to give the wedges both crunch & flavor. Next time I’m trying this spice combination on homemade naan bread.
I’ve still got a big container of these leftover from yesterday so I’m going to reheat them to serve with this seemingly delicious pumpkin & bean chili recipe I’m testing from my new favorite blog, Vanilla & Bean. It’s a rainy, gloomy afternoon here in our teeny Indiana town, perfect weather for some Crunchy Indian Spiced Potato Wedges dunked into a bowl of chili. Toodles, Lovoni xo Oh I almost forgot, if you love potatoes as much as I do (that’s A LOT), then you’re going to need to make these uber crunchy potatoes.
A pinterest pic to share
- 2 tablespoons olive or coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons finely grated ginger
- 2 tablespoons panch phoran*
- 2 teaspoons crushed red peppers (chili flakes)
- 1 teaspoon course sea salt, plus extra for serving
- 8 russet potatoes, not peeled (about 3 1/2 lbs/1.5kg)
- 6 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C)**. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine oil, ginger, spices & salt in a large, overzised bowl .
- Cut each potato lengthways in half then cut each half into 3 or 4 wedges. Add wedges to spice mix & toss until each wedge is coated. Arrange the wedges in a single layer on the baking sheet. Roast for 35 minutes, then turn potatoes & roast for another 20 minutes. Add garlic & roast for 10 to 15 minutes or until potatoes are browned & crisp.
- Sprinkle with cilantro & serve immediately. Serves with mango or tamarind chutney or sweet chili sauce.
- * Panch Phoran (also spelled ‘phoron’ ) is a Indian 5-spice blend - fennel seeds, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds & nigella seeds.
- ** I cooked the wedges in a standard oven - not convection. For a convection oven, lower the temperature by about 20 degrees or shorten the cooking time by 10 to 15 or more minutes.
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