Chatpata Baby Potatoes

As I was wondering what interesting I can make out of these cute little baby potatoes such that it would be enticing enough for my toddler to eat, my husband came up with a great idea of using just a few ingredients in preparing this dish.

He took over the kitchen and used herbs infused in olive oil and garlic, salt and pepper in turning these baby potatoes into a lip smacking dish.


Recipe for Chatpata Baby Potatoes

Cooking time: 30 minutes
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Serves: up to 4 persons


Ingredients:

  1. Extra virgin olive oil: 5 tbsp
  2. Garlic: 10 – 12 cloves (finely chopped)
  3. Mixed herbs: 5 tsp
  4. Salt: as per taste
  5. Pepper: 2 tsp
  6. Baby potatoes: 500 gms
  7. Water: 5 cups


Instructions:

  1. Add 5 cups of water in a cooker and let it boil. Then add salt and the baby potatoes. Boil the potatoes directly for about 10 minutes or pressure cook it for up to 2 whistles.
  2. Strain the water and let the potatoes cool down.
  3. In the meanwhile, in a saucepan, add extra virgin olive oil and finely chopped garlic. Cook it until the garlic turns golden. Add the herbs and switch off the gas.
  4. Pour the contents from the saucepan onto a strainer and place a bowl below it. The herbs infused oil will get collected in the bowl.
  5. By now the potatoes would have cooled down completely. Cut each of them into two halves without removing the skin. (You may remove the skin if you do not like the taste of it. However, potato skin is rich in nutrients and healthy. Hence, I would suggest keeping the skin on).
  6. In a mixing bowl, put the cut potatoes and add the herbs infused oil, salt and freshly ground pepper and toss it well.
  7. In the same saucepan, pour extra virgin olive oil and add the baby potatoes. Roast it for about 8-10 minutes in medium flame till the potatoes turn crispy on the outside.
  8. Empty the potatoes into a serving bowl, garnish it with green onions (optional) and serve it with mayonnaise and ketchup.


Tips:

  1. In case of boiling it directly, to know if the potatoes are cooked well, poke inside the potato with a fork. If the fork slides in easily then it has cooked nicely.
  2. Keep stirring occasionally to ensure that the garlic does not burn.
  3. Use extra virgin olive oil instead of normal cooking oilwhen you want to sauté or stir fry veggies.
  4. Suggest to not use a spatula or hand to mix it as the potatoes could break because they are soft.
  5. You can buy a bottle of mixed herbs or pizza seasoning from the market which can be used for this dish as well for salads, pasta and pizza.


Bon Appetit!