Bong Classics: Dim Alu Bhaate(Mashed potatoes with boiled eggs, tempered with spices and fried onion julienne)

As Bengalis, we love the(humble) potato to bits. We are obsessed with it, we dream about it and we find innovative ways to include the Alu(potato) in our daily dishes. Alu to us is Bae! As such whether it is the starting of the meal or the end, potato is the Prima Donna to our gastronomic adventures. We start off meals with Ucche-Alu Bhaate(Bitter gourd mashed with boiled potatoes) that clarifies the blood and is good for health; we have Jhuri Alu Bhaja (thinly shredded potato crisps that beat any packet chips available), we have Alu-Posto ( a delectable dished cooked with poppy-seed paste and diced potatoes with a tempering of nigella seeds); the Mangshor Jhol'r Alu (Mutton Curry cooked with potato halves) and the holy grail of potatoes, Biriyani'r Aloo. Ask any Bengali from Kolkata to Connecticut and they will pledge before you that no matter how tasty a Biriyani is, if it has no Alu, it's not a Biriyani. We just can't do without it.

Like the Brits and the Americans have their mashed potatoes that is basically a meal in itself and is often accompanied by a vast array of proteins, Bengalis have the Bhaate that accompanies the Dal(lentil soup) and steamed rice at the beginning of the meal. Now Bhaate means mashed and any kind of Bhaate in the Bengali cuisine includes a mashed-up vegetable. In most cases it's the Alu Bengalis prefer.

 

Now the neighboring state of West Bengal is Bihar that has its own version of the mashed potato, Alu Choka, a dished in which black mustard seeds, onions, green chillies, dry red chillies, coriander and cumin powder, mashed garlic cloves and amchur (optional) are tempered in oil, mixed with the potato and mashed together to produce Alu Chokha. But to be fair the Alu Chokha simply overpowers the potato and in the end all you end up tasting is the spices and no alu. 

This is exactly where we Bengalis do it better than our neighbors. We don't add a huge assortment of spices or mixes but keep it simple. A very simple vegetarian version of the Bengali style Alu Bhate is to simply temper mustard oil with whole cumin seeds, add thinly sliced onions let it fry till golden(optional) add salt, turmeric,chilli powder, chopped green chillies and mash up the potatoes with this. Keep it on the heat and stir it for a minute or two before serving.The result is finger licking good.

However, I must add that we Bengalis love our non-vegetarian fare too and the humble Alu Bhaate is elevated to God-like status if you simple dice a hard boiled egg and add it to the mashed potatoes after removing it from the heat, once it has cooled a bit. The boiled egg adds a different flavor to the potato while the boiled egg yolk mixed with the potato, provides it a smooth and buttery taste.That Alu Bhaate, the Dim Alu Bhaate is the stuff food dreams of a Bengali is made of and often results in the silent finishing of a plate of food from cranky kids. The Dim Alu Bhaate, though simple and rustic is a delight in itself and should be tried by everyone at least once in their life.