Similar to a pilaf, aloo ki tahari or spiced potato rice is a Pakistani / Indian vegetarian dish made with rice and potatoes. Other vegetables can be used but the most popular are potatoes which has resulted in this dish also being called aloo chawal (aka potato rice).
Tahari, taheri, aloo chawal or spiced potato rice is a really simple Pakistani & Indian recipe to make. It's an excellent option for “Meatless Mondays” or when you want to whip something quick for dinner, be it for yourself or for guests who have unexpectedly dropped by.
Aloo ki tahari is also known for its vibrant yellow colour which is due to use of turmeric – a popular spice in Pakistani / Indian cooking that has recently been re-discovered in the West due to its anti-inflammatory and antibiotic properties.
How to make aloo ki tahari or spiced potato rice?
Tahari is made by sauteing ginger garlic paste, whole spices and then powdered spices in oil. Once the flavours of the spices are released add the tomatoes and potatoes and cook till the tomatoes are soft. At this point, add the rice along with double the amount of water. For best results, rice should be washed in at least three changes of water, and then soaked before it is cooked. The washing process gets rid of the starch left over from the milling process. Let the rice cook till the water has almost evaporated, and then close the lid for “dum”. The process of “dum” in Pakistani / Indian cooking means to cook via steam, and the process requires using a heavy cooking pot with a tight fitting lid so the steam doesn't escape and cooks the ingredients in the pot.
What vegetables can I use in this recipe?
The way that tahari is cooked in our family is always with potatoes. Quite a few of them in my case! However, other vegetables such as cauliflower, peas, beans and carrots can be used. In that case the dish would be called sabziyoon ki tahari / taheri (or vegetable spiced rice).
What can I serve with aloo ki tahari or spiced potato rice?
Tahari / taheri is a complete meal on its own and it’s best served with raita (yoghurt) and/or a light salad such as kachumber or just slice up some cucumbers and tomatoes. You can also pair it up with a gravy such as chicken karahi or qorma.
Check out other vegetarian recipes on the blog below:
-
Khari masoor ki daal or black gram lentils
-
Black eyed peas curry or Lobia ka salan
-
Aloo ki Tarkari or Potato Curry
📖 Recipe
Aloo Tahari or Aloo Chawal
Ingredients
- 2 cups or ½ kg basmati rice
- ¼ cup oil
- 1 medium onion sliced
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 10 - 12 black peppercorns
- 3 cloves
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds sufaid zeera
- 2 black cardamom bari elaichi
- 2 inch piece cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ - 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- salt to taste
- 2 tomatoes cut into cubes
- 4 - 6 medium potatoes cut into 6 – 8 pieces
Instructions
- Clean and wash rice. Soak for ½ hour, and set aside.
- Heat oil.Fry onions for a few minutes till light golden.
- Add ginger garlic paste, followed by whole spices (peppercorn, cloves, cumin seeds and cardamom). Saute for a minute and then add the powdered spices (coriander powder, red chili powder and turmeric). Cook for 2 – 3 minutes, adding a splash of water if spices are sticking to the pan.
- Add cubed tomatoes and potatoes. Cook for 5 – 10 minutes, till tomatoes are soft.
- Add rice with about 4 cups water. Add salt to taste and give it a stir.Cook on medium – high flame till water has almost evaporated.
- Once the water has evaporated, add 2 – 3 green chilies on top. Close the lid and keep on low simmer (dum) till rice is cooked through.
- Serve hot with raita on the side.
Notes
Renee says
You deserve five stars even if our dinner only loosely followed your recipe. Even with my substitutions, it was good. Except for using minced garlic & ginger rather than make it into a paste, and only guessing at what is meant by red pepper powder (I used part cayenne & part paprika), I did follow the spices and cooking instructions as written and the flavor was comfortingly warm. I love rice and am sure that would take it to the next level, but since this was our whole meal we needed the quinoa for protein. Looking forward to trying this again once I know I'm using the correct red chili powder.
Renee says
Kieran. Thank you for all this additional information and for the link to order a spice mix. That will be helpful because we live in a small town with no international population.
I am about to try the aloo tahari for this evening's meal although I'm going to use quinoa in place of rice and with a few other vegetables as well as potatoes so it might not urn out the way it should.
One perhaps unnecessary substitute I'm about to make (to save time) is to simply mince the garlic and ginger instead of making a paste. Is this a bad idea? (Am asking for future reference)
Renee says
Another question: is red pepper powder what is commonly called "chili powder" - a spicy blend commonly used in the soup we call chili - or is it the sweet red powder we call paprika (made from sweet red peppers) or is it the very hot red pepper we call cayenne - or something different? (Since I'm asking this question as I'm about to start our meal, we might not actually be getting the planned dish, lol)
Renee says
Kiran,
Thank you for taking the time t answer my question - and so quickly! I will definitely try both recipes. I once bought a kit for biryani and it didn't taste anything like the dish I remember (but so long ago, who know?). If it is the only dish that resembles the one I described, perhaps making it from fresh will be different - or maybe I simply need another region's (or cook's) take on it. Will keep searching. Love Indian & Pakistani food and am blessed with a husband who is willing to eat everything.
kiran says
Hi Renee,
Yes, it could be because of the kit and also the regional variation. The basic technique of making biryani which is the layering is similar across the Indian sub-continent, however, the ingredients and spices vary. I find Indian biryani quite different from Pakistani biryani.
If you want to try a spice mix, I would suggest the one from Shan Foods. It's a Pakistani brand and super popular across the country. There are quite a few biryani spice blends in their range, but my preferred one is the special Bombay biryani one. I use it often because it's not always possible to make the spice blend from scratch. It is quite spicy (even for me) so add quarter to half the suggested amount.
https://www.shanfoods.com/product/recipe-mixes/rice/bombay-biryani/
Their international distribution is quite good, so you should easily be able to find it at an Indian or Pakistani grocery store.
Happy biryani experimenting! 🙂
Renee says
I've been looking for a recipe similar to this for about 30 years. A co-worker who was from Pakistan sometimes brought it to work to share. It was so spicy that I always felt my mouth was on fire for the first few bites but after that I couldn't get enough. The notable difference between this dish and his is that his had chicken. Is that just a variation, or is it another thing entirely? I plan to try your recipe soon to see if it tastes the way I remember.
Thank you for posting; I hope you can answer this.
kiran says
Hi Renee,
If it was spicy and it had chicken in it then it must be chicken biryani. The Pakistani style chicken biryani is on the spicy side and most of the time has potatoes in it. It's one of my favourite dishes and I always add potatoes. I don't have a recipe on my website, however, my friend Wajiha from butteroverbae.com does - https://butteroverbae.com/pakistani-chicken-biryani/
The recipe I have shared is for aloo ki tahari which is a type of one pot potato pilaf - weekday comfort food. It does have spices but they are added for flavour and warmth. It's not spicy. I hope you enjoy both the recipes 🙂
ashok says
Thanks For Sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope the will like it.
Hiba Asif says
Simple and yet tasty recipe...
Arshad Jamil says
Made it exactly following the recipe. It turned out so delicious!
Maryam says
Tahari is perfect comfort food. This recipe looks perfect, I’m so excited to test it out!
Taniya says
Too good
Javeid Yildiz says
Goes well with peas