Instant Pot Dum Aloo

Dum Aloo is a North Indian curry with baby potatoes simmered in onion and tomato-based gravy, spiced with turmeric, red chili pepper, garam masala, and garnished with dried fenugreek leaves. This vegetarian Instant Pot recipe is ready in under 30 minutes with creamy kid-friendly flavors that can be easily spiced down or up. A perfect weeknight dinner and a sure-hit dish for potlucks and parties!

Dum Aloo served with parathas and cucumber salad
 
  • Baby Potatoes – red or yellow baby potatoes in this recipe, traditionally the potatoes are peeled for this recipe but you may choose to keep the skin on for added nutrients.
  • Spices – Kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric, garam masala add the perfect warmth and authetic flavors to this curry
  • Ginger and Garlic – fresh homemade ginger and garlic paste
  • Tomatoes – I like to add store-bought tomato puree to this dish which adds vibrant red color to the dish. You can use homemade tomato puree by simply pureeing 3 rough-chopped ripe tomatoes in a blender.

Tips and Substitutes

  1. Potatoes – You can buy red or yellow baby potatoes, available in most grocery stores. A mix of 2 also works well. Coring baby potatoes is an optional step. I know that is the most tedious step in this recipe, so go ahead and skip coring potatoes. It will be still delicious If you do not find baby potatoes, use Yukon gold or Russet potatoes, peel, and cut into big 2-inch pieces
  2. Tomatoes – 1 cup of store-bought tomato puree can be used in place of fresh tomato puree
  3. Gluten-Free – The curry itself is gluten-free. Serve with rice for a gluten-free meal
  4. Vegan Dum Aloo – Use cooking oil instead of ghee and soak cashews in water instead of milk.
  5. Kid-Friendly – Adjust the garam masala and Kashmiri red chili powder to make the dish less spicy
  6. Nut Allergies – Use heavy cream or unsweetened coconut cream instead of cashew cream
  7. Dried fenugreek leaves – These are not the same as fenugreek seeds. So simply skip it if you do not have them

How to make Dum Aloo

  • Peel the potatoes and core about half an inch using a pairing knife. Reserve the cored potato bits as we will be adding them to the sauce. (photos 1 -4)
photos one through four showing how to peel and core baby potatoes
  • Set the Instant Pot to Sauté mode and heat ghee. Add onions and cook for 2 minutes with a glass lid on. Add ginger and garlic paste, tomato puree, turmeric, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook on saute mode for a minute. Next, add the potatoes, the carved-out pieces, and water. Give a quick stir and close the Instant Pot. Pressure cook(Hi) for 8 minutes followed by Quick Release (photos 5 – 8)
photos five through eight showing how to cook potatoes in the Instant Pot
  • Open the Instant Pot and add dried fenugreek leaves, cashew paste, and chopped cilantro. Set the Instant Pot to Sauté mode and mix everything together. Add salt to taste. Bring to a gentle boil and then turn the Instant Pot off. (photos 9 – 12)

Photos nine through twelve showing cooked and garnished dum aloo curry in the Instant Pot

 

Serving

Serve with homemade whole wheat parathas and crunchy cucumber salad. You can also serve the dum aloo with roti, kale parathas, cabbage parathas, methi thepla, or naan. For a gluten-free meal serve with Basmati rice, Brown rice, or Yogurt-Rice

Curried potatoes served in a white bowl with parathas and salad on the side
 

Recipe Video