Oven Roasted Aloo Gobi

The other day I saw one my favorite modern Indian chefs in NYC, Suvir Saran, make this roasted cauliflower dish on the Martha Show. In my own home I do a similar dish, but with potatoes and a shortcut — I skip grinding the spices. At other times and for many Indian dishes, I would do it all from scratch as that’s why Indian dishes are so intense in flavor.

My Oven Roasted Aloo Gobi, however is soul food — a tasty, every day side dish with no fuss and which doesn’t need any fuss. You get the same slow-cooked Indian flavor without the grind 😉 which to me is a big deal these days as I’m constantly running out of time. Who isn’t!

We like this recipe so much. When you make it, the home smells so amazing that it may lead your neighbors or guests to think that you are making some complicated feast. Plus, I could never get my hubby to eat slices of onions in anything, but in this the onions perfectly caramelize in the oven, along with garam masala and oil. He loves it!

I used:
1 small head of cauliflower, cleaned and chopped into small chunks or florets
1 big yellow onion, thinly sliced
6 small red potatoes, chopped to approximately the same size chunks as the cauliflower (or try Yukon Golds!)
1.5 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 teaspoon dhana-jeeru powder (a blend of ground cumin and coriander seeds)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 big black cardamom pods, whole
3-4 tablespoons olive oil, enough to drench everything
salt to taste
a handful of cilantro leaves to garnish

My method:
1. Turn the oven up to 400 F ( C)
2. Toss all the vegetables in the oil and spices
3. Lay everything (cooking times for different potatoes vary, so if you’re using any other kind cook potatoes first & then add onions & cauliflower and let everything brown together) evenly in a big baking pan, big enough to make sure nothing is over-lapping, else it won’t cook well.
4. Stick the pan in the oven and shake it all up to move it around every 20 minutes or so. Keep an eye on it, as you don’t want the onions to burn before your potatoes cook. It’s finished when it looks like it: the potatoes will look nice and crispy, and onions will look the worst, but will taste great! It should all be finished in about 30-40 minutes.
5. Garnish with cilantro and serve right away, with whatever else your heart pleases. We recently had our Oven Roasted Aloo Gobi with rajma, rice, papad, pickle & raita — and raita is the recipe I will publish next!

• Indian,
• Savory,
• Vegan