Jeera is cumin in Hindi, and probably a few other languages too. It's a spice that goes well with potatoes. I've added a pinch of some other spices to this recipe, but not too much. The taste of the cumin is still dominant. It doesn't take long to make this soup so it's a good choice if you're pressed for time. If you like chillies, you'll probably enjoy them in this recipe. Add a couple of chopped fresh green ones while the onion is frying.
Ingredients
About 800g of potatoes
1 large onion
Vegetable oil
1 level teaspoon of whole cumin seeds
A quarter teaspoon each of turmeric and ginger powder
2 veg. stock cubes
A small bunch of green coriander
2 and a half litres of water
Peel the onion and potatoes and put a pot of water on to boil.
Cut the onion in half and slice the halves thinly. Cut the potatoes into strips
no thicker than a centimetre. Heat the oil in a pan and when it's really hot
add the cumin seeds (pound the seeds slightly before adding them if you want
a stronger taste from them). Add the onion a few seconds later and stir. Fry
for five minutes or so, until the onions start to brown and then add the potatoes,
turmeric and ginger. Stir and fry for a further three or four minutes then add
the contents of the pan to the pot of boiling water. Throw in the stock cubes
and simmer for about twenty minutes. Taste the soup and add salt if necessary
a few minutes before the end. Add the chopped coriander after you turn off the
heat.
more soup recipes
more potato recipes