Masaura are the dehydrated balls of black-lentil paste and minced vegetables. The black-lentil paste is made into a shape of balls and then put on the sun to sun-dry them. The dried balls are then reserved in an airtight container for future use, usually for making tarkari, soup or curry. These could be made at home or you could also buy it from the market (in Ason or in supermarkets).

Potato, as we all know, is one of the most common, most used and most necessary vegetable in the Nepali kitchen. Usually, the regular or even special tarkari is incomplete without potato.

The curry of masaura and potato is one of the popular and most desired traditional vegetable in Nepal. This easy-to-make spiced curry is also tasty and goes perfectly with the steamed rice. Here is how you make Masaura and potato tarkari:

Ingredients:

3 cups masauras

1 cup diced potatoes

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped tomatoes

½ tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp ginger paste

1 tsp chili paste

½ tsp turmeric

1 tbsp cumin powder

1 cup whole cream

1 cup broth or water (traditionally chaulani, the water drained from rice after washing it, was used)

6 tbsp oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp chopped cilantro for garnish

Procedure:

First of all, heat a non-stick sauce pan and add three tablespoons of oil to it. When the oil is heated, fry the masauras until they turn golden brown and then keep it aside on a plate. Now, add remaining amount of oil and let it heat. Fry cumin seeds until they turn dark and then add chopped onions and turmeric and fry until the onion turns light brown. Then, add potatoes, salt and pepper to the mixture and fry on low heat for about ten minutes until the potatoes turns light brown and are half cooked. Now, add garlic, ginger, chili and cumin powder and stir for a couple of minutes. Then, add browned masauras to the mixture followed by tomatoes, broth and cream. Now, cover the pan and let it simmer for about fifteen minutes until the potatoes are cooked and desired consistency of the curry has been achieved. When done, garnish it with chopped cilantro and serve it hot with steamed rice.