Indian-style baby potato masala fry tossed in aromatic spices — tender baby potatoes tossed and roasted in simple Indian spices, the ultimate desi side dish. Serve it hot off the pan as a side with classic comfort meals like curd rice, dal rice, or even your go-to khichdi.
Think golden baby potatoes, lightly crisped on the outside, coated in a mix of dry spices, and perfectly soft on the inside. No gravy. No chopping. No elaborate prep. Just a sizzle of spices and a handful of potatoes that turn into something way more than the sum of their parts.
Whether it's guests arriving unannounced, celebrations in full swing, post 75 hours work week, or just one of those carb-loving days (you know the ones), this recipe is our ride-or-die comfort food. It lives permanently in my “back pocket favorites” and honestly, it never lets me down.
Now, hear me out — I truly believe that we Indians are not just the aam (mango) junta, we are the aloo junta! Mangoes get three months of glory; potatoes get 365 days of devotion. Potatoes are the real MVPs of the Indian kitchen. I knew classmates who practically lived on aloo for the first 15 years of their life, and they turned out just fine! (Well, mostly.)
Even the pickiest eater — the kind who turns up their nose at bhindi or karela — will devour crispy, spicy, golden baby potatoes without a fuss. That’s the potato magic.
Oh, and if you’re a fellow potato fan (who isn't?!), there’s a whole world of indian potato recipes waiting for you. From north indian style tari wale aloo to oven crisped masala potatoes to buttery hasselback potatoes —there’s something for every mood and meal. And if you’ve got a favorite you swear by, I’m all ears—drop it in the comments and let’s swap secrets like true desi foodies!
Why this recipe works
1. Pairs well with all indian comfort foods of dal rice, sambhar, curd rice, kadhi rice and even parathas
2. No fresh ingredients needed, extremely frugal dish.Even the spices are very basic.
How to make Indian baby potato masala fry
This is the simplest indian recipe you can ever make! Here’s the best part: it’s fuss-free. No blending, no sautéing onions, no tomato gravy drama. Just you, some potatoes, and your spice box.
Step 1: Prep the baby potatoes
Though this recipe is for baby potatoes, you can make the recipe with normal potatoes too. I have made this recipe almost weekly with different potatoes- Indian baby potatoes, baby gold potatoes in US, bite sized potatoes and red potatoes too.
If you can’t find baby potatoes, don’t stress — just quarter regular potatoes and carry on.
If they are large, cut them into quarters or halves. Boil them in a pot full of salted water. You can also pressure cook or steam the potatoes. Cooking them like this gives me a greater control over how soft the potatoes turn. Sometimes, pressure cooking them makes them too mushy.
Remove them from the water, peel the skins off. You could keep the skin on, but the spices stick to the potatoes without the skin better.
You can let the potatoes cool overnight at this point. Not only will this spare your hands, it will also increase the resistance starch, making it healthier.
Add the spices to the bowl of boiled baby potatoes.
Step 2: Roast the potatoes
Choose a pan that's non-stick and heavy-bottomed, like my carbon steel pan here, or a cast iron pan. It should be large enough to hold the potatoes and have some leftover space.
Add oil to the pan.Swirl it around, coating all the surface.
Add the potatoes with the spices. Cook on medium-low heat till the spices turn darker and stick to the potatoes. Add more oil if needed.
This ultimate desi potato side dish is a total crowd-pleaser and comes together with zero fuss.
Tips
1. Generously salt the water while boiling the potatoes.
2. Peel the potatoes- the spices stick better to it.
3. Cut the potatoes into halves- more surface area to crisp up.
Variations
You could give this baby potato fry many twists.
- South Indian- Toss in a few curry leaves towards the end to make.
- Sesame indian potato fry- Add a tablespoon of white sesame seeds towards the end.Roast till the sesame seeds stick to the potatoes.
- Oven-roasted crispy potatoes - Make these indian crispy masala potatoes in the oven.
- Air fryer potatoes and onions - Cut the potatoes even smaller and make this crispy onion potato fry in the air fryer.
- Instant Pot Bombay potatoes - Make cumin spiced baby potatoes in the instant pot.
- Arbi/Collacasia or Yam Fry- Follow the same instructions to make the same dish but with arbi or yam.
Serving
Masala Baby Potato Fry is the side dish that doesn’t play second fiddle — it steals the show! Here is how to serve it
- Ultimate comfort food with Dal Rice, khichdi or curd rice - Want to make it a little fancier? Serve it along another side like raita.
- With Rotis or Parathas: The classic combo. Soft rotis or parathas are perfect lunchbox options.
- As a Wrap, Roll, & Stuffed parathas: Leftovers (if any) make great stuffing.
- Thali Style: Go full desi and add it to a mini-thali setup with cucumber salad, pickle, papad, and maybe a dessert (kheer, anyone?).
- Appetizer - Hosting a gathering? Stick toothpicks in them and serve as finger food with green chutney — they disappear in minutes, no kidding.
- Want to go full feast mode? Pair it with pooris, or a side to chole bhature for an indulgent brunch.
These Indian style baby potato fry can flex into any role — side, star, or snack! If you make it
Masala Baby Potato Fry
Ingredients
- 500 grams Baby Potatoes
- 2 tablespoon Oil peanut, sesame, coconut or avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1.5 tablespoon Ground Coriander Powder
- 1 teaspoon Chilli powder Kashmiri chili
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- Salt to Taste
Instructions
Boil potatoes
- Boil a pot of water with 1 teaspoon of salt. The water should taste like sea water.
- Wash the potatoes. Slice into halCut the bigger potatoes into bite size peices.
- Cook the potatoes in boiling water till you can glide in a knife into them.
- Drain the water, remove the skin.
Roast Potatoes
- To the cooked potatoes, add all the dry spices- salt, turmeric, cumin , ground coriander seeds and chili powder. Toss to coat evenly.
- Heat a non stick pan on medium low heat. Add the oil.
- Add the poattoes along with the spices.
- Use a turner to move the poattoes around every few seconds. Try and scoop under the potates so they do not break.
- Cook for 8-10 minutes like this till the spices are sticking to the potatoes and have tuened dark brown.
- Garnish with Coriander leaves and serve.
Notes
Reasonings & Notes
Boiling potatoes - You can cook them in the pressure cooker, but I prefer to have control over how mushy they are. That is why I prefer to cut the potatoes and then boil them in an open pan. That way I cut down on cooking time and have full control over it. Cutting the potatoes - You can keep the potatoes whole, especially if they are really small. The potatoes I have used in the photos are slightly bigger and that is why I have sliced them. Potato Skin - This way, the spices stick to the potatoes better. Though if I am in a hurry, I skip this step. Heavy-bottomed non-stick pan- You need something that will not make the potatoes stick and disperse heat evenly. I like using my cast iron pans, carbon steel pan, and the anodized pan for this.Nutrition
More potato recipes
Here are some more sabzis that you can try
FAQs- Baby Potato Fry Recipe
Check, check, and check (if you use sendha namak). This dish fits into every dietary box — vegan, paleo, Whole30, and our very own desi fasting rituals. That’s the beauty of keeping things simple and spice-forward.
Absolutely! Just cut them into quarters or bite-sized pieces.
Use any neutral oil — I use mustard oil for north indian flavors and coconut oil, peanut or sesame oil for south indian flavors.
Yes! It reheats beautifully on a pan or in the air fryer.
Yes! It’s dry, mess-free, and flavorful — perfect dabba material.
No stress — even a basic combo of turmeric, chili, and salt works wonders. That said, most of the spice you see on the potato is actually ground coriander seeds, and it is used extensively in indian cuisine.
Definitely! It’ll add richness and more aroma.Though ghee tends to produce more smoke in the kitchen.
Leave a Reply