These Tandoori Crispy Smashed potatoes are very easy to prepare and so delicious. They make a great vegetarian/vegan party appetizer or just make it anytime you want an easy and yummy evening snack.
What are smashed potatoes?
Whoever came up with the idea of smashed potatoes is a genius! Really such a brilliant technique to get crispy potatoes without any frying. Basically it is a 2 step cooking process where you boil the potatoes first, smash it and then bake it in the oven. Smashing the potatoes gives them a larger surface area to cook and makes the edges crispy and delicious. Of course, you can season the potatoes however you wish. Sometimes I season it simply with olive oil, salt and pepper but for this recipe we are jazzing it up with some tandoori style flavors.
What type of potatoes to use for Tandoori Crispy Smashed Potatoes
Since we are not peeling the potatoes, you want the waxy thin-skinned potatoes for this recipe. The small yellow baby potatoes work best. You can also use the larger Yukon gold potatoes and cut them in half after boiling and before smashing.
Key Steps to make Tandoori Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- Smash the boiled potatoes adequately so you have a thin layer. If you leave the potatoes very thick, they will take a long time to crisp up in the oven and the edges will not be as crispy and delicious. It’s ok if a few pieces of potatoes come apart.
- Potatoes in general need a lot of seasoning. Coat it generously with the tandoori masala mix on both sides. But before you do that also sprinkle the boiled and smashed potatoes with some salt.
- The potatoes are already boiled and cooked so to make them crispy we need to bake them at a high temperature of 425 F in the oven. To ensure that they are evenly cooked on both sides, they should be flipped halfway through the baking process.
- 1. Boiled Potatoes
- 2. Tandoori Marinade
- 3. Boiled and Smashed Potatoes
- 4. Potatoes smeared with the tandoori marinade
Can you make this recipe Vegan?
Yes, absolutely this recipe of Tandoori Crispy Smashed potatoes can be made Vegan. Just substitute the regular yogurt with any vegan yogurt alternative.
If you are looking for easy and delicious vegetarian appetizers, try these other recipes:
Tofu Satay with Spicy peanut sauce
Tools I have used to make Tandoori Crispy Smashed potato recipe:
Tandoori Crispy Smashed Potatoes
Twice cooked smashed crispy potatoes flavored with tandoori spices.
6
servings30
minutes30
minutesIngredients
1 1/2 lbs baby yellow potatoes (about 1 1/2 inch in size)
2 tablespoons Cooking oil ( or you can use an oil spray)
salt
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Tandoori Sauce Marinade
1 cup Whole milk thick yogurt (or can use vegan substitute)
1 tablespoon Cooking oil
1 1/2 teaspoon Red chili powder (use kashmiri chili pwd to make it mild)
1 teaspoon Roasted cumin powder (jeera)
1 teaspoon Coriander powder (dhaniya)
1/4 teaspoon Turmeric powder (haldi)
1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
1 tablespoon Kasoori Methi
1 teaspoon finely grated ginger
1 teaspoon lemon juice
salt
Method
- Boil the potatoes till fork tender but not falling apart. You can do it on the stovetop by placing the potatoes in a pot and filling it with tap water. Bring it to a rolling boil and then cover and cook. Check after 10 minutes if the potatoes are tender or cook some more. I prefer cooking it in the Instant Pot – 5 minutes Pressure cook and Quick Release.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, drain and let it cool a bit.
Pre-heat the oven to 425 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper for easy clean up. - Take a bowl and mix the tandoori sauce ingredients well till no lumps remain.
- Once the potatoes are drained and cooled, transfer them to the parchment lined cookie sheet. Use the bottom of a cup or katori to smash the potatoes down. Take your time doing this part so you have a nice thin layer. Sprinkle the smashed potatoes with some salt. Now use a pastry brush or a spoon to brush the tandoori masala generously all over the smashed potatoes.
- Bake in the pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes till the edges start to brown. Now remove from the oven and using a spatula carefully flip the potatoes to the other side. Brush the tandoori masala on the other side and bake again for 12-15 minutes. Depending on the thickness of your smashed potatoes it could take up to 20 minutes. Just keep an eye on it and cook till you see brown crispy edges.
Remove from the oven and transfer the potatoes carefully to a platter. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve with mint/cilantro green chutney.
