Poori masala recipe easy yet the perfect choice for poori, made for each other. With step by step pictures of preparation. So simple yet perfect with poori and even dosa.

A perfect match for poori, you can prepare for breakfast or even brunch.
Check out my Poori recipe to see how to make perfect ones to go with this. Do check out my mix veg saagu recipe.
I never thought I should post this potato masala (poori kizhangu) for poori in my blog.
But I realized people google specifically from my blog using my blog name.
Thought I should post this soon and 2 weeks back, I made this for a weekend breakfast.
So that it can be useful for people who are new to cooking, bachelors and those who want to learn some basic south Indian breakfast recipes.
I hope newly married and who are interested in cooking and in a learning process may find this helpful.
I make this when I am lazy to make potato kurma / cauliflower kurma or mixed vegetable kurma for puri as my kid likes only kurma for puri.
Even this poori kizhangu, he just calls as yellow kurma.
Variations
I make this aloo masala with few variations and this is so versatile and use this as guidance you can make a lot of variations too according to your taste.
- Add crushed garlic in place of ginger.
- Temper with cinnamon stick and use ginger garlic paste while frying onion and add ¼ cup ground coconut and 3 cashews towards end to make it thick and rich.
- Add more vegetables like green peas and beans along with carrot.
- In case it turns spicy, after switching off, you can add a teaspoon of lemon juice to balance.
- Kids friendly : Grind ginger and green chilli and add to the boiling masala, so that they won't get to bite ginger or chilli.
Taste & Texture
This recipe is so simple without any strong masalas and packed with south Indian flavours.
Do not underestimate the side dish. Just make sure to add salt and green chillies to balance the taste.
This is very popular in Tamil nadu restaurants and households. In fact, we always make this at home.
This is pucca our homestyle, you can make more masala based using the variations I have mentioned.
How should be the texture?
It can be made thick or gravy type. Have you ever tasted poori masala from the famous restaurant Mathura at Chennai Mount road? Once my FIL took me there and told how good it will be. It was thick and so different like he told.
But usually other restaurants and at home, it is thick gravy type.
It should not be watery, that is if you keep in the plate, it should not leave water on either side.
So make sure to thicken it. Here are several ways to thicken:
- Mash some potato itself so that it thickens the masala.
- Add a teaspoon of corn flour (corn starch) dissolved in a tablespoon of water and add to the boiling poori masala.
- Dissolve a teaspoon of kadalaimavu/ gram flour/ besan in a tablespoon of water and add it.
Just make sure not to go overboard as it will make taste bland.
Recipe card
Poori masala recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Potato
- 3 Onion
- 4 Green chilli
- 1 tablespoon Chopped ginger
- ½ Carrot finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon Turmeric
- Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Sugar
- 3 cups Water
- 1 teaspoon Corn flour optional
To temper
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- ½ teaspoon Mustard
- 1 teaspoon Urad dal
- 1 tablespoon Chana dal
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
Instructions
- Wash and cut potatoes into 4 and pressure cook for 3 whistles with little water.
- Cool down, peel and keep it roughly mashed. Don't mash completely, just break into pieces roughly.
- Heat kadai with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table.
- Add green chillies, ginger, thinly sliced onion (lengthwise) and fry until transparent. Take care not to burn it or change its colour. Just let it turn transparent.
- Add carrots and fry for a minute in medium flame.
- Add 3 cups water, turmeric, salt and sugar. Bring to boil.
- Add the mashed potatoes. You can mash one or two pieces completely to make the masala thick as it boils.
- Continue to boil for 10 minutes in medium flame or until the masala gets thick in consistency.
- You can add corn flour dissolved in 2 tablespoon of water towards end to make the masala look homogeneously thick.
Video
Notes
- While boiling the masala wont be that yellow, but after cools down, it slowly gets more yellow, but add ¼ teaspoon as mentioned, otherwise it looks dull yellow.
- My chillies were spicy, so added 4, if not, add more, otherwise the masala will be bland.
- Instead of corn flour you can use besan/ chickpea flour/ kadalai mavu to thicken the masala.
- You can add a teaspoon of coconut oil for extra flavour.
- Other variations you can do:
*Add crushed garlic in place of ginger.
*Temper with cinnamon stick and use ginger garlic paste while frying onion and add ¼ cup ground coconut and 3 cashews towards end to make it thick and rich.
* Add more vegetables like peas and beans along with carrot.
*Grind ginger and green chilli and add to the boiling masala.
Poori masala instructions
- Wash and cut potatoes firstly into 4 and pressure cook for 3 whistles with little water. After that, cool down, peel and keep it roughly mashed. Don't mash completely, just break into pieces roughly. Then, heat kadai with oil and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table.
- After that, add green chillies, ginger, thinly sliced onion (lengthwise) and fry until transparent. Take care not to burn it or change its colour. Just let it turn transparent. Then add carrots and fry for a minute in medium flame.
- Add 3 cups water, turmeric, salt and sugar. Bring to boil. After that, add the mashed potatoes. You can mash one or two pieces completely to make the masala thick as it boils.
4. Continue to boil for 10 minutes in medium flame or until the masala gets thick in consistency.
You can add corn flour dissolved in 2 tablespoon of water towards end to make the masala look homogeneously thick.
Serve this masala with poori, or even with chapathi or rava idli too. Use the left over masala for making masala dosa.
Instant pot version
Stepwise images coming up soon!
I recently made this in Instant pot and thought of updating here. For this method, I used same amount of finely chopped garlic along with ginger.
In addition to carrot, I added ¼ cup peas and 2 tablespoon chopped capsicum.
Also, I added ½ teaspoon sambar powder, ¼ teaspoon Garam masala for a mild twist.
For this method, we need not cook potato separately but together. So let's see hot to make potato masala for poori in Instant pot.
- Firstly, gather all ingredients needed, ready. Peel potatoes and cut into 4 or 8.
- Start the instant pot in Saute mode (More) for 15 minutes.
- Add oil to the inner pot. Once the display indicates HOT, add mustard, let it start to splutter.
- After that, add urad dal, chana dal followed by curry leaves, ginger, green chilli and onion.
- Then add carrot, peas if adding and saute until the onion turns soft. Do not let change colour much. Adding a pinch of salt soften the onion fast.
- Now add potatoes, turmeric, salt and water enough to immerse all potatoes. Mix well.
- Cancel saute and close the lid.
- Pressure cook for 5 minutes, Normal, High pressure.
- Once done, let the pressure release naturally or 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, release the pressure if any and open the lid.
- Mash some 4-5 pieces of potato against the wall of the inner pot using a ladle. This helps the masala thicken.
- You can also choose to add corn flour like in the above recipe.
- Again start the instant pot in Saute mode for 5 minutes.
- Let the masala boil until timer is up. Make sure to stir in between to avoid burnt warning.
- I garnished with some virgin coconut oil, fresh curry leaves, coriander leaves.
- As it cools, it thickens a bit.
AparnaRajeshkumar
always a classic combo !
umavarma
Thank you
CHITRA
I make similarly but never tried adding corn flour. must try this variation. Bright pictures !
Priya shakthi
Amazing combo, my all-time favorite
Priya shakthi
Dear Raks,
I have become a very big fan of your recipes and you too. I have tried most of your recipes , all of them have never failed…AAAAAwesome. Every time I think of posting a comment yet couldn’t do with my busy schedule (recently delivered a baby girl… its quite an excuse though…) . I really appreciate the efforts you take to post each recipe … Hats off to you Raks… keep posting..
Sowmya Madhavan
Love the poori masala combo ..looks yumm
Aruna Manikandan
my favorite combo, love it 🙂
looks perfect and delicious ...
Anu Shoj
anything made with potatoes are my fav....this is my all time fav.....easy and tastes great....nice clicks....
Satya s
My Fav combo... drooling here
prathibha Garre
ever green favourite with poori...looks nice
Dipti Joshi
I thought you are on diet 😉 . My favorite recipe for puri.
apsara-illam
It looks very nice.
My family always like this kurma.
jeyashri suresh
Wonderful combo. All time fav. Pretty clicks
Gayathri Ramanan
My all time fav , simply awesome and beautiful click...
Raks anand
Thank you Priya for your lovely comments 🙂
Veena Theagarajan
nothing beats this combo.. Very nice clicks
Happys Cook
delicious and yummy combo.....
MJ Delights
Love this combo..
mymoon
definetly am the one of searchers with above mentioned words.itz because all recipes when I tried from ur blog will never let me down....and your wonderful tips make me to feel easy....i tried ur curice and lemon rice akka it came out veryyyyy wellll my hubby loves to take it as a lunch...lots of thanks by heartly akka
Hari Chandana P
Classic combination.. looks yummy!!
swathi biswanath
Made this today. Replaced corn flour with besan. Good one. Am your fan. 🙂
Suganya
amma ellatha enaku amma samayal kathukudukkara mathiri unga blog .. whenever i start cooking first i see ur blog and then cook acc to ur step wise cooking .. learned lot from u thanks ...keep posting
Jaya Radha Veerasamy
For years I have been making puri unsuccessfully! Your recipe made it perfect! Thank you!
Divya D
good one
Divya D
have tried most of the recipes from your blog. none of them failed. thanks a lot. pls could you post recipes on baking cakes in microwave only?
Reni Sebastian
Hi Raks it is awsm. Ttried last day. Thanks.added some res crushed chilly while tempering and added some cow molk att end.good one tthank u once again
Stella mary
Hmmmmm yummy.......
Hajra Aziz
have you ever tried aalo chana & suji halwa with puri's, famous as Lahori chikar cholay & halwa puri nashta, served with khata pyaaz, achar & lassi?
dija rathor
I like 2 make Indian recipes. Nd I appreciate the procedures of description by posting pic
Rishsesha
Hai raks sister.i tried yesterday tis recipe...so yummy.thank you..so many recipes I tried..all come out very well thank u again...
gunny
I made this last week it was great, in replace of corn flour I powdered Pottu Kadala.
chan4kalai
Sooooo nice.... Thanks for receipe