Aloo Lachha Namkeen or aloo lachha is a spicy savory snack (trail mix) made with deep fried potatoes, nuts and spices. It is super popular snack in northern India. Aloo lachha is amazing paired with chai and a perfect snack to make for Diwali.
What is Aloo Lachha
Lachha literally translates to something coil shaped or with a series of loops and it is a term often used in indian cuisine to describe the textures and looks of food like lachha paratha, onion lachha etc.
Spicy savory snacks often called namkeen are so popular in India and they are prepared using variety of flours, lentils, chickpeas., nuts etc.
Aloo or potato lachha is unique since its made with grated potatoes and is gluten free and vegan. This snack was popularized by Haldirams, a big confectioner in northern India. Their aloo lachha is really delicious, their lachha looks like matchstick potatoes coated in spices. However, please note that am not writing a copy cat haldirams recipe. I have no clue about their recipe. This is how make lachha namkeen at home and its quite delicious and addictive 🙂
How to make Aloo Lachha
Aloo Lachha an easy snack to make with easily available potatoes, some nuts and spices. Since I don't have any special potato cutter, I use the good old mix grater to grate the potatoes and make lachha. Use the largest side of the grater to grate the potatoes or you can hand cut them into match sticks. These are not fries. These potatoes resemble match sticks or small twigs after grating.
Tips
- Avoid using too starchy potatoes like russet potatoes. For laccha, I like using yellow or gold potatoes since they are waxy, not too starchy and crisp up quite well.
- Soak the grated potatoes in salted water for a little bit to remove starches and then deep fry.
- You decide how brown you like the potatoes, I keep them golden brown.
- While deep frying keep in mind to keep the heat constant and on medium high. Else the potatoes will get soggy and won't cook evenly.
- Do not over crowd the oil when frying, fry in small batches. You will still see that the potatoes will stick to each other, mainly because they are grated and form a coil shaped ring at the end.Dont worry its all good, once cooled, we are going to break it up and use up.
- You can add any kind of nuts that you like. Roasted almonds and coconut chips taste amazing as well.
- The masala I use in my recipe is the same as I use when making Kaju Masala. See the recipe here.
FAQ
Can I air fry the potatoes?
I tried. But the texture & taste- it's not the same. Due to thin grated potato they were dry and tasteless.Little burnt too. Maybe if you hand cut them in match sticks, you can air fry them but I haven't tried that method.
How to store Aloo Lachha?
Let the aloo lachha cool down completely. To make sure that its completely cooled, let it sit for 3 hours or so, uncovered on the kitchen counter. Then you can store it in air tight container for 2-3 weeks.
What do I do with the leftover oil after frying?
You can use it to deep fry pakoras, pooris or nuts, anything savory. Please don't use it to make curries/for cooking.
Can I use sweet potatoes?
Yes you can , however, don't swap the potatoes completely for sweet ones. However you can use a mix of sweet and regular potatoes for a sweetish bite. Aloo lachha is spicy savory snack o sweet potatoes don't fit too well in my opinion.
Variations
To the spice blend, add some garlic or chipotle pepper powder to change the flavor profile. You can mix it with just salt and black pepper for a farali/falahari/fasting snack.
Aloo Lachha Namkeen (Indian Potato Trail Mix)
Ingredients
- 4-5 medium potatoes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 tablespoon corn starch
- ⅓ cup peanuts
- ⅓ cup roasted cashews
- 3 dried chilies
- 7-8 curry leaves
Masala (Makes extra, use it o chaat/spiced nuts etc)
- 1 tablespoon roasted cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder
- 1.5 teaspoon extra hot red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
- ½ teaspoon amchoor (dry mango powder)
- 1 teaspoon kala namak (black salt)
- 1 tablespoon chaat masala
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix all the ground spices. Keep ready.
- Peel the potatoes. Grate the potatoes using thick side of the box grater. Rinse the potatoes 2-3 times to get rid of excess starch.
- Soak the potatoes in water mixed with salt & turmeric for 30 minutes. This removes more starch.
- Drain and spread the grated potatoes on a cloth/kitchen towel. Pat them dry completely.
- Set oil for deep frying on stove to heat up. Dont use a lot of oil (2-3 inches oil is enough) and use a deep pot/kadai for deep frying.
- Add the potatoes to a wide plate/large bowl. Add the cornstarch and toss with the potatoes lightly.
- Deep fry the potatoes on medium hight heat in small batches in hot oil until golden and crisp.. Drain on a paper towel.
- Let the fried potatoes completely cool down.
- In the same oil fry peanuts and cashews (if using raw), curry leaves and dried red chilli.
- Add on top of potatoes. Sprinkle 2 tablespoon masala or more/less as you like. Gently mix everything together without squeezing till everything coated well.
- Store in a air tight container for 2-3 weeks.
Sowmya
Looks crunchy and delicious