Skip to main content

What Is Jakhiya Aloo: The Pahadi Dish Served At Rashtrapati Bhavan Banquet

At a state banquet hosted at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 27, 2026, the spotlight was firmly on the Himalayas. Curated as a regional showcase for visiting European Union leaders, the menu drew from the food traditions of India's mountain states and featured various high-altitude ingredients. The meal presented a side of Indian cuisine that rarely appears at formal diplomatic tables. One of the delights served was Jakhiya Aloo, a simple Kumaoni potato dish cooked with mustard oil and a native hill spice. It was heartening to see a simple home-style treat served at such a diplomatic event. Given how wholesome and delicious it is, you should also consider trying it at home. Find out more about it below:

What Is Jakhiya Aloo?

Latest and Breaking News on NDTV

Jakhiya Aloo is a traditional potato preparation from the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. It relies on boiled or parboiled potatoes cooked in mustard oil and tempered with jakhiya seeds, green chillies, turmeric, and salt. There are no onions, no tomatoes, no garam masala. The flavours are comforting and restrained. It is a dish meant to nourish and is often served alongside dal, rice, or mandua roti.

In hill households, this dish appears frequently, especially in colder months. It's filling without being heavy, comforting without being indulgent. It travels well too, which is why variations of it often find their way into packed meals for long journeys.

What Is Jakhiya?

Latest and Breaking News on NDTV

Jakhiya is the soul of the dish. These tiny, dark brown seeds are native to the Himalayan region and are often mistaken for mustard or cumin by those unfamiliar with them. Unlike mustard seeds, jakhiya doesn't burst open aggressively. It pops gently, releasing a warm, nutty aroma with subtle bitterness. That behaviour matters. The spice perfumes the oil without overpowering it, creating a base that feels rounded rather than sharp.

Easy Recipe For Jakhiya Aloo

Ingredients:

  • 500 g baby potatoes (boiled, peeled, roughly cubed)
  • 2 tbsp mustard oil
  • 2 tsp jakhiya seeds
  • 1/2 tsp asafoetida
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 4 dried red chillies (broken)
  • 1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves
  • 4-6 garlic cloves (pounded)
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • 1-2 tsp salt, or to taste

Method:

  1. Heat mustard oil in a heavy-bottomed kadhai until it just begins to smoke; lower the heat.
  2. Add jakhiya seeds and let them crackle gently for 20-30 seconds.
  3. Add garlic, asafoetida, red chillies, turmeric and salt.
  4. Add the potatoes, lightly pressing a few pieces to roughen them. Mix to coat them well.
  5. Cover and cook on low heat for around 5 minutes, until the potatoes are lightly crisp at the edges.
  6. Lightly stir the ingredients. Incorporate coriander leaves and top with lime juice. The jakhiya aloo is ready to be served.

Like most home dishes, Jakhiya Aloo changes subtly from kitchen to kitchen. Some households may add other vegetables too. Some may add ingredients like ginger for added flavour. The core technique remains the same, but proportions and textures vary.

If you love potatoes and want to enjoy a different recipe this season, we highly recommend Jakhiya Aloo. Try it soon!



from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/mvLVoNO
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PM Modi To Reschedule 3-Nation Europe Visit As Tensions With Pakistan Soar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put his three-nation Europe visit on hold as tensions between India and Pakistan have surged in the wake of the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 civilians were killed by Pak-linked terrorists in a religiously-motivated terror attack. India responded on Wednesday with precision missile strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. PM Modi, who is closely-monitoring the situation, has reportedly asked for his visit to Croatia, Norway, and the Netherlands, which was due next week, to be rescheduled. As per his original schedule Prime Minister Modi was to commence his official visit to the three nations on May 13. He was also going to participate in the India-Nordic Summit in Oslo on May 15 and 16. All three countries have been informed about the change in PM Modi's schedule. They have also been appraised about the current situation between India and Pakistan. Last month too, on the day of the Pahalga...
Post a Comment
Read more

After Nitish Kumar's 'Praise', BJP Says Doors Closed For Him

The opposition BJP in Bihar on Thursday said that its doors were "closed" for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who dumped the saffron party a year ago, stripping it of power in the state. State BJP President Samrat Choudhary made the averment to this effect in reply to queries from journalists about the Janata Dal United leader's address to the convocation ceremony of Mahatma Gandhi Central University at Motihari. Speaking in the presence of President Droupadi Murmu and Governor Rajendra Arlekar, Mr Kumar had freely spoken of the tussle he had with the then Congress government at the Centre for getting a university approved for Motihari, where Mahatma Gandhi had launched the Champaran Satyagraha. Without mentioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi by name, Mr Kumar acknowledged that the project saw the light of the day only after a change of guard "in 2014" as the UPA government "initially refused and after much persuasion agreed in principle but did not move for...
Post a Comment
Read more

Delhi Air On Brink Of Turning "Severe", Most Polluted In India

Delhi's air quality was on the brink of the 'severe' category on Sunday with an overall AQI reading of 382 - the worst recorded in the country for the day. Fifteen monitoring stations of the city recorded air quality levels in the 'severe' zone, having AQI readings over 400, data showed. The city also recorded its lowest nighttime temperature so far, as thick smog and haze shrouded it in a dense cover during the morning and evening hours. The minimum temperature recorded on Sunday was 16.5 degrees Celsius, 1.2 degrees above normal, according to the weather department. The national capital's 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI), recorded at 4 pm every day, stood at 382, worsening from 316 the previous day. The locations where air pollution levels reached the 'severe' zone are Anand Vihar, Ashok Vihar, Bawana, Dwarka, Jahangirpuri, Mundka, NSIT Dwarka, Najafgarh, Nehru Nagar, Okhla Phase 2, Patparganj, Punjabi Bagh, Rohini, Wazirpur and Vivek Vihar...
Post a Comment
Read more