One way that villagers all over India cook potatoes is to mix with a mash of green chilli, onions and salt. It is that simple, but so delicious. It doesn’t really need a recipe, but where would you be if the post ended here?

Podimas means mash in Tamil. It is a traditional type of poriyal and is good when served with Sambar or other Kuzhambu or Rasam Varieties. Many people love it with rice varieties too, or simply with naan or roti.

The flavour of the green chilli and onion are infused into the potatoes by grinding them coarsely with salt with a mortar and pestle (don’t use a spice grinder or processor, you need a pounding not a grinding action to do this successfully.

Similar recipes include Spicy Mashed Potato with Onions, Crushed Potatoes with Roasted Tomatoes and Eggplant, English Mashed Potatoes, Carrot Poriyal, Indian Mashed Potatoes, Saag Aloo, and Garlicky Potato Mash.

Browse all of our Mashed Potato recipes and all of our Potato dishes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Summer recipes.

Simple Indian Potato Podimas

Cook 2 potatoes in their jacket, and when cool enough to handle remove the peel. Chop into cubes and crush them roughly with the back of a fork.

While the potatoes are cooking, peel and chop 0.5 white or red onion, and chop 1 green chilli (or to taste). Place these into a mortar with a good pinch or so of sea salt, and pound to a coarse paste. Optionally mix through a pinch of Amchur (Amchoor) or a squeeze of lemon.

Mix the paste with the hot cubed potatoes and serve.

recipe notes and alternatives

Coconut can be added.

The potatoes can be put into a hot pan with the onion and chilli and sauteed briefly.

Garnish with coriander leaves or slices of green chilli and rings of onion, if you wish.