Urulai Kari, But Make It French Fry’ish | South Indian Potato Curry Recipe

One of my favorite comfort food combos has to be, hands down, rasam rice and urulai kari. There are so many ways to make this spicy potato curry that it’s hard to pick a personal favorite. I simply let my mood decide the texture and taste I would be indulging in. Unlike other comfort food combos, rasam rice and urulai kari is the kind that hits all the taste notes of an unhealthy dish, while actually being good for your body. This South Indian Urulai Roast or Potato Curry is, without a doubt, a cult favorite in the Tamil household. In this recipe, I use a classic french fry cut to make a comforting Urulai Kari.

But what is a curry?

The word ‘curry’ almost brings a smile, bordering on a chuckle, to me. What is casually thrown about in Indian homes is simmered down to a savory gravy with vegetables or meat sitting in a big, fat bowl by Westerners. Indians use the word ‘curry’ loosely to mean anything that is spiced. But the connotation is derived largely from the name preceding the word itself. I can’t speak for other parts of the country, but in Tamil Nadu, when we say curry, we usually mean a stir-fry or a steamed and sauteed vegetable instead of a typical gravy.

That Lunchbox Story Every 90s Kid Relates To

Growing up in the 90s was so much fun. We didn’t have a lot of rules. Lunch was the time to share.

At lunch hour, all of us would look eagerly into each other’s lunch boxes, and if someone brought a urulai kari or seppankizhangu fry, that poor child was guaranteed to go hungry for the rest of the day after some serious plundering by fellow classmates! All manners out the window!

I distinctly remember the hour before lunch when my desk mate and I would go under our desk in the pretense of picking up a dropped pencil to sneak into our lunchboxes. Oh, the giggles we shared!

Even though we were bordering on feral at lunch hour back in the day, I’m not mad that my friends dug into my kal dosa lunches or upmas. If anything, it was those moments where we raced to the lunchboxes that made them so memorable. We still have discussions about my friend’s amma’s urulai roast on our Whatsapp group decades later!

Potato Curry Variations

There is no one standard recipe when it comes to Potato curry. Every family has their own unique variation.

My maternal grandmother preferred less greasy curries and almost always sought an urulai podimas which brings out the fresh flavors of the ingredients.

My husband likes little cubes of perfectly crisped potatoes. He will sometimes round off his dish with a pinch of garam masala that gives a surprise element to a very South Indian meal.

My mother likes to add idli podi which adds a little crunch. I love a vega vecha urulai kari which is the easiest way to hit all the notes. This variation coats the potatoes with a ton of sambar powder and curry leaves.

But if I have a bit more time, I like a little playful twist and cut the potato into little matchsticks or french fries to lend an interesting textural dimension to my recipe.

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