Chtitha Batata (Algerian Potato Stew)
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11 Ingredients
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60 min total
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Serves 4
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Easy
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Algerian
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Vegetarian
Recipe byThe ZestyPlate Kitchen
An Algerian potato stew: new potatoes simmered in a garlicky cumin and paprika paste with a little tomato. Humble, warming and full of flavour.
Chtitha batata leans on a small handful of spices to turn ordinary potatoes into something you'll want to make on repeat. The potatoes soften in a garlicky paste called dersa, built from cumin, paprika and chilli, and the whole thing happens to be vegan. It's the sort of dish that rewards good potatoes and a bit of patience at the stove.
Jump to recipe
Prep 15 min
Cook 45 min
Total 60 min
Easy
Scale:
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 1 small Red Chilli
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 2 Lbs New Potatoes
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Puree
- Boiled Water
- To taste Salt
Preparation
- Put the garlic, chilli, cumin, paprika, black pepper, cayenne and salt into a mortar and grind to a paste, then work in the olive oil to make the dersa.
- Warm a large saucepan over medium heat and fry the dersa for 2 to 4 minutes, until it smells fragrant. Add the halved potatoes and turn them through the paste, then stir in the tomato puree. Add just enough water to cover the potatoes, bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer until tender, around 40 minutes.
- Spoon the potatoes into a serving bowl and pour any sauce left in the pan over the top.
Tips from the ZestyPlate Kitchen
- Pound the dersa to a genuinely smooth paste so no single mouthful is all raw garlic or all spice.
- Cook the paste in hot oil before anything else goes in; this wakes up the cumin and paprika and stops them tasting dusty.
- Add only enough water to barely cover the potatoes, otherwise the sauce ends up thin and washed out.
- Keep the heat low and let it tick away until the potatoes give to a knife and the sauce has tightened around them.
Frequently Asked Questions
It's an Algerian spice paste of pounded garlic, chilli, cumin and paprika. Plenty of Algerian dishes start by frying a spoonful of it.
Certainly. Chicken pieces or merguez sausage are common additions, though the plain potato version stands up perfectly well on its own and stays vegan.
A torn piece of crusty bread for the sauce does the job, or serve it over rice or couscous.
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