Click here to view. aloo methi recipe. aloo methi is an everyday Punjabi sabzi ... easy, tasty and awesome. Yet, every time you taste it, potatoes with fenugreek leaves feels exotic, with the softness of potatoes and the pleasing bitterness of methi.

You will find that this aloo methi dry sabzi is made with everyday ingredients in Indian kitchens like potatoes, methi, ginger, garlic, cumin seeds and red chillies. The rich aroma and flavour of aloo methi makes you eat an extra chapati or two.

I would like to share some important tips to make the perfect Punjabi aloo methi. Take a deep bowl and put the chopped methi leaves into it. Sprinkle a little salt over the methi leaves and mix well. Keep this aside for 15 minutes. As fenugreek is a very bitter vegetable, adding salt over it removes the bitterness in the form of water. This makes the fenugreek much less bitter in the aloo methi sabzi. 2. Cooking the potatoes for long makes them a little crisp and gives them an appetising brownish colour. It also allows the potatoes to imbibe the flavours of the garlic, green chillies and ginger really well in aloo methi.

We often make aloo methi sabzi with baby potatoes at home, however our recipe uses regular potatoes.

Aside from aloo methi try other sabzi combos with methi like Methi Palak Paneer Subzi, Methi Papad and Methi Mutter Pasanda.

Is Aloo Methi healthy?

No, Aloo Methi is sadly not that healthy. Main ingredients of aloo methi are aloo, methi, oil and Indian spices.

Let's understand the Ingredients.

What's good about aloo methi!

1. Methi (fenugreek leaves) : Methi leaves are low in calorie, powerful antioxidant, cures mouth ulcers. Rich in Vitamin K which is good for bone metabolism. See all benefits of methi leaves here. 

2. Turmeric Powder (Haldi) : Turmeric helps in digestion of food thus helping to overcome indigestion. Haldi may help in reducing the growth of fat cells in the body. Turmeric, being rich in iron, is highly valuable in the treatment of anaemia and both the root as well as the powder should be a regular part of an anaemic diet. One of the health benefits of turmeric is it’s anti-inflammatory property due to the active compound, Curcumin, which helps to relieve inflammation of the joints and thus is a ladder to relieve pain related to arthritis. The curcumin in haldi also helps to ward of the bacteria’s causing cold, cough and throat irritation.  Turmeric benefits in diabetes management by lowering blood glucose levels. Its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects are useful in the treatment of diabetes patients.  It is known to be a good brain food and keep diseases like Alzheimer’s at bay. See here for detailed turmeric benefits. 

3. Garlic : Garlic has been proven to lower cholesterol. The active ingredient allicin present in garlic aids in lowering blood pressure. Garlic is also alleged to help regulate blood glucose levels for diabetics. Garlic is great for the heart and circulatory system. Garlic has an antimicrobial, antiviral and antifungal function and can help in relieving common cold and other infections. The thiosulphate compound, Allicin found in garlic acts as a strong antioxidant and protects our body from damage of free radicals.  Read here for complete benefits of garlic. 

4. Ginger (Adrak) : Ginger is an effective cure for congestion, sore throat, cold and cough. It aids digestion and relieves constipation. Ginger was found as effective as drugs in relieving menstrual pain. Ginger is effective in decreasing the cholesterol levels in patients with high cholesterol. Ginger significantly reduces symptoms of nausea in pregnant ladies. See here for 16 Super Health Benefits of Adrak, Ginger.

5. Green Chillies : Antioxidant vitamin C in green chillies protects the body from effects of harmful free radicals and prevents stress. It is probably the high fiber which helps in controlling blood sugar levels. This it is a welcome addition to a diabetic diet. Suffering from anaemia? Add green chillies to your list of iron rich foods too. For complete details see benefits of green chilli. 

What's the problem?

1. Potatoes (Aloo) : This recipe uses 1.5 cups boiled potatoes. Being high in simple carbohydrates they will lead to weight gain and are not good for people with diabetes, heart problem and obesity. See full details on why potatoes are bad for you.  

2. Vegetable Oils : To some vegetable oil is only soyabean oil, while some promote it as a mix of oils like soyabean, canola, sunflower, corn and other omega-6 rich oils. These are often cheaper options than many oils, but they are highly processed oils. They are undoubtedly not to be reached out for, whether you are looking for salad dressings, sautéing or cooking.  The 5 best oils used in cooking are olive oil (low temperature short time cooking), avocado oil, canola oil, coconut oil and peanut oil. You must read the super article to find the facts of  which oil is the healthiest avoid vegetable oil. 

Can diabetics, heart patients and over weight individuals have aloo methi?

No, this recipe has too many carbs due to the usage of potatoes. So stay away from aloo methi.

What is a healty option to Aloo Methi for Diabetics and others?

We suggest a healthy vegetable like bhindi masala recipe which is low cal and in this case made with zero oil and has plenty of fibre. You can have the bhindi masala with a whole wheat roti.

Bhindi Masala

Can healthy individuals have aloo methi?

aloo methi is got too much potatoes. So it's best consumed in moderation. If you want to be totally clean in your diet, then say goodbye to potatoes as they tend to spike blood sugar levels. 

8 Pointers to get healthy on a Indian diet

1. Eat healthy and say yes to good home cooked food. Prefer whole grains like oatmeal, quinoa, buckwheat, barley and healthy flours like bajra flour, jowar flour, quinoa flour, wheat flour etc. rather than refined ones like maida. Have healthy Indian fats like ghee, coconut, coconut oil in your diet.

2. Opt out of junk food, packaged food, deep fried foods. Prefer steamed snacks and other non-fried snacks. Check out some Healthy Indian Snacks. Remember to eat small frequent meals through the day as that will keep you always full and prevent your blood sugar from dropping. By starving your body through some diet, will not help you one bit. In fact, dieting will make you binge on 2 to 3 meals which is not good. 

3. Have 4 to 5 servings of vegetables and 2 to 3 servings of fruit is a must. Follow the logic of a vegetable in each main meal of the day and a fruit in-between meals. Check out a few Healthy Indian Soups and Healthy Indian Salads  recipes using this food group.   

4. Cut down on sugar and salt in your diet and pick honey ( very small amounts) or dates to sweeten your food. Slowly cut the sugar habit as this is not going to happen over night. Sugar  is also called white poison. It is a simple carbohydrate with zero nutritional value. On intake, sugar will cause inflammation of the body which will last for many hours. It will spike your blood sugar level and shut down the fat burning process. This also causes high blood sugar levels in your body. The development of prediabetes comes from uncontrolled eating sugar and refined food products for many years and the classic symptom is if you have excess belly fat. This leads to diabetes and further onwards to heart attack, high blood pressure, strokes, impotence and kidney damage. 

Salt and blood pressure. Apart from stress and obesity, one of the main reasons for high blood pressure is excessive sodium and salt intake. Most people find it difficult to limit the amount of salt in their cooking, thinking it will affect the taste of their favourite dishes. 

This is not true. Bajra and jowar are rich in potassium and critical for those with High Blood Pressure as it lessens the impact of sodium. Eating more Potassium Rich Foods will remove more sodium from your body through urine. So include the basic bajra roti and jowar roti in your daily diet to have with Lower Blood Pressure Subzis Recipes. 

5. Befriend a few healthy seeds and nuts like chia seeds, flax seeds, sesame seeds, walnuts and almonds. 

6.  Sprouts are called ‘living food’. They are high is most nutrients and easy to digest as well. Let them feature in your meals at least thrice a week. Also Read : All Benefits about Sprouts. 

7.  Exercise 45 minutes every day. No excuse. You can walk fast, run, do weights, play your favourite sport or go to the gym.

8.  Sleep early and get up early. Get your body into rhythm and it will function best. Sleep helps your body to recover.

Aloo Methi is high in

1. Vitamin A : Vitamin A is crucial for healthy vision, cell growth and healthy skin. 

2. Vitamin C :  Vitamin C is a great defence against coughs and colds.

3. Calcium : Calcium  is a mineral that makes bones stay strong. Required from kids to adults.

Note : a recipe is deemed high in a Vitamin or mineral if it meets 20% and above the recommended daily allowance based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

How to burn 243 calories that come from one serving of Aloo Methi?

Walking (6 kmph) = 1 hr 13 mins

Running (11 kmph) = 24 mins

Cycling (30 kmph) = 32 mins       

Swimming (2 kmph) = 42 mins

Note: These values are approximate and calorie burning differs in each individual.