Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes are a beloved appetizer – crispy potatoes, creamy sauce, and crunchy onions on top.
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Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes
Barbeque Nation Cajun potatoes are a fried potato appetizer that we enjoy at the Indian chain restaurant called Barbeque Nation. They are creamy, spicy and crunchy potatoes that we love to eat whenever we go there.
You know why they call ’em Cajun potatoes? ‘Cause they use the same spices in the mayo sauce as in Cajun recipes. The spices are paprika powder, onion powder, garlic powder, black and white pepper powders and salt. In this recipe, I’ve used ketchup as one of the ingredients, as they contain a lot of the spice powders used in “Cajun” recipes.
Cajun (pronounced “Kay Juhn”) is a type of food from Louisiana in the US. It was created by French, West African, and Spanish immigrants who moved there in the 18th century. The combined influences from each of these settlers in now referred to as Cajun.
Ingredients for Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes
Potato is the chief ingredient for Cajun potatoes – you can choose baby potatoes or normal potatoes. If using normal potatoes, they need to be cut into small cubes before being flattened.
Ingredients for the sauce
Mayonnaise is the main sauce. I have tried regular and thousand island mayonnaise and both taste good. If you are using regular mayonnaise, you need to add a few spice powders that mimic the taste of the original Barbeque Nation Cajun Potatoes.
Ketchup – Ketchup gives that sour and sweet kick in the sauce.
Red chilli powder – This spice gives that classic reddish look.
Garlic powder – This is a key ingredient that a lot of restaurants add in their dishes to intensify the flavours of any dips.
Salt and pepper – start with 1/4 teaspoon of each and adjust accordingly.
Chaat Masala – This makes Cajun potatoes a little more Indian and taste we all recognize, just a small sprinkle is sufficient.
If you are using thousand island flavoured mayonnaise, you can use 1 tsp of red chilli powder and 1 tsp of garlic powder is sufficient.
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Once you have all the thick sauces mixed, use either milk or cream to thin the sauce so that it is a pourable consistency.
For the garnish, chop an onion and some coriander leaves and keep aside.
Instead of potatoes, you can use any variety of potatoes or even sweet potatoes.
How to make Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes?
The first step is to mix all the ingredients needed for the sauce. Mix them in a bowl with the indicated quantities. Do a taste test and keep them aside.
The next step to making these delicious potatoes is to boil in an open pan or in a pressure cooker.
If using the pressure cooker, wash and add the potatoes to bowl and fill it up with water. You can leave the skin on. Add a pinch of salt to this water and pressure cook for two whistles. Once the pressure of the cooker has come down, remove the potatoes from the water and dunk them into cold water. Once you are able to handle the potatoes with your hand, peel the skin. You can also leave the skin on provided you know that they are washed thoroughly before cooking. Leaving the skin on adds an extra crunch.
If you are boiling the potatoes in an open pot, fill the pot with water and bring it to a boil. Once the water is boiling, add the potatoes along with the skin and allow it to cook until tender. Remove from the water and dunk into cold water. Remove the skin and keep aside for the next process.
If you are using normal potatoes, at this stage, cut them into small cubes and set aside.
Take each potato and smash them flat in between the palm of your hands. You can also smash them flat with the back of a cup/tumbler.
The next step is to deep fry the potatoes. Take all the smashed potatoes and place them in a bowl. Add enough corn flour to cover each potato. Season with salt and pepper.
Place a shallow pan and fill it up with 1 inch of cooking oil. Let the oil warm up. Once warm, add the potatoes one by one. Do not crowd the oil with too many pieces. Flip the potato to the other side and fry until both sides are golden brown. Remove from the oil and place it on a napkin for excess oil to drain.
On a serving plate, place the fried potatoes and sprinkle with some chaat masala and salt. Next, bring that delicious sauce you’ve prepared and pour over each of the potatoes.
Finally, garnish your Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes with finely chopped onions and coriander leaves.
Serve them hot!
Storage & Shelf Life
Cajun potatoes taste best when eating fresh and hot. They do not taste great when stored in the fridge. I am sure you will finish everything on your platter because Cajun potatoes are absolutely lip-smacking!
You can prep the sauce and keep in the fridge for later use. You can also cook the potatoes and store in the fridge to deep fry them later.
For the beginners
If you are making Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes for the first time, I have to tell you that it is very simple to assemble. You can just buy the thousand island mayonnaise sauce and mix it with milk/cream to prep the sauce. If you are not confident about deep frying, you can also shallow fry them with minimal oil in the pan. Potatoes and mayonnaise based sauces go well together in any form.
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Recipe
Barbeque Nation’s Cajun Potatoes
Ingredients
- 500 g Baby Potatoes
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp Corn Flour
- 250 ml Cooking Oil
For the Sauce
- 2 tbsp Mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp Ketchup
- 1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/4 tsp Salt and Pepper each
- 1/4 cup Milk or Cream
For the Garnish
- 1 Onion small, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Coriander Leaves finely chopped
- 1 tsp Chaat Masala powder
Instructions
Prep Work
- Finely chop one onion and keep aside. Wash, dry and finely chop coriander leaves and keep them ready as well. You will need them for garnishing in the end.
- Add all the ingredients listed in the "For the sauce" into a bowl and mix well until well combined. In order to thin down the sauce, you can use milk or cream until you have reached the desired consistency.
- Rinse and pressure cook the baby potatoes for 3-4 whistles. Allow the cooker pressure to come down naturally. You can either choose to keep or remove the skins.
- Remove the skin of the cooked baby potatoes. Place the cooked potato in between your palms and flatten them. Keep aide. If you have the time, you can coat the surface of the flattened potatoes with corn flour.
Cooking and assembling the potatoes
- Place a pan on medium heat with an inch or two of oil for shallow frying. Once the oil is warm, add the cornflour coated potatoes one by one.
- After a minute, flip the potato and allow it to fry on the other side. Once both sides are golden and crisp, remove from the oil and drain them on a paper napkin.Add salt and pepper as seasoning on top.
- To prepare the sauce for the Barbeque Nation style Cajun potatoes, to a bowl add the ingredients listed in the ingredient section. If you feel the sauce is too thick, you can add milk or cream to thin down the sauce to your desired consistency.
- Arrange the fried potatoes on plate and drizzle the sauce on top of each of the potatoes. Garnish the Cajun Potatoes with finely chopped onions and coriander leaves.
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