Aloo gobi: the potato soaks up 87 calories of oil.
Aloo gobi is potato and cauliflower cooked dry with spices, and the vegetables drink whatever fat is in the pan. Use 20 g of oil in place of 60 g of ghee, and favour the cauliflower, and a bowl goes from 353 to 218 kcal.
- 218 kcal a serving, down from 353 for the classic, with 7 g protein, 38 g carbs and 6 g fat
- 2 swaps, each with what it does to a serving, and 2 ways to add protein, up to 15 g a serving
- 4 servings, weighed at 1,250 g when finished, from 11 USDA FoodData Central entries in the library
Classic vs lighter, per serving.
The same aloo gobi, made two ways from the same library entries and the same 4 servings. The lighter version is the one built on the screens below.
| Per serving | Classic | Lighter | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| kcal | 353 | 218 | −135 |
| Protein g | 9 | 7 | −2 |
| Carbs g | 49 | 38 | −11 |
| Fat g | 16 | 6 | −10 |
| Saturated fat g | 9.6 | 1.0 | −8.6 |
Saturated fat comes from the same USDA entries; the recipe sheet itself shows calories, protein, carbs and fat. Calorie and macro figures are fitness estimates, not medical or dietary advice.
Swap by swap.
Each change in turn, from the classic to the lighter version, and what it does to one serving.
1. Cook in 20 g of oil, not 60 g of ghee
−87 kcal, −10 g fat, −8.6 g saturated fat a serving
The vegetables steam in their own water, so they do not need the pool. 87 kcal and 8.6 g of saturated fat less a bowl.
2. Use 450 g of potato, not 700 g
−48 kcal, −2 g protein, −11 g carbs a serving
Potato is the densest vegetable in the pot. Shifting weight to the cauliflower saves 48 kcal a bowl.
More protein, if you need it.
Hitting a protein target is the hard part for most people. Each option is added to the lighter version on its own, with what it does to a serving of 7 g protein and 218 kcal. Save the one you like as its own recipe.
Add 400 g of chickpeas
+138 kcal, +7 g protein, +23 g carbs, +3 g fat, +0.2 g saturated fat a serving, making 14 g protein a serving
Drained and rinsed chickpeas turn the side dish into a meal: 7 g more protein a bowl for 138 kcal.
Serve with 300 g of nonfat Greek yogurt
+46 kcal, +8 g protein, +3 g carbs, +0.1 g saturated fat a serving, making 15 g protein a serving
A yogurt raita beside the bowl adds 8 g of protein for 46 kcal.
Oil and fat: the type changes the fat, the amount changes the calories.
The three oils below are each 884 kcal per 100 g, and ghee is within a few calories of them. Swapping one for another moves the saturated fat, not the calories; using less is what saves them. Butter is lower per gram only because part of it is water.
| Fat, per tablespoon, 14 g | kcal | Fat g | Sat fat g |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 124 | 14 | 1.9 |
| Canola oil | 124 | 14 | 1.0 |
| Avocado oil | 124 | 14 | 1.6 |
| Ghee (butter oil) | 123 | 14 | 8.7 |
| Butter, salted | 100 | 11 | 7.2 |
The sample data
These are the amounts of the lighter version used on the screens below, with each figure taken from the library entry for that ingredient. They are sample figures for a pot or tray of this size, not a measurement of anyone's kitchen.
| Ingredient | Amount | kcal | Protein g | Carbs g | Fat g |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cauliflower, raw | 700 g | 175 | 13 | 35 | 2 |
| Potatoes, flesh and skin, raw | 450 g | 347 | 9 | 79 | 0 |
| Onions, raw | 156 g | 62 | 2 | 15 | 0 |
| Tomatoes, red, raw | 200 g | 36 | 2 | 8 | 0 |
| Olive oil | 20 g | 177 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Ginger root | 15 g | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Garlic | 12 g | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Turmeric, ground | 4 g | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Cumin seed | 4 g | 15 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Coriander seed | 4 g | 12 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw | 24 g | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Whole recipe | 1,589 g | 872 | 29 | 152 | 24 |
| Per serving (4) | 313 g | 218 | 7 | 38 | 6 |
Calorie and macro figures are fitness estimates, not medical or dietary advice. Ingredient values are from USDA FoodData Central, which is in the public domain.
Why this recipe
Aloo gobi is a good recipe to build because the vegetables are low in calories and the fat they absorb is not. Weighing the oil and the potato separately shows which of the two a bowl really depends on.
What to weigh
Weigh the vegetables raw, before they are chopped. The pan dries them out, so the sample finishes at 1,250 g from 1,589 g of ingredients and a bowl is 313 g.
The full workflow, in four steps.
1. Open Create a recipe and search the library
Open Add food, choose Create a recipe and name it, then choose Add ingredient. Search "cauliflower raw" and pick the raw entry.
2. Enter the amount you weighed
Switch the portion to grams and enter the weight on the scale. The sheet shows 175 kcal for the cauliflower.
3. Add the rest, then set the servings and finished weight
Add the potato, onion, tomato, oil, ginger, garlic, spices and cilantro, then enter 4 servings and the 1,250 g you weighed. One bowl comes to 218 kcal.
4. Save it and log a serving
Save the recipe and it becomes one of your own foods, ready to log by the bowl or any weight.
Tips while you build it
- Cut the potato smaller than the cauliflower so both are tender together.
- Cover the pan for the first ten minutes so the vegetables steam in their own water. They need less oil that way.
- A bowl is about 313 g. Log by weight when you are measuring.
Go further
- Making the ghee version? Save a second recipe with 60 g of ghee and 700 g of potato and log the one you served.
- Eating it with roti or rice? Log those as separate foods.
Each change is a second recipe with its own name, so the first stays as you built it.
Aloo gobi questions.
How many calories are in aloo gobi?
It depends on the oil and how much potato is in the pot. The sample comes to 218 kcal a bowl made lighter, with 7 g protein, 38 g carbs and 6 g fat, against 353 kcal with 60 g of ghee and more potato.
Is ghee worse than oil here?
Per spoon the calories are about the same; ghee has more saturated fat. The oil table on this page compares them.
Is aloo gobi high in protein?
Not by itself. The page shows two ways to add protein to the pot.
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Keep going.
- Recipe builderWhat the builder does, and every example recipe in one place.
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- Help: scan, create and recipesThe same steps in the Help Center.
Cook it once. Log it for good.
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