Aloo Paratha ( Indian Flatbread)

Aloo Paratha is a bread dish starting from the Indian subcontinent. "Aloo" is the Hindi word for Potatoes and 'paratha' signifies an unleavened stuffed flatbread. So aloo paratha in a real sense implies potato-stuffed flatbreads or flatbread loaded down with potatoes. It is a morning meal dish began from the Punjab locale. The recipe is quite possibly the most well known breakfast dishes all through the western, local and northern districts of India. The greater part of the occasions parathas are cooked with bunches of ghee/ butter/ oil. You can also serve the aloo paratha directly from the tawa (skillet) straight in the serving plate. Serve some extra butter on the side, along with mango/ lemon pickle or some fresh curd (yogurt).

For this Yummy recipe we will need the following ingredient:

Ingredients:

1. Wheat flour.
2. Water.
3. Potatoes.
4. Onion.
5. Green chilies.
6. Turmeric powder.
7. Red chilli powder.
8. Coriander.
9. cumin powder.
10. Salt.
11. Oil.

Nutrition Facts (3 paratha):

Calories: 171kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 5gFat: 3g, Sodium: 421mg, Potassium: 402mg, Fiber: 5g, Vitamin A: 20IU, Vitamin C: 9mg, Calcium: 31mg, Iron: 3.4mg.

1. Take 3-5 medium sized potatoes.
2. Peel them and Cut it into half.
3. Boil the potatoes in water.
4. Add salt as per taste.
5. I have boiled the potatoes in a pressure cooker. To boil in a pressure cooker cook for one whistle on high flame then lower the flame and cook for 3-4 whistles.
6. Let the cooker cool down. Then open the lid.

Finely chop:

• 2-Green chilies.
• 1-Medium sized onion.
• 10gm - Fresh coriander leaves.

To make parathas we also need to knead a Dough. [A basic dough is made with whole wheat flour (गेहूं का आटा), salt (नमक), oil (तेल) and water (पानी)].

For making the dough

1. Take 1 cup on wheat flour in a bowl.
2. Add 1/2tbsp of salt to it and mix well.
3. Gradually add water and knead the dough.
4. The dough shouldn't be too hard.
5. .Knead 6-7 mins for a soft smooth dough.
6. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and knead it again for a minute.

The dough is ready and we are prepped to start cooking.

1. Take the boiled potatoes and mash it with the help of a fork.
2. Add the chopped onions, green chilies and coriander to the mashed potatoes.
3. Remember to chop the onions finely or else they pop out when rolling the parathas.
4. Add salt as per taste. (we added salt while boiling the potatoes so make sure you don't add too much salt).
5. Add the spices.
6. 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder.
7. 1/2 tsp of red chili powder.
8. 1/2 tsp of coriander cumin powder.
9. Mix everything well.

The masala aloo mixture is ready for filling.

1. Take a small portion of the kneaded dough & make a small ball.
2. Roll between your palms & lightly flatten it.
3. Dust with some wheat flour and roll it to a circle.
4. The circle should be of 7-8cms diameter.
5. Place the potato stuff mixture in the center, keeping about 2 to 2.5 inches space from the sides.
6. Take the edge and start making pleats as well as bringing the pleats in the center.
7. Join the pleats together well.
8. Remember the pleats have to be joined well, as otherwise there will be gaps while rolling and the filling comes out of the dough.
9. Then Press the joined top portion slightly downward from the center.
10. Sprinkle some flour over it.
11. Roll the stuffed paratha to the same size as that of a chapati or roti, i.e. 15cms diameter.

1. Heat a tawa (skillet or griddle).
2. The tawa should be very hot before placing the Paratha.
3. Cooking parathas at low flame will harden them.
4. Place the rolled paratha over the tawa.
5. Keep the flame Medium high.
6. When the base is half cooked flip the paratha over. (this will take 1-2 minutes)
7. Once flipped, spread some oil/ghee/butter over the partly cooked paratha.
8. Flip again after 1-2 minutes
9. You will see nice golden blisters on the second side as well.
10. Spread oil/butter/ghee on the second side as well
11. Press the paratha edges with a spatula or spoon, because sometimes, the paratha edges are not cooked well.
12. Repeat this step to make more parathas.

All I want to do these days is to wrap myself in blanket and eat aloo paratha and chai – my comfort food. I have been gorging on parathas for the last few months. So most of these days, my breakfast is some paratha with pickle and Masala Maggie. I bet I have gained some pounds but I am not going to check it. There’s too much stress already, why to add one more?

Serve Paratha hot with fresh chilled curd, pickle and a cup of chai!