Lachha Paratha, Layered Flat Bread

          Lachha Paratha, another dish that I had wanted to try out, but for some reason, kept putting it off until now. These parathas are layered flat breads, very soft and flaky from the oil and ghee that is added while making the dough. This goes very well with any side dish or even with some pickle, but since it's slightly on the fatty side, I would recommend it for special occasions..
 
Need To Have

• Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 3 cups
• Oil - 4 teaspoons
• Ghee/Clarified Butter - 4 teaspoons
• Salt to taste
• Oil or ghee or a Mixture of both - for cooking the parathas

Method

          Take the flour, 4 teaspoons of oil and ghee and salt and mix it well, then adding some water, make a soft but firm dough and make big lemon size balls.

          Take a ball of  dough, dusting with some flour, roll it out into a thin disc, apply a little oil or ghee or a mixture of both, then sprinkle a little flour. Fold it slowly like a fan, then roll it into a circle, like shown in the picture.

          Then once again, dusting with some flour, roll it out gently into slightly thicker discs, taking care, not to roll out too hard and destroy the layers.

          Put it on a hot tava/pan, applying some oil, cook it till you get light brown spots on both sides. Remove it and fluff it lightly with your hands, so that you can get the layers.

Note
I had used a mixture of oil and ghee, but you can use only ghee too, but don't avoid the ghee entirely, the fat is needed to get the flaky texture and also the flavor.   

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Godhumai Roti, Wheat Flour Roti ( Adai )

          I have always made rotis, parathas, pooris and dosas using whole wheat flour, I have heard about this Godhumai Roti/Adai, but never gave it a try until a couple of weeks back. The roti/adai is very easy to make, I have added some sauteed onions, chopped coriander, coconut to the whole wheat flour to make a soft dough and made the rotis, even beginners who find it difficult to make soft chappathis can make this. They came out really soft and stayed that way even when cold, and tasted great with some tomato thokku or pickle, try these rotis/adais when you want a change from the regular chappathis..

Need To Have

• Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 2 cups
• Chopped Onion - 1 cup
• Chopped Coriander - 1/4 cup
• Curry Leaves - 20, chopped
• Grated Coconut - 11/2 to 2 tablespoons
• Urad Dal/Husked Black Gram - 1 tablespoon
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt to taste

Method

          Heat some oil, add the urad dal and mustard seeds, when it starts spluttering, add the onions and saute for a minute or two, then add the asafoetida, curry leaves and coriander and saute for another 2 minutes.

          Add the turmeric powder and grated coconut and mix for another minute.

          Cool this mixture slightly and add it to the flour along with some salt. Mix it well, then adding some water, bring it all together to make a soft dough, apply some oil and keep.

          Take a big lemon sized ball, place it on greased plastic sheet, flatten it a little, place another plastic sheet and roll it out using a rolling pin.

          Heat a tawa/pan, place the rolled out roti/adai, applying some oil, cook it on both sides till you light brown spots, remove and serve.

Note
We can add some sauteed grated carrots or cabbage or also some chopped mint along with the onions to make the dough.
You can leave out the oil when cooking the rotis, since there is already some oil from the greased plastic sheet.

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Paneer Parathas, Flat Breads Stuffed With Indian Cottage Cheese

          Parathas are an all time favorite in my house and especially when the filling is with paneer, then my daughter is even more happy. Though rolling out parathas might take a little more time than regular rotis, we need not make a separate curry to go with it, so the time is compensated and the parathas can be served just with some plain yogurt and pickle. I have already posted many Parathas and even one with paneer and spinach combo ( Spinach Paneer Paratha ), but for today's dish, the filling is only grated paneer/Indian cottage cheese flavored with some spices and chopped coriander. The parathas came out very well and we had it with some tomato pickle ( recipe coming next )..

Need To Have

• Whole Wheat Flour/ Atta - 2 cups
• Salt to taste

For The Filling

• Paneer - 200 gms, grated
• Green Chilly - 1, finely chopped
• Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Amchur Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander - 3 tablespoons
• Salt to taste

Method

          Make a soft dough with the wheat flour, salt and water, apply some oil and keep for 15 minutes, then make balls and keep.

          Mix together all the ingredients given under ' the filling ', make balls, slightly smaller than the outer dough balls and keep.

          Take a ball of dough, roll it out slightly, place the filling, close it as shown and make a ball again, covering the filling completely.

          Now dusting some flour, roll it out again into a slightly thick disc, taking care, not to roll too hard and let the filling come out. Place it on a hot tawa/skillet, applying some oil, cook on both sides, till you get light brown spots. Remove and serve it warm with some pickle.

Note
While rolling out after stuffing with the filling, roll it on the side that you close, it's easier and the filling doesn't come out that much.
Only flip the parathas three times while cooking, first you place the paratha, after half a minute, make the first flip, apply some oil, make the second flip and apply oil on the other side. Once the bottom side gets some brown spots, flip the third time and cook the other side.
For the above quantity we can make about 10 parathas. 

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Jowar Roti, Sorghum Flat Breads

          Jowar Roti ( also called as Jolad Roti or Jonna Roti ) is a healthy and gluten free roti/ flat bread made, as the name suggests with jowar/ sorghum flour. It's a very popular dish in the North Karnataka region and is mostly served with a stuffed eggplant curry ( yengai ). Since the flour is gluten free, it's not actually easy to roll out these rotis, and we don't use the rolling pin for it, it's done with the hands. Making thin jowar rotis is really hard, a process that one can master only by practice. I have tried my best, my rotis were not very thin, but they were soft, but I'll keep doing this again and again and I am sure, someday, I'll update this post with pictures with much thinner rotis..

Need To Have

• Jowar/ Sorghum Flour - 1 cup
• Salt to taste

Method

           Take the flour and mix it with the salt. Adding enough boiling water and as shown in the picture, mix it using the back of a spoon or ladle, cover and keep.

          When you can handle the dough ( still warm though ), remove it on a plate and knead it well. if you feel it's dry, wet your hands and knead it well. Divide into 7 portions, leave it covered with a wet cloth.

          Take one ball, flatten it slightly with the hands. Then take about 1 to 11/2 tablespoon of flour on the rolling board or any flat and smooth surface. Place the flattened dough on the flour, and using your hands flatten it further, while moving round the flattened disc at the same time, so that the dough doesn't stick to the surface.

          Remove it carefully, using a spatula or flat spoon and place it on a hot pan ( the side which was in the bottom while flattening should be facing up on the pan ). Apply some water with the hands, all over the roti, after the bottom is cooked a little with light brown spots, flip it over and cook on the other side, then place it on direct flame till it puffs up slightly, remove and serve.

Note
Using fresh jowar flour is recommended, since it'll have some moisture in it. I have used only the packet one that's available.
If at any point, if the balls are dry, just wet your hands, and then roll the balls and flatten it.
To start with, don't try too thin rotis, it's very difficult to lift the rotis and put on the pan.
There are so many videos on the youtube that you can check out before trying to make these rotis, it will give you an idea about how to roll them out.

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Aloo Parathas, Flat Breads With Potato Filling

          While going through the list of parathas that I have posted in the blog, I found that I have missed the most popular Aloo Paratha/ Flat Breads With Potato Filling. This is one of the most easiest parathas and the filling is mashed potatoes mixed with spices. It's not only very tasty and easy to make, it's also easier to roll out these parathas because of the smooth texture of the mashed potatoes. It's very filling, there's no need for any side dish, it just tastes great with some curd/ yogurt and pickle..

Need To Have

• Whole Wheat Flour - 2 cups
• Mashed Potatoes - 2 cups
• Onion - 1 medium, chopped
• Green Chilly - 1, finely chopped
• Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Amchur Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt to taste

Method

          Mix the mashed potatoes with the turmeric powder and salt and keep.

           Make a soft dough with the whole wheat flour, salt and water, apply some oil and keep.

          Heat some oil, add the mustard seeds, when it starts sizzling, add the chopped onions and green chillies and mix for half a minute.

          Add the asafoetida, coriander and cumin powders, amchur powder and mix for another half a minute. Add the mashed potatoes and mix everything well and let it cool.

          Divide the dough and filling into 12 portions ( I had a little bit of the filling left ).

          Take a ball of dough, flatten it a little, place the filling and close it ( as shown in the picture ). Dusting with some flour, roll it carefully into a disc.

          Heat a skillet, put the rolled out disc, cook for a few seconds, flip, apply some oil, flip and cook that side. Then apply oil on the second side, flip and cook the other side too, till you get golden brown spots on both sides, remove and serve warm with some curd and pickle.

Note
You can use ghee or butter instead of oil, the parathas will be much richer and more flavorful.
You can add some chopped coriander to the potato filling.

Sending it to the " Come, Join Us For Breakfast  ' event at Cooking 4 All Seasons. 

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Spring Onion Parathas

          After the Spring Onion And Cabbage Kurma, these parathas is another dish I made using spring onions. They were really very flavorful, very easy to prepare and would pair very well with almost any side dish. These parathas are an excellent choice when you want to make something, a little different from the regular roti but not very time consuming..

Need To Have

• Whole Wheat flour - 1 cup
• Red Chilly Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Roasted Cumin Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chopped Spring Onions - 2 cups
• Salt - to taste

Method

          Heat some oil, add the spring onions and saute till all the liquid dries up.

          Make a soft dough with the flour, salt, chilly, turmeric, black pepper and roasted cumin powders and keep it aside for 15 to 30 minutes. Divide the dough into 6 portions.

          Take one ball of dough, roll out into a thin disc, spread a little bit of the spring onions, and press slightly with the rolling pin or with your hand.

          Heat a skillet, using a little oil, cook the rolled out parathas on both sides, till light brown spots appear.

Note
You can use the sauteed spring onions as a stuffing and then roll out, but it turns out a little messy.

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Mooli Parathas/ Radish Flat Breads

          One more week in the US, then back to India, then a move, locally from Chennai to Bangalore, it's going to be pretty hectic for the next month or two, before we settle down, until then, hopefully I have enough posts in draft, to keep my blog going. Today's post, also from draft, is Mooli Parathas/ Radish Flat Breads. There are a couple of versions in this, some using grated raw radish, some using sauteed radish, I prefer the latter, it's less messy to roll out parathas using sauteed radish. I have used my own version of the filling, using some powdered roasted peanuts, making it a little more tasty and nutritious and they tasted very good with the cucumber raitha and mango chunda..

Need To Have
For The Dough

• Whole Wheat Flour - 1 cup
• Radish Juice - 1/2 cup
• Red Chilly Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt - 1/4 teaspoon

For The Filling

• Radish ( after lightly squeezing the juice ) - 1 cup
• Roasted Peanuts - 2 tablespoons, powdered
• Red Chilly Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 11/2 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander Leaves - 11/2 tablespoon
• Grated Ginger - 2 teaspoons
• Salt - to taste

Radish Juice - I had used the juice squeezed out before adding in the filling.

Method

          Heat some oil, add the grated ginger and asafoetida, saute for half a minute, then add the grated radish, red chilly powder, turmeric powder and coriander powder and salt, saute well till it gives out all the water and becomes dry. Now add the peanut powder and chopped coriander, mix it well and keep.

          Mix the flour with the salt, chilly and turmeric powders, adding the radish juice ( a little at a time ), make a soft dough, apply a teaspoon of oil, cover and keep for at least 15 minutes. Divide the dough and the filling into 6 equal portions.

           Take a ball of dough, roll it slightly, place the filling in the center and close it as shown.

           Place the side where we have closed the dough, facing up, and dusting some flour, roll it out into discs.

          Heat a skillet, place the rolled out disc, wait till you see small bubbles, flip it, apply some oil, flip it again, apply oil on the second side, cook it till brown spots appear on the bottom side. Flip it the third time and cook on the other side too. Remove and serve with a raitha or plain yogurt/ curd and pickle.

Note
I prefer cooking the parathas, flipping it only thrice, while cooking, you can press the parathas with the back of the ladle, if the parathas are rolled out well, it'll puff up.
If you don't like peanuts or are allergic to it,  can use some roasted besan/ gram flour in it's place.
Can replace the chopped coriander with chopped mint, and also can add some finely chopped green chillies along with the grated ginger, for a little more spicy taste.

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Dal Parathas/ Flat Breads With Lentil Filling

          Dal Parathas, flat breads stuffed with a lentil filling, I had tasted this so many years back, during our stay in Singapore. Whenever I made polis/ flatbreads stuffed with a sweet lentil filling, I had always wanted to try out a savory version with a spicy lentil filling, this is the first time I made it. I have used split moong dal and added some minced ginger and coriander to add some flavor to the filling. It was very filling and makes a complete meal with a vegetable curry..

Need To Have
For The Outer Layer

• Whole Wheat Flour - 1 cup
• Salt

For The Filling

• Split, Husked Moong Dal/ Green Gram - 1/2 cup
• Green Chilly - 1
• Chopped Ginger - 2 teaspoons
• Chopped Coriander Leaves - 3 tablespoons
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Salt - to taste

Method

          Make a soft dough with the whole wheat flour, salt and water, keep it aside. Soak the moong dal for an hour, cook it with about 2 cups of water on medium heat, till done and all the water is gone, mash and keep. Grind coarsely the green chilly, coriander leaves and ginger.

          Heat some oil, add the asafoetida powder, followed by the ground mixture, mix for about a minute. Add the coriander powder and salt, mix it well.

          Reduce the heat and mix in the cooked dal. Remove and cool a little and divide the dough and the filling into 6 portions.

          Roll out the dough a little, place the filling, close the dough as shown, dusting with some flour, roll it out as thinly as possible.

          Cook on a hot skillet/ tawa, applying some oil, till you see gold spots on both sides. Remove and serve warm.

Note
Always flip the flatbreads only thrice to get it soft, once when you see it bubbling slightly, flip, apply oil, flip, apply oil on the other side and cook till the first side is done, then flip and cook the second side and remove.
You can even add some grated garlic instead of asfoetida to the filling and mint instead of coriander.

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