Paratha is a popular breakfast food in North India, especially Punjabi household. I remember those days in India when I used to eat paratha every other day with malai (cream collected from boiled milk) or churned butter. Now with change in life style and dietary habits I don’t eat paratha on regular basis but whenever I do I enjoy with whipped butter.
Since paratha is usually stuffed with some kind of vegetable filling, it is best suited for the start of the day, preferably a lazy Sunday brunch, when you have no time to cook separate breakfast and lunch.
The stuffing is done in three ways. In the first (which is easier but does not work with every vegetable) the flour is mixed with the vegetable (typically chopped greens) and the spices to make dough. The dough is rolled into round, square or triangle and griddle baked with ghee or oil. In the second, the dough is kneaded with just flour, water and salt and a separate filling of vegetable is made. Then while rolling the dough, the filling is encased in the dough and cooked the same way as the first method. In the third type the filling and dough is made separately as in second method but the filling is placed in between two thin chapattis as in quesadilla.
I used third method to make gluten free gobhi paratha with raw stuffing. For this, you can chop, grind or grate cauliflower florets, make sure it doesn’t get too fine as this can alter the flavor and texture of filling. when you eat paratha you want to be able to bite into very small pieces of cauliflower rather than pureed cauliflower. If you decide to chop there should not be any any big pieces as this can tear the chapatti while rolling. I personally like to grate just the top part of the florets with grater and use the stalks in making curry or vegetable stock.
The stuffed paratha is generally served with just pickle, butter and yogurt, but it goes well with any spiced curry.
Can anyone guess what curry have I served with gobhi paratha?
A delicious paratha with cauliflower hiding in layers.
Ingredients
- 1 cup white chapatti flour
- 1/8 tsp xanthum gum (optional, but give a better binding to the dough)
- 2-3 tbsp yogurt
- 1/8 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
- oil for cooking paratha
- salt to taste
- 3 cauliflower florets (about 2" size)
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1 tsp coarsely ground anardana or 1/2 tsp amchur
- 1-2 green chilli, finely chopped
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Combine all the paratha ingredients in a bowl. Knead into a soft dough using enough water. Keep aside.
- Wash cauliflower florets, let it dry or wipe with napkin. Grate only the top part (you will have 1/2 cup grated cauliflower.
- Divide the dough into three equal parts.
- Take one part and divide into 2 lumps. Roll both separately into thin chapattis between two layers of cling wrap, also dust the chapatti with flour when needed.
- Spread 1/3 filling on one chapatti, moisten the rim with water.
- Press the other chapatti over it, seal the rims together and roll it out.
- Cook on a hot tawa (griddle), using oil, until both sides are golden brown.
- Repeat with the remaining dough and stuffing to make 3 parathas.
- Serve hot.
Coffee and Crumpets
My favourite paratha! Ok, they’re all my favourites but gobhi and aloo ones are my favourite and the ones I make the most often. They are so good with lemon pickle. Yours are perfectly cooked! I haven’t made any in such a long time, time for a lazy Sunday breakfast I think!
Nazneen
Balvinder
All stuffed parathas taste great. I too love aloo and gobhi paratha but I have another favorite, with methi.
Sugar et al
Delicious and yes, I think the best breakfast option on a lazy Sunday. I love paratha’s a lot but barely make them. It’s so nice to have someone make them and serve hot with curd or pickle like when I visit my parent. You have stuffed them with a good amount of filling which is amazing but difficult to achieve. Mine generally is much thinner. Absolutly mouthwatering!
Balvinder
There’s something so delightful about having parathas for lazy Sunday and then taking nap in the afternoon. However,these luxurious days do not happen as often as I would like to, thanks to aging, busyness and gluten free life.
Monica
Your paratha looks so good – I can see how you’d want to eat it for breakfast often! It’s really interesting to read about how it’s made. I love any kind of flatbreads and I’m really only familiar with aloo paratha (because once I find something I like/loved, I keep on going to that one thing!) but I know I’d love many different kinds. This one sounds really great with the cauliflower, which I’m a big fan of.
Balvinder
Monica, you can stuff anything in paratha. Its a good way of hiding vegetables and you can make them as you did the scallion pancakes.
anne
The last time I ate paratha was few years ago *sigh* I got nothing to compare to but boy , it tasted delicious though I had to drink water few times since ’twas really , really spicy lol You served it with paneer curry ? Just guessing 😀
Balvinder
Anne, parathas are not spicy but if you find them spicy you can always adjust the heat to your own liking. You see that I didn’t use any red chili powder in this and the heat from green chillies is from mild to hot, which you can adjust.
Good guess but it is not paneer 🙂
anne
Bal , the paratha that I had last time was stuffed with spicy beef strips ( the shop was owned by a Pakistani ) 😀 Sorry that I didn’t explain it well in my first comment 😛
Bam's Kitchen
Who could ever have thought you could have such delicious things like this and they are gluten free. Love the fact that they are stuffed with vegetables. I don’t know what you served on the side unless is that a sambal or curry, it all looks good to me. Have a super weekend. BAM
Balvinder
Bobby, it is a curry but what curry is my question? Have a good weekend to you, too!
easyfoodsmith
Ah! Those were the days when our bodies could take oodles of ghee, butter and malai. You rightly said that with change in life style the dietary habits too have changed. We too indulge on parathas once in a while on weekends.
I make paratha similar to yours but have never tried anardana. Got to try it next time. The paratha looks so scrumptious that I am suddenly craving for it!
Balvinder
Taruna, punjabis use anardana (also carom seeds) as one of the ingredients in aloo and gobhi paratha. It gives a different taste and texture than amchur.
Nava Krishnan
I have never made paratha in my entire life. Maybe because we can buy it anywhere and some of those are not bad in taste. Also we have another version called roti canai. Mummy used to make for us but even now she has given up because age has caught up her.
I love the idea of eating with whipped butter. Ok, I shall consider making because it looks good especially with the gobi filling. Hope fully I can roll in into the round shape.
The Sketched Chef
Beautiful dish !
And the fact that it’s gluten free makes it even better
Nami | Just One Cookbook
I can eat good paratha all day… my neighbor used to make really really delicious one from scratch and now she moved away… Saving your recipe for the day I have courage to make from scratch. I know it’ll be worth it!
Balvinder
Nami, paratha making is so easy at least the way I showed by sandwiching two chapattis.
Treat and Trick
Paratha is always my favorite. I need to try out this soon..
Shubha
Loved this post.. You have explained all the different aspect of making paratas so well.. the three types etc.. Great post indeed:)
Soma Saharay
Long time since I visited you… Ahh the Gobi Paratha is so yum…I have read somewhere that you guys do it with raw gobi too