Aloo Paratha

When it comes to comfort food, nothing beats fresh, piping hot aloo parathas. My mom first taught me how to make these, and after a while, it became my thing to make for Sunday or holiday lunches. This is also possibly my dad’s favourite dish, and if left to him, he might want to have it for almost every meal!

I’ve never really had a recipe for the potato stuffing and often change a few things here and there when I make these, depending on mood or if I feel like trying something new. But I had written down a recipe before, so for this post, I’ve modified it based on the latest version I made.

The dish itself is not difficult, but it does require a little practise to be able to roll out the dough with the potato stuffing inside.

Potato Filling ingredients:

• 2 large/ 3 small-medium potatoes, boiled & pressed through a ricer or mashed. (You need roughly 1 1/2 cups of mashed potato)
• 3/4 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp chat masala
• 1 1/2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• 1 tsp salt + extra to taste
• 1/2 tsp sugar + extra to taste 

To make the filling:

Add all the ingredients into a mixing bowl. Heat some oil in a small pan, and fry the ginger-garlic paste & green chilli for about 30-45 sec and add to the bowl. With a large spoon, mix everything together. Taste and adjust for salt/sugar and spice level.

Note: You can cook the potatoes in a microwave, boil them or pressure cook them. If boiling or pressure cooking, make sure the potatoes are well drained and dry, before mashing/ricing them. This will ensure the potato filling is not too wet when you stuff it into the dough.

Paratha dough ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups wheat flour
• 1 tsp oil
• 3/4 to 1 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt

To make the dough:

Put the flour in a large mixing bowl. Create a well, sprinkle the salt and add the oil. Gradually add water and knead until you get soft and pliable dough. Cover and set aside.

To make the stuffed parathas

Roll the dough into a cylinder on either your rolling board or a plate, and break off 1½ inch balls. Roll these between your hands to make them smooth and keep side. You should get between 8-9 dough balls.

Flour your rolling board or work surface. I use rice flour because the coarser texture helps create friction and allows me to roll out chapatis or parathas more easily. But you can use whole wheat flour also.

Take one dough ball, and using the rolling pin, roll it into a 2 to 2½ inch diameter circle. Alternately you can take the ball of dough and with your fingers press it gently all around to create a cup. Place a tbsp of the potato mixture into the middle, and gently pull the sides of the dough over the top of the potato filling, press/pinch it together to close it.

Place the filled ball of dough with the closed/pinched side face down on the rolling board. Flour the ball and gently pat it down to flatten it. Make sure both sides are well dusted with flour to make sure it doesn’t stick to the surface as you start to rolling it out. Now gently roll out the paratha, making sure you flip it over halfway and dust it with flour. You should get a paratha with a diameter of around 5-6 inches. (I like to roll them out a little thinner, but you can keep the paratha slightly thicker is you prefer)

Heat a pan and brush a little oil. Once hot, place the paratha on the pan and as it’s cooking, drizzle a little oil or ghee around the edges. Cook for 1 to 2 mins until the bottom has light brown spots and flip over. Let the other side cook and then remove from the heat. Drizzle a little ghee or butter on top. 

Follow the same process for the rest of the dough and potato mixture. If you have extra filling left over, you can use it to make potato tikkis (cutlets). And if you have extra dough left over, just roll it out to make chapatis!

Note: If the dough tears open while rolling, and the filling comes out, don’t worry. Gently dust it and roll it out, making sure the potato mixture doesn’t stick to the rolling pin. If the dough starts tearing in many places, it could mean you have put too much filling into the dough. You can reduce it to 3/4 tbsp for the next paratha. If this is also not working, the other way to do these is to make two chapatis (use smaller balls of dough), spread the potato filling on one chapati, then place the other one on top and seal the edges. I have not tried this myself, but a lot of people I know make the parathas this way.

Aloo parathas are best enjoyed when they are made fresh, and we like having them with a vegetable raita and some pickle. But they also go well with daal (lentils) or a paneer dish.

Priya