The Paratha Series#3-Stuffed With Leafy Veggies

So, did anyone try the folding technique I'd shown in the last post? Would love to hear from you! For today's stuffing, I don't have any new technique-you can use any of the ones posted before this (or whatever you know already!).

Before we tuck into the parathas, I'd like to apologize in advance for the quality of the photographs in this post and maybe the posts in the next couple of days too. Reason being, my camera has conked off-apparently it's experiencing the "blank screen of death"-according to some internet forums I visited during my research to diagnose the problem. So until I get this fixed, I'll be using my cellphone to photograph my culinary experiments-and my handset is already on its way to a slow death, thanks to my son's untiring investigations on it, behind my back! Not that my photographs till now were up to any international standards, but they were still decent, I thought. So please excuse the quality of some of these and future pics!

Today, we're going to stuff our parathas with a nutritious green leafy filling. I used spinach leaves (paalak) here. You could also use fenugreek leaves (methi) or I guess any other leaf that is edible and catches your fancy! Here's the recipe...the dough recipe remains the same, mind you!

 For the dough:

1. 3 cups whole wheat flour
2. Salt to taste
3. 1 cup water (if it's lukewarm, you'll get a softer dough)

• In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt well.
• Add the water gradually and combine with the flour to make a soft but firm dough. Knead until smooth for 1 to 2 minutes. Leave it to rest, covered with a cloth, for about 30 minutes.
• I have to mention here that I recently sprinkled dried oregano leaves in the flour before mixing the dough-just for a lark, but it was surprisingly good! Try it!

                                                                 Stuffings:

1. Spinach leaves

Wash the leaves well in running water and keep to drain in a colander for a while. If you have superhuman patience (which I don't) it would be better if you wipe the leaves dry with a kitchen towel or paper napkin.

Then chop the leaves finely.

Mix with finely chopped onions, ginger, carrom seeds (ajwain).

Add salt to taste and a pinch of black salt (kaala namak), at the very end, just after you place the filling on the roti and before you roll it out.

2. Fenugreek leaves

Same as above.

However, if you want to avoid the slightly bitter taste of the leaves, then sprinkle salt on it and leave it for about 15 minutes before using.

For making the parathas, I'm just going to copy-paste the procedure from the first post on gobi parathas.

• Divide the dough into lemon-sized balls.
• (This would be the right time to heat up the tawa/griddle).
• Take one ball and roll it out into a circle of about 4 inches in diameter.
• Place a tablespoon of the filling in the middle and mix the salt into it now.
• Now dust some flour on top of the filling (to prevent it from getting wet when rolling out).
• Gather up the sides of the roti.
• Pull the sides up and press them together to seal it (will look like a dimsum/momo).
• Now flatten it lightly with your palm and roll it out again, without applying too much pressure. Dust with flour as needed. Don't worry if any of the filling spills out...that's life!!!
• When it is as thin or thick as you prefer, transfer to the waiting hot tawa/griddle.
• Lower the heat and wait for bubbles to arise, then flip over.
• When bubbles arise there and brown polka dots appear, press with a ladle or clean cotton cloth until it puffs up a little and both sides are polka-dotted.
• Now spread some ghee or oil, to your taste, on both sides and transfer to a warmer/casserole dish.
• Repeat with the other balls.

Serve hot with pickles and yogurt.

Add a blob of butter on the hot paratha just before tucking in!