1,000 Indian Recipes (299 page)

1.
Place everything except the water in a large mixing bowl and mix lightly with clean fingers. Add the water, a little at a time, and mix with your fingers in round circular motions until it starts to gather into a dough. (Add 1 or 2 tablespoons more flour if the dough seems sticky or some water if it seems too firm.)

2.
Knead about a minute, pressing your knuckles lightly into the dough, spreading the dough outward, then gathering the ends together toward the center with your fingers. Repeat pressing and gathering a few times until you have a soft and pliable dough that does not stick to your fingers.

3.
Cover with plastic wrap or the lid of the bowl and let it rest at least 1 and up to 4 hours at room temperature. (This allows the wheat gluten to develop.) If keeping for a longer period, refrigerate the dough.

4.
To roll and cook the paranthas, proceed as per the directions for
Basic Griddle-Fried Breads
, from Step 3.

Variation:
In place of spinach and red bell pepper, make your paranthas using crushed corn kernels, puréed fresh fenugreek leaves or any other greens, mashed tofu, grated carrots—you name it.

My Healthy Griddle-Fried Mashed Potato Breads

Attae Mein Gundhae Hui Aalu ki Rotiyan

Makes 10 to 12 breads

These are not your traditional stuffed potato
parantha
breads. Here, I mix mashed potatoes into the dough along with some aromatics to make one of the easiest and most flavorful potato breads around. It is also much lower in fat than other
paranthas
, because I don't fry it. I make the dough as I would for the griddle-fried breads, but I cook them without oil and then simply baste them lightly with butter while they are warm.

As far as I know, no one really makes them this way. Even my mother-in-law was surprised and impressed when I gave her this for an afternoon lunch with nonfat plain yogurt and the spicy
Cilantro-Lime Chutney
.

2 large russet (or any kind) potatoes

2 tablespoons
Basic Ginger and Green Chile Pepper Paste

1 cup stone-ground durum whole-wheat flour

¹
⁄
₄
cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon dried mint leaves

1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves

1 fresh green chile pepper, such as serrano, minced with seeds

¹
⁄
₂
teaspoon salt, or to taste

¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon coarsely ground ajwain seeds

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon peeled minced fresh ginger

¹
⁄
₄
cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth, if needed

Chilled butter, to taste

1 cup stone-ground durum whole-wheat flour in a medium bowl or a pie dish, for dusting

1.
Boil the potatoes in lightly salted water to cover until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain, let cool, then peel and grate them. Meanwhile, prepare the ginger-chile paste.

2.
In a large bowl, with clean fingers, mix together the whole-wheat and all-purpose flours, mint and fenugreek leaves, green chile pepper, salt, black pepper, and ajwain seeds. Then mix in the potatoes, oil, and ginger. (By now there should be enough moisture to make the dough. If not, add up to
¹
⁄
₄
cup yogurt to make a semi-firm dough that does not stick to the fingers.) This dough does not require resting time, nor should it be kneaded.

3.
With lightly oiled hands, divide the dough equally into 10 to 12 round balls and cover with foil to prevent drying. Working with each ball of dough separately, coat with the dry flour, transfer to a cutting board or any other clean flat surface, and, with a rolling pin, roll into a thin 6- to 7-inch circle. (If the dough sticks to the rolling surface, dust with more flour.)

4.
Heat a tava or a griddle over medium-high heat and cook the breads, turning them once or twice until they are speckled with golden dots on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Remove from the griddle, lightly baste with butter, and serve.

Griddle-Fried Layered Mint, Ajwain, and Black Pepper Breads

Pudina, Ajwain aur Kaali Mirch kae Paranthae

Makes 10 to 12 breads

I love the flavors of mint, black pepper, and ajwain together.
Paranthas
are hearty to start with, and with these three strong flavors this bread is really satisfying—it becomes a simple but great meal with mango pickle and a yogurt
raita
.

1
¹
⁄
₄
cups stone-ground durum whole-wheat flour

¹
⁄
₄
cup fine-grain semolina

1 to 3 fresh green chile peppers such as serrano, minced with seeds

1 teaspoon black pepper,
dry-roasted
and coarsely ground

1 tablespoon ground dried mint leaves + more for garnish

¹
⁄
₂
teaspoon coarsely ground ajwain seeds

¹
⁄
₃
teaspoon salt, or to taste

2 to 3 tablespoons canola oil

¹
⁄
₂
cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth, or more if necessary

1.
In a bowl, mix together the whole-wheat flour and semolina with clean fingers, then add the green chile peppers, black pepper, mint, ajwain, and salt. Rub in the oil. Add the yogurt and mix again with your fingers in round circular motions until it starts to gather into a dough.

2.
Knead about a minute, pressing your knuckles lightly into the dough, spreading the dough outward, then gathering the ends together toward the center with your fingers. Repeat pressing and gathering a few times until you have a soft and pliable dough that does not stick to your fingers. If, while kneading, the dough sticks to your hands, put a little oil or water on them.

3.
Cover with plastic wrap or the lid of the bowl and let it rest at least 1 and up to 4 hours. (This allows the wheat gluten to develop.) If keeping for a longer period, refrigerate the dough.

4.
To roll and cook the paranthas, proceed as per the directions for
Basic Griddle-Fried Breads
, from Step 3. As each parantha is made, sprinkle about
¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon dried mint, then serve.

Griddle-Fried Layered Green Chile Pepper Breads

Mirchi ka Lachaedar Paranthae

Makes 10 to 12 breads

Sharp and hot—especially if you add all 3 chile peppers—this
parantha
is best served with mild accompaniments, one of which should definitely be a mild yogurt
raita
.

1 teaspoon
Chaat Masala
(or store-bought)

1 pound (1 recipe) dough for
Basic Griddle-Fried Breads

¹
⁄
₄
cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, including soft stems

2 tablespoons peeled minced fresh ginger

3 scallions, white parts only, minced

1 to 3 fresh green chile peppers, such as serrano, minced with seeds

1 teaspoon ground dried fenugreek leaves

¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon salt, or to taste

2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup stone-ground durum whole-wheat flour in a medium bowl or a pie dish, for dusting

1.
Prepare the chaat masala. Prepare the dough. Then, in a small bowl, mix together the cilantro, ginger, scallions, green chile peppers, fenugreek leaves, and salt.

2.
To roll the paranthas, divide the dough and the herb mixture into 10 to 12 portions. Working with each dough portion separately, make a layered triangle, square, or circle as per the directions for
Shaping Paranthas
.

3.
To cook the paranthas, proceed as per the directions for
Basic Griddle-Fried Breads
, from Step 5.

Griddle-Fried Flaky Onion Breads

Pyaz kae Khasta Paranthae

Makes 10 to 12 breads

With minced onions worked into the dough, each bite of this lovely
parantha
is a crunchy mouthful. The dough for this
parantha
should be made with your hands; the delicate crunch of the onions will be lost if the dough is made in a food processor.

2 cups stone-ground durum whole-wheat flour

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, melted ghee, or butter

1 cup finely chopped red onion

¹
⁄
₄
cup finely chopped fresh cilantro