The Indian flatbread that has melted the hearts of many along with the slice of butter that is pushed on top of it, paratha is a very versatile bread. The assortment of parathas that you will find in India will leave you blown away. While I’m not a huge fan of parathas, my father definitely is. He loves to have thick, flaky stuffed parathas for breakfast every morning while I relish my toast on the side. At first, it may seem like a cakewalk to make parathas but we should tell you that mastering this round bread isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.
Often accompanied with butter, curd, pickle and chutney, the condiments always enhance the flavour of the paratha. The fillings of this flatbread can be anything, from spicy potatoes to soft and mushy paneer. When you don’t want to take too much of trouble to make the stuffing, you can simply sprinkle some salt and ajwain on the rolled out dough, fold it and roll it into a paratha again. This can be paired with savouries like aloo sabzi, chole and almost any vegetable that you have on your plate.
In fact, I have realized that even the veggies I detest the most taste better with paratha. Now, enough said about parathas, how about you try making one? Several attempts at stuffing the paratha and rolling it out are left in vain because the filling pops out, am I right?
Do not fret because we have some useful tips and tricks to make that perfect paratha.
1. Knead The Dough Properly
Any bread is based on the kind of dough it has. A tightly-kneaded dough works well for a paratha. Next thing that you need to keep in mind is that when you are rolling out the dough, keep the sides and centre a little thick because it would help the paratha to hold the stuffing.
2. Apply Flour On The Dough
After you have rolled out the dough once and made a hollow space for placing the stuffing, fold it and apply dry flour on both sides which will allow the paratha to roll out smoothly without spillage.
3. Salt Balance Is Important
Add some salt to your dough for the paratha and at the same time, reduce the salt you add to the filling. This ensures that when the stuffing is rolled out with the dough it doesn’t spill because the controlled amount of salt doesn’t release so much water for it to get wet. Hence, you get a perfectly rolled out flatbread.
4. The Amount Of Stuffing Matters
Just like when you over-fill a bottle of water, it starts spilling out. Similarly, when you add too much stuffing, more than the dough can hold, it is bound to come out. The trick is to spread the stuffing evenly by pressing it with your hands. Once that is done, you can be rest assured that the paratha is good to go on the tawa.