Aloo Paratha (Mashed-potato-stuffed Indian flatbreads)
Aloo Paratha is basically paratha (flat bread) stuffed with aloo (mashed potatoes). If you love Indian food, it is quite likely that you love Indian flatbreads, isn’t it? Indian parathas are filling, nutritious and are made in a number of different ways, with a variety of stuffings. The humble aloo paratha makes and awesome Indian breakfast, clubbed with some tamarind chutney, achaar (Indian spicy pickle) or raita (a yogurt side-dish). We love frying these in butter or ghee, but if you are health-conscious, replace that with a light oil (canola, sunflower, groundnut, rice-barn, etc), as I do. If you have never made parathas, but you are good at rolling out fondants, cookie dough or pizza dough, then be confident, you can easily make these. Many Indian mothers love to pack their kids’ lunchboxes with aloo parathas because these are soft and being rich in carbohydrates, these make a good lunchbox option for active kids.
Aloo parathas are actually North-Indian in origin, but now these are made across India. Depending on the location, people in each state sometimes might like to adopt a slightly different combination of spices, adjusting to the local taste. For example, one of my South-Indian friends loves to add a little sambhar masala to the stuffing, as sambhar is very popular in the South and they are used to the flavour of that particular spice mix. Similarly, a Bengali (East-Indian) might love adding their spice mix called bhaja mashla, instead of the usual Punjabi garam masala powder. The outcome is always scrumptious: you can go ahead and add your Italian oregano seasoning and grated cheese instead of the spices and still you will get a magical Indo-Western fusion twist. Sounds exciting? Let’s make it! The recipe is the actual North-Indian authentic way of making these parathas.
Aloo Paratha (Mashed-potato-stuffed Indian flatbreads)
Ingredients for the paratha dough:
- Whole-wheat flour: 3 cups
- Salt: ¼ tsp
- Warm water: to knead
- Warm oil: 1.5 tbsp
- Oil for shallow frying: 1.5 tbsp for each paratha
Ingredients for the potato stuffing:
- Boiled and mashed potatoes (medium-sized): 6
- Purple onion (finely chopped): ½ cup
- Green chillies (finely chopped): 4
- Turmeric powder: ¼ tsp
- Salt: ¾ tsp (may vary)
- Punjabi garam masala powder: ½ tsp
- Amchoor powder (dried mango powder): ¼ tsp (optional)
- Cumin seeds: ¼ tsp
- Carom seeds (ajwain): ¼ tsp
- Cumin powder: ½ tsp
- Coriander leaves (finely chopped): 3 tbsp
- Oil: 2 tbsp
Method:
Make the paratha dough first by combining the first four ingredients, adding water to bind the dough and kneading for 10 min. We need a soft, moist, but non-sticky dough for making the parathas. This is called the atta dough.
Let’s make the potato stuffing now. Mash the potatoes with hand, as finely as you can. Add all the other ingredients and knead again, so that the ingredients are distributed almost uniformly. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a kadhai or wok and add this potato mixture and sauté for just 2 min, so that the raw taste of the spices goes away. Remove and set aside.
Make a ball from the atta dough, almost three-fourth of the size of your computer mouse. Dust the rolling surface with wheat flour and roll this ball into a palm-sized circle. Add the potato stuffing at the centre, flattening in slightly.
Flip the ball and place the smooth side up on the rolling surface. Dust this ball with wheat flour and slowly roll the ball, taking care to avoid applying too much pressure, which will tear the paratha. A slight tear here and there is okay if the stuffing is still intact inside. The trick is to dust the paratha on both sides and roll both the sides, as you make it bigger.
Heat a pan or a tava. Add 1.5 tbsp of oil (you can also add ghee or butter instead of oil, for an enhanced taste), spreading it across the whole pan. When the oil becomes hot, carefully slide in the paratha. The flame should be medium throughout.
After 2-3 min, flip and cook the other side, until well-cooked. Remove on an absorbent paper and serve hot with a little butter on each of these. I enjoy it with my favourite green-mango pickle.
The paratha is now getting cooked. I had flipped the top side down later, as the sides had to get cooked more (as you can see in this picture). These parathas are thick, so you have to press the parathas down slightly while cooking in the pan, so as to ensure these to be fully cooked from inside as well as outside. Flip occassionally.
(Loved the recipe? Do have a look at my other paratha recipes here.)
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January 7, 2013 @ 11:19 am
Purabi good to see your back in action. I love all kind of parathas and this humble aloo paratha is my fav
January 7, 2013 @ 11:23 am
its very tempting..
January 7, 2013 @ 12:49 pm
This is definitely one of my absolute favorites!!
January 7, 2013 @ 12:51 pm
Whenever I have tried to make paratha they’ve ended up a bit leathery. I must have another go!
January 7, 2013 @ 9:05 pm
Really nice. I’ve made some flat breads (chapati) and eaten plenty of parathas, but never made them. Looks really doable. Definitely something to try sometime – thanks for the inspiration!
January 8, 2013 @ 2:03 am
Nice to see that you are back! Your aloo paratha looks delicious!
January 8, 2013 @ 2:46 am
Welcome back, Purabi.. Love to have this paratha anytime..
January 8, 2013 @ 1:28 pm
hi purabi naha, i love paratha, we have frozen ones over here, the addded mashed potatoes and coriander leaves sounds delicious and look delicious too. have a great week
January 8, 2013 @ 3:53 pm
Love aloo parathas..Delicious!!
Happy New Year to u too:)
Join EP event-Nutmeg OR Parsley @ Chef Mireille’s Global Creations
January 8, 2013 @ 4:47 pm
Wow! These look incredible! I’ve always been so intimidated to try cooking homemade Indian food because the dishes seem so elaborate, but you make it seem so easy and simple. Thanks so much for this recipe! 😀
January 8, 2013 @ 5:11 pm
Oh it does look and sound very delicious. I never had this before…got to try making it! Great instructions, thanks for sharing! Have a lovely week and Happy New Year to you!!!:)
January 8, 2013 @ 5:19 pm
steps of stuffing the paratha is too informative…love the blog..and happily following it..
http://www.pepperbowl.blogspot.com
January 8, 2013 @ 5:37 pm
This looks so incredible. I would love to try this.
January 8, 2013 @ 6:24 pm
Wow! I’ve never eaten such a dish but it looks delicious. I’d like to try it 🙂
January 8, 2013 @ 6:46 pm
These looks very yummy and unique! I love how they are rolled out after being filled.
January 8, 2013 @ 7:49 pm
Your flatbreads look so good, especially with the potato filling.
January 8, 2013 @ 11:55 pm
I’m so happy you are back! I’m looking forward to reading your blog through the New Year! These flatbreads look so good, they are on my list! Cheers!
January 9, 2013 @ 2:57 am
Lindo trabajo y muy exquisito me encantaría probar..feliz año 2013,abrazos y abrazos.
January 9, 2013 @ 4:24 am
It’s hard to beat Indian flatbread! I love this recipe! Thanks for the step-by-step pictures. That helps a lot!
January 9, 2013 @ 12:15 pm
I think I’ve just immediately changed my resolutions for 2013 – I need to eat flatbreads like this one. Suddenly French baguettes don’t have the same ‘a-peel’! Thanks for the inspiration and a very Happy New Year to you!
January 9, 2013 @ 12:43 pm
Very nice and this will be loved by my other half. He loves paratha and loads of potatoes. Brilliant to combine both for a beautiful and tasty outcome.
January 9, 2013 @ 1:35 pm
Happy New Year! Long time no see! I absolutely love parathas and this is my husband’s favourite but I’ve never made it. I am planning an Indian feast (!) this weekend, will have to include this for him, thanks for the recipe.
January 9, 2013 @ 2:03 pm
Wow. Just couple of days ago I made the potato flatbreads at home. So yummy. My recipe is a bit more northen european. I will publish it soon so you will see :).
And happy new year of course.
January 9, 2013 @ 8:09 pm
Oh Purabi, this is such an interesting way to prepare flatbread…something that I would love to try.
Happy 2013 and have a great week!
January 11, 2013 @ 7:36 am
Juliana, you would love these parathas. These are simple and filling. Wish you Happy 2013 as well!
January 10, 2013 @ 1:59 am
I’ve never seen anything like this before…but your stuffed flatbread look amazing!! So yummy!
January 10, 2013 @ 2:50 am
I love Indian flat breads. I could make an entire meal of them alone. LOL
January 10, 2013 @ 3:35 pm
Thank you for stopping by my blog. =)
This paratha looks delicious! I love Indian flatbread. You have so many interesting recipes here. I have to give them a try. =)
Helen
January 10, 2013 @ 4:53 pm
I grew up eating aloo parathas do this post totally took me back 🙂
January 10, 2013 @ 6:00 pm
Not sure if my last comment was saved but just in case, these look fantastic 🙂 I grew up eating aloo parathas so it was really nice reading this post!
January 11, 2013 @ 7:34 am
Thank you so much! Glad to know that my parathas took you back to your childhood. I did receive both of your comments.
January 12, 2013 @ 1:43 am
This flat bread looks so appetizing and looks very easy to make. Thank you, Purabi and have a good weekend!
January 12, 2013 @ 3:29 am
This looks absolutely amazing! I’m addicted to Indian food and I’ve been practicing with Naan, time to try something new!
mikayla@myfairbaking.blogspot.com
January 12, 2013 @ 8:55 pm
Oh wow…how delicious!
January 13, 2013 @ 8:14 pm
Glad you are back. This is a perfect fusion of Indian and Irish cooking – the paratha and the mashed potato stuffing – yum!
January 14, 2013 @ 1:45 am
Aloo Paratha is one of my favorite Indian foods! I’ve never tried to make it myself though.
January 14, 2013 @ 6:05 am
Over the holiday, my friend invited me over for lunch and she made Aloo Paratha too. So good. I love homemade Indian food. She made less spicy for me so I could eat everything! One day I need to learn how to make it looking your step by step!
January 16, 2013 @ 8:27 am
My teenagers love this dish. Now that you have posted these fantastic step by step photos it would be fun to try to make with my boys. Thanks so much for stopping by my website so that I could find yours and just love your recipes. Looking forward to keeping in touch. Take Care, BAM
January 17, 2013 @ 1:55 pm
I love Indian Food!!!! It is my favourite one and I’m always looking for original recipes!
Your blog is now in my “favourite blogs” to read!!
Thank you very much for the visit to my blog!
Now I want to try this recipe because I’ll surely love it!
Have a nice day
Erika (from Italy)
January 19, 2013 @ 5:35 am
These sound soooo good! Glad I found your blog 🙂
January 28, 2013 @ 10:35 am
I love indian food but know almost nothing about it really. This is the type of recipe that makes me want to bake right now! That spicy potato filling, and the idea of changing the flavor to suit what I have around. Love this recipe!
May 4, 2013 @ 7:40 pm
I love this Aloo paratha recipe. Aloo Paratha are my favorite and I love to try different parathas. This paratha recipe is refreshingly new. I am going to try
this.Can’t wait to try it.thank you for shearing your post. Regards, Aalo Paratha
May 1, 2015 @ 9:20 am
Hi, first time at your space.. and nice recipes here… glad to follow you.. :). –
May 23, 2015 @ 10:42 am
This looks so good and I am definitely going to try this!
June 24, 2015 @ 9:25 am
Excellent round up of all the delicious recipes. Wonderfully prepared.
November 1, 2018 @ 6:58 pm
Wow! This is my kind of food. I can hardly wait to make some. 💗
Wish I could eat as plenty of Indian flatbread as I want! These look fantastic!
November 28, 2018 @ 12:10 pm
Awesome recipe! Tried it last night with a few adjustments for dietary needs and it was a hit!
November 30, 2018 @ 4:04 am
Thank you Karishma!