Dal Para(n)thas

(Indian Flatbread)

I made these Parathas with leftover Sambhar (South Indian Dal/Legumes & Veggies). I don't recall the specifics of what was in the Sambhar (as it was from the freezer), but it certainly contained tomatoes. In the interest of full disclosure, I'll mention that these weren't perfect . . . but I sure enjoyed them! Nice for a light meal with some whole-milk yogurt.

Chawla's Kitchen YouTube, Punjabi Dal Paratha / Dal Wali Roti

Aloo Para(n)tha 

(Indian Flatbread with Potato Stuffing)

These were inspired by the videos of Eat East Indian. As I already had leftover cooked potato, I decided to live it up, and make this griddle-cooked flatbread. In the interest of full disclosure, while I enjoyed eating these, I didn't get it quite right on the inside. I say that, because it's important to be able to make whatever you want, even if its not always perfect. They say, practice makes perfect. Now that I have a method and pan that work for me, I can practice more often. In the meantime, these Aloo Para(n)thas have made some nice meals for me, accompanied by applesauce and whole-milk yogurt. 

Eat East Indian Facebook 

East East Indian Youtube, How to make Punjabi-style Aloo Paratha | Indian Potato Flatbread - Aloo Paratha

Eat East Indian YouTube, How to make Aloo Paratha  (Potato Stuffed Indian Flatbread)

Eat East Indian YouTube, Mom's Aloo Paranthas | How my mom makes breakfast for us

Dal Paratha

This is an Indian flatbread made from a p flour mixed with leftover Channa Dal with Tomato. That was the legume dish, based on a recipe of @thegutlessfoodie on Instagram, featured recently. After a couple of days, I decided to "recycle" it, by turning it into this bread. It was so good, that I ate it all up in a couple of days, and remember it well.

Chawla's Kitchen YouTube, Punjabi Dal Paratha / Dal Wali Roti

Kathi Roll

This Kathi Roll (shown before rolling) was made with leftover Roti (referred to in the last 2 posts). A little store-bought Harissa (North African pepper sauce) was spread on the Roti, followed by some chopped up scrambled egg, and sprinkled with some Dal Biji (store-bought, spiced, crispy Indian snack mix of chickpea noodles and lentils). Accompanying these spices, was some whole-milk yogurt, and sorbet (not pictured). It was a quick, spur-of-the-moment meal, and worked out well. 

Baida Roti/Egg Chapati

This was made with one of the Roti from the last post, and was inspired by the Egg Parathas of @thegutlessfoodie on Instagram. It was simple, as I was rather hungry: some mirepoix mix veggies (chopped carrot, celery, onion) in a little oil, a bit of turmeric and pav bhaji masala, and a beaten egg with some salt, along with the Roti. I melted some coconut oil on the exposed side of the Roti, before flipping the whole thing over once the egg was cooked. Although you can't see it here, the underside of the Roti was nicely browned from the coconut oil. Maybe next time, I'll actually make this with Parathas! 

@thegutlessfoodie Instagram, That Popeye Friendly Para-zone is one example of an Egg Paratha.

Roti (Plain Indian Flatbread)

This Roti is based on the recipe of Raghavan Iyer in Indian Cooking Unfolded. He recommends a flour that I believe is semolina flour, to be combined with a. p. flour, in place of ata (roti flour). I can't have certain kinds of grains/flours, which for me includes ata. Therefore, I usually use a. p. flour for all Indian breads. This works okay with Parathas, which are stuffed and/or have more fat (oil, in my case), but not so well with plain Roti/Chapatis. It was nice to be able to make them again, and they went fairly quickly!

Iyengar Bakery Style Khara Biscuits

This Indian recipe is from Easy Bites Online. They're supposed to be spicy, with fresh chili pepper, but as I have to be careful with that for now, I left it out.  I also substituted coconut oil for the butter. The recipe describes these as "savory shortbread cookies." I assumed from that, that these would be "biscuits" in the British sense (= cookies), but the dough also reminds me of U.S. "biscuits." When I make those latter biscuits, I just pat out the dough by hand. That's what I'll do the next time I make these khara biscuits. Anyway, I do like these, although I couldn't make them spicy. They are a nice snack by themselves, or as part of a light meal!

Easy Bites Online Website, Iyengar Bakery Style Khara Biscuits

Makki Roti, or Makki ki Roti

This is a Punjabi flatbread from India and Pakistan, cooked on the griddle. It's similar to a corn tortilla. It’s often paired with Sarson Ka Saag, a dish with mustard greens. I liked that I didn't have to roll out the roti, and just in general, the process to make each roti was very quick. I made this for the first time several years ago, with a recipe that called for ground-up corn kernels; I almost broke the blender I was using, but not quite, fortunately. I paired it then with Sarson ka Saag, and was so happy that my new Indian friend/roommate enjoyed them! She, in turn, taught me to make chapatis and parathas, so I always remember her when I make Indian breads. 

The recipe calls for corn flour, and what was easily available at my supermarket was a well-known brand of corn flour for tortillas. (The writing on the bag is in both Spanish and English.) The corn for this flour is specially treated, which makes the nutrients more readily available. The recipe I used, from Neelam Batra's 1,000 Indian Recipes, refers to using this kind of corn flour, so I figured it would be okay. And it was, yay! 

Stuffed Vegetable Kulchas 

(Mixed Vegetable Stuffed Indian Flatbread),

with Aloo-Simla Mirch (Potato & Green Bell Pepper) filling

The above Kulchas were cooked on a griddle. They are from the same batch as yesterday's Kulchas, so you can check out yesterday's photo for more details, if you like. I'm posting this, as yesterday's photo was taken at night, right after cooking (in case I ate them all before I could take another picture). This one was taken during the day, so the lighting is better. Delicious at any time! The recipe for dough and method is from Archana's Kitchen.

Archana's Kitchen Website, Stuffed Vegetable Kulcha (Mixed Vegetable Stuffed Indian Flatbread)

Archana's Kitchen Facebook

Stuffed Vegetable Kulcha (Mixed Vegetable Stuffed Indian Flatbread)

This recipe is from Archana's Kitchen's recipe. As I had some leftover Aloo-Simla Mirch (Potato & Green Bell Pepper; see Feb. 6) in the freezer, I decided to use that as the stuffing. I liked the dough recipe, which was easy to make, to stuff, and to roll out. I also liked the kulcha cooking instructions, which were for a skillet on the stove (vs deep-frying); I used a griddle. I always like to have Indian breads (especially the stuffed ones) for a snack or light meal. They are so delicious and filling. Yay!

Archana's Kitchen Website, Stuffed Vegetable Kulcha (Mixed Vegetable Stuffed Indian Flatbread)

Archana's Kitchen Facebook

Dal Parathas

These were made according to Chawla's Kitchen method of making the dough for this Indian flat griddlebread. It's a good way to use up leftover dal (legumes), and this contained the last of some lentil soup that I'd gotten at the supermarket deli. I'd never made it before this, but now I know it's always an option! Made with oil, so it's vegan. 

Chawla's Kitchen YouTube, Punjabi Dal Paratha, Dal Wali Roti

Potato Parantha with Maida Flour

Potato parantha. Made with all-purpose flour, as that's what I had, rather than ata (chapati flour). Used oil, no ghee, so dairy-free/vegan.

Flat Griddlebread (like Roti/Chapati)

Flatbread made on griddle, like Indian roti or chapati. Used all-purpose flour, rather than ata (chapati flour) which I did not have. I made 8 flatbreads, and got 4 or 5 to puff up! I was very glad, as it had been a very long time since I had made anything similar.