Green Peas Parathas – Whole Wheat Flatbread with a savoury green pea stuffing

Ooh I have a good one to share with you today. A while ago I was browsing the web for some cooking inspiration and I came across the recipe for green peas parathas. What are they? Basically, stuffed Indian flatbread, the stuffing is a mildly spiced green peas mix. This way you get some veggie while you’re enjoying your rotis. The recipe for the stuffing is so simple and quick to put together. I am very happy to add another paratha to my repertoire. We usually make parathas for breakfast, but they are great to have with lunch or dinner, or as a slightly robust snack. I love my parathas and am always on the lookout for newer variations. So for I’ve made Aloo Parathas, Methi Parathas and Gobhi Parathas. Do you know or have you tried a yummy paratha recipe that is your absolute favourite? I’d love to hear about it. Leave me a comment and let me know.

So back to this paratha. This paratha is easier to make than the Gobhi Paratha, because of the filling. This filling has lesser moisture and so is so much easier to roll. I was happy with that. I love the little green peeking through the paratha with the finished product. Try it out and see what you think of it.

Green Peas Parathas
Yields approx. 9-10

For the dough – 
2 cups wholewheat flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Water
1 tbsp olive oil / ghee

Mix the flour and the salt well.

Drizzle the olive oil and mix through.

Bind with a little water at a time to form a soft pliable dough. The dough should not be sticky.

If you find the dough sticky, add some more whole wheat flour. If the dough is too dry and difficult to knead, add a little water.

Knead well, roll into a ball, cover with a damp cloth and keep aside while you make the filling.

For the filling – 1 1/2 cup frozen green peas (you could use fresh too), rinsed, thawed and thoroughly drained

2 birdseye chillies, or to taste

1 tbsp garlic minced

1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves and stalks, chopped

Salt, to taste

1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) (alternatively you could use olive oil)

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Into the bowl of a food processor, place the green peas, chillies, garlic, coriander and salt.

Pulse a couple of times. You want a coarse blend and NOT a paste or puree. You want some larger pieces and some smaller bits, much like what you see in the pan in the next picture.

Heat a pan over medium heat and add 1 tbsp ghee.

Add the cumin seeds and let them sputter, being careful to not burn them.

Add the green peas mix.

Stir around and let it cook out for about 2 minutes.

Remove from the pan and let it cool completely.

**Additionally you will need some dry whole wheat flour for dusting your work surface and some ghee to brush over the parathas.

To make the parathas – 

Place a thick bottomed pan / tawa on a medium flame and let it heat up.

In the meanwhile, divide the dough and the pea mix into portions.

1) and 2)  Dust your work surface with some flour. Roll a ball of dough between your palms to form a smooth ball. Flatten and using a rolling pin roll out to a disc about 6 inches in diameter. While rolling you need to make sure it doesn’t stick to the work surface. Don’t flip the dough over while rolling. (Note that these measures are approx. just to give you an idea of the sizes).

3) Place the disc in the palm of your hand. I am right handed, so I place the little disc on my left palm.

4) Spread a few drops of ghee on it.

5) Place a spoonful on the filling mix in the centre. You don’t want to overfill the parathas or rolling can get messy.

6) Pick up opposite sides of the disc and press together to seal.

7) Gather in the rest of the edges. Press the edges against each other (like a little dumpling) to seal. Then flatten it gently and press the edges down. Here you are trying to roll it into a little ball carefully without smashing it.

8)Dust a little more flour on your work surface, if needed. Place the seam side down and gently start rolling the little ball out.

9) Roll out to about 8 inches wide. Again, you need to make sure it doesn’t stick to the work surface. You can dust with more dry flour if needed. You also don’t want to roll it too thin because the filling will just ooze out.

Place this on a well heated tawa / griddle and roast for a while moving it around till light brown spots appear on one side. Turn over and cook on the other side till light brown spots appear on the other side as well.

To finish off, spoon a few drops of clarified butter on the paratha and spread. Flip over and repeat this on  the other side letting it roast for a few seconds after you add the clarified butter to the side.

Serve hot with butter and a mug of hot coffee for a yummy Indian breakfast or brunch option.

This time around, I served this up for dinner with some mildly flavoured yogurt (plain raita) and some sweet mango pickle. (The pickle is called Chunda / Chundo and you should be able to find it in any Indian store.)

These parathas go very well with any Indian style veggies too.

**Notes – 
You can leave out the clarified butter if you want an even healthier version, but it does wonders for the taste.

If you have any dough or filling left over, simply refrigerate and use the next day.

You can also make a plain paratha by simply rolling out the dough, spread the ghee, wrap and re-roll and roast it without the filling. This can be served with your favorite jam or cheese or scrambled eggs or an omelette or anything else you’d fancy.

You could serve this up with plain yogurt too.

For the plain raita – 

Good quality, unflavoured yogurt
Salt, to taste
Sugar, to taste (I use about 1 tbsp to 1 1/2 cups of yogurt, approx)(This will also depend on how tart the yogurt is. I sometimes use lesser than that)
Cumin powder
Red chilli powder

Mix the yogurt, salt and sugar and still thoroughly to incorporate the salt and sugar and beat till you are left with a smooth yogurt.

Place in the serving bowl and lightly spinkle some cumin powder and red chilly powder over.

Enjoy.