“You just want me to be fat and making parathas in the kitchen all day,” my mother would exclaim when my sister and I got into a little fight with her. You see, when my sister and I were teenagers my mother would often wear the same sort of clothes we wore and we would become incredibly annoyed. Maybe she was right in a way. We did want her to do more baking and wear ugly sweaters like everyone else’s moms. My mother always had a young spirit and had a young outer façade to match it. My sister and I have since gotten over our teenage qualms and are happy to have our mom raid our closet and vice versa.
She saw making parathas and rotis as the ultimate form of subservience, the sign of an unhappy woman. I know that it was a silly thing for her to think, regardless I developed the same sort of picture in my mind. When I got married, my mom said to me, “there’s no need to make roti everyday.” That was certainly not in my plan and I only attempted to make them two years after marriage. This was because I was inspired by of all the fabulous bakers and adventurous bloggers I came into contact with.
In stark contrast to my own mother is my mother-in-law. I only hinted at the prospect of trying to make rotis and she was back the same day with a tawa. She made sure to buy me atta and proceed on giving me a lesson in the art of making rotis. For indeed it is an acquired art, you can not master it at one go. When I went back to my own home, my mother-in-law would call and ask how the roti and paratha making was going. I would fib and say I tried and that my roti were not coming out round. These white lies were just to make her feel better, because she felt her son was being taken care of if he was receiving fresh roti and parathas.
One day, I bit the bullet and tried. I got over my preconceived notions and complexes related to roti and paratha making. My first few attempts were pathetic, a real blow to my self-esteem. I consider myself a decent cook and to fail so miserably at something so simple was embarrassing. My roti resembled and tasted like cardboard and I hadn’t even dived into the world of parathas yet. Thankfully, slowly but surely I got there and now I can confidently say that I can make roti and paratha.
This is not going to be a daily routine in my household though, a special biannual treat, if you will. After all, I am still my mother’s daughter and I am glad she raised me how she did.
Aloo Parathay
Makes 4
Ingredients
for the dough:
2 1/2 cups Durum wheat flour, roti or chapati flour (I use Golden Temple)
3/4-1 1/2 cup of lukewarm water
for the filling:
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
3 boiling potatoes, peeled and cubed into a medium dice
1/2 a red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
a few leaves of mint, chopped
green chilies, chopped (as many as you like, I used 2)
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
pinch of ajwain (carom) seeds
red chili powder/cayenne pepper, to taste
crushed red chilies, to taste, optional
salt, to taste
canola or vegetable oil, for frying
Method
Prepare the dough by kneading the flour and water together. Add the water a little at a time until the dough just comes together. You may not need all of the water. I knead by hand, but you can also do this in a food processor or stand mixer with the hook attachment.
Knead for about five minutes until the dough is firm yet elastic. Place the dough in a bowl and dab on some water over the dough so it doesn’t form a skin and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for at least a few hours in the fridge or on the counter if you are using it the same day.
Once ready to make the parathas, let the dough sit at room temperature for a few hours if it was in the fridge. The dough can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
To make the potato filling boil the potatoes in some cold water in a pot on medium to medium high heat until the potatoes are fork tender and easily mashed, about 15-20 minutes. Drain the water from the potatoes and mash them with a fork or potato masher. While the potatoes are boiling, toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a dry fry pan on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Transfer the spices to a mortar and pestle and coarsely grind them.
Next, add in the oil, onions, cilantro, green chilies, all the spices to the mashed potatoes and mix everything together. Set aside.
Now, you will have to roll out the dough. Separate the dough into eight even-sized balls. You will need two balls per one paratha. Roll each ball out so that is is smooth with no seams. Next, flatten out the ball with you hand so that it becomes a small circle. Put your thumb at the center of the circle and press your fingers at the edges of the circle as to expand the circle. Press your fingers all around and rotate the circle until it starts getting bigger. At this point, use a rolling-pin to roll out a circle with a 6 inch diameter. For each paratha you will need two 6 inch diameter circles.
Place 1/2 a cup of the potato filling over one 6 inch diameter circle, leaving an inch free all around. Place the second dough circle on top and using your fingers pinch the edges shut. Using your rolling pin, roll out the paratha until it approximately has a 10 inch diameter.
Heat your tawa, griddle, or frying pan to medium heat and place the paratha on the warm surface. Let the paratha cook like this for a minute or two then flip it over and using a pastry brush, brush on about a tablespoon of oil on the top of the paratha. Flip it again so that the oiled side is at the bottom. Grease the top with another tablespoon of oil. Once the bottom has turned golden brown, about 2-3 minutes flip it over and brown the other side. Once both sides are golden brown remove from the heat and repeat the process until the dough is finished.
Serve with raita, achar, or green chutney. I particularly like paratha with shami kebabs.
Looks so yum…really neat parathas ..last pic with kebabs is too good!
Thanks, Tanvi! I’m glad you found them neat 😉
You go girl! Only make them as often as you’d like, haha. I can’t understand how a lot of people make time consuming things from scratch every day or week, but it feels like more of a treat when you don’t have it regularly 🙂 These look fantastic! I guess you can call yourself an expert now!
You’re right, it’s much less a novelty when it’s made everyday. I like the craving for it, and surely you don’t crave something you eat daily.
Thanks for your comment, Victoria!
yummy. definitely trying this one for breakfast! what’s the recipe for the kebabs in the last picture?
Thanks, Savera! They are shami kebabs, I will hopefully put up a recipe for them one day, they’re so much work! 😉
i can *so* relate to this, Nadia. my mother always wanted me to be very educated and spend less time cooking and in the kitchen- perhaps this is smthg only people from our part of the world can understand. i can totally see my maternal and paternal grandmothers saying this to me- no need to make roti everyday! parhai karo! (study!). but the beautiful part of this all is that we can do both- work and cook (or study and cook). maybe that’s how we’re different from the generation before us?
anyway enough of that banter- i love this recipe and love your parathas, they look absolutely perfect! x shayma
My mom is the same way, she says, “you have a master’s degree, no need to make roti.” That’s what I meant about how she sees it as subservient-something uneducated ppl do, but didn’t want to be that blatant hehe. Cooking is not something held in high esteem partially because back home there is help to do household work like cooking and cleaning.
I do agree we can do both, but education/work is still very essential.
Regardless, I’m glad you liked the parathas! 🙂
These look so good, I made rotis before but not parathas and I absolutely love potatoes, so It’s got to be done, soon !
Thanks so much, hope you do try out the parathas, they’re a lot of work but totally worth it.
It feels great to master a skill, huh? These are just beautiful! And even your own mom would be pround, I’m sure. Amazing how different moms can be… mine has always been much like yours. She never cooked much at all and feels much more comfortable in a board room than a kitchen! But she has come to appreciate the edible goodies I bring when I visit.
Thanks, Katie! I think my mom has gotten over her previous ideas about women in the kitchen but she does love to eat more than cook! hehe
I can totally relate to this post too! Like Shayma said, maybe it’s because we’re from the same part of the world 🙂 All stereotypes aside, I wish I could make really great roti because I like roti. Alas, more practice and less complaining I guess 🙂
hehe, I guess us Pakistani girls share a lot of common experiences.
I love roti too with Pakistai food, it tastes way better than some store bought pita bread. Practice makes perfect, hehe ;)!!!
Oh those are so pretty and sound absouletly delicious! the photos are gorgeous!
Thanks so much, Dimah!
Alright I must say thats totally not like my mom. MY mom would say ” study as much as you want and don’t cook. Cooking is easy. But learn to make rotis. Once u get that right, life’s easy” The first thing and the only thing my mom taught me was making rotis. I only learned how to cook and took recipes after I got married. LOL. But regardless of how different our mom’s were I suppose we both ended up in the same place. I don’t make roti’s very often. May be like once a week or two. My mom would be ashamed of that !
I told u, I love how neat your paratha’s are. Shami kebab + paratha. You wanna kill me right?
You’re right regardless of our mothers’ point of view we all turned out okay! I hardly ever make fresh rotis, even though I like them a lot.
Come on over, I’ll feed you some shami kebabs and parathas!
Your MIL cracks me up…my MIL probably doesn’t even know what a tawa is. In order to make sure her son is taken care of she tosses package after package of frozen parathas in my freezer. 🙂 I haven’t made a single one for Ali. Not one!
Your hubby is one lucky guy. And I can’t wait to try these. When I come visit you of course!!
Your MIL sounds fab from your stories about her!
I will surely make these (or whatever you want) when you come visit! 😀
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Asif, Nadia Wasti. Nadia Wasti said: My new post on Aloo Parathay (griddled flatbread stuffed w/potatoes) Have a look! http://wp.me/pGD88-uj […]
this looks so delicious! i am getting really hungry right now.
Thakssss 😀
Even better tasting than it looks! I agree with the biannual…the waistline is getting a little too much these days. I’m sure both the moms would be proud! I know I am cuz you tried to make these especially for me.
yup, your stomach needs to stop looking like it’s 9 months prego! LOL
love this post being married to an Indian I understand the culture and roti are work, but man this looks so so good sure your not going to make them a little more ?
Rebecca, it’s soooo much work! I don’t know how some ppl make these daily! Thanks for your nice comment!
I need to be clear on the type of flour used, because I know I will want to try making parathas at some point; yours look so pro and delicious! I understand where you are coming from but still I think it is so important to at least know how to make the traditional dishes and you have proven you CAN. Otherwise, we will all end up across the world eating the same bland dishes and kids will only hav eMcDonalds to go out to.
Joumana, it’s durum wheat flour. it’s available in any Indian or Pakistani store. The best brands are “Golden Temple” or Pillsbury. It will say roti/chapati flour on the bag.
You’re so right about the need to preserve traditional dishes. I pity kids who only eat Mcdonalds, hotdogs, and chicken nuggets.
this looks too good 🙂
too bad I was looking at a dieting blog too 😀
hehe, thanks! That’s why I said it is a treat for once in 6 months! 😉
nice work! this looks really delicious. i loved the “mom” stories to go with it 🙂
Thanks so much!
Love your post Nadia and so proud of you:)
hehehehe thankssssss!
So sorry I haven’t visited in a while. Look at the wonderful things I missed out on. These stuffed parathas look awesome. And they look very nice and round to me (someone has been practicing, haha). I have to put these on my “todo” list!
Thanks, Hanaa, hope you try them out!
This looks soo fantastic- I just had a thought that I might replace latkes with these for hanukah this year… I can’t wait to make this!!
I hope you make these for hanukah!
Your mom sounds like quite a character 🙂
My mom DOES make rotis every night – she takes it as some of sort duty or something. She took it her duty to teach me to cook when I was about 8 – something I rebelled against and to this day, I still don’t make rotis.
But your rotis look so delicious! I might have to change my own anti-roti stance. And buy one of those griddles/pans for making them.
hehe, I was anti-roti for so long. Now I make it once in 2 months, better than nothing! 😀
These look fantastic. Love the backstory. Bread-making seems so simple, yet there’s truly an art to it. I know what you mean about growing up; in my case, I wasn’t exactly turned away from learning to cook, but it wasn’t emphasized either. School was king in my household. I’m glad my natural attraction to the kitchen didn’t die out. Otherwise I’d be living on frozen dinners and takeout now. Yech!
Maybe I’ll take a stab at making these lovely breads someday 🙂
Yes, def an art to bread-making! School was also first and foremost for me, too. But I love eating so cooking came along naturally.
This is so yum! I can’t wait to try this out, and I love the pictures.
Thanks, Nirmala!
I guess each culture has a dish that is used as a standard for measuring once abilities in the kitchen, right? There are still filipino dishes that I haven’t dared try for fear of failure. Congrats on overcoming your own and succeeding with your roti and paratha.
Your posts are always a joy to read. 🙂
aww thanks. Blogging is a great way for us to get out of our comfort zones and try dishes from our heritage!
This recipe is so neat! I haven’t ever had anything like it, but I bet I would love it. 🙂
[…] You can serve the shami kebabs as a snack or a side dish with green chutney /chili garlic sauce or with dal and basmati rice. I also like to eat them with parathas. […]