Here’s something different you can make with leftover potato that is really easy to make! Aloo Paratha is a potato stuffed flatbread that is a popular dish in India. This recipe is so flexible and I’ve provided loads of substitutions and alternatives so don’t be concerned about needing speciality Indian spices. I am addicted to this!
I was inspired to make this because I wanted to make something a little unique using leftover mashed potato I had from making Shepherd’s Pie Potato Skins (yet again….I love them!). This recipe is from my favourite Indian food blog, Priya’s Kitchenette. Besides the fact that Priya is an incredibly generous and kind person, she is phenonemal in the kitchen and her blog opened up the world of Indian cooking to me. She shares dishes that I order at Indian restaurants and shows how easy they are to make at home. And a whole lot healthier too because Indian food at restaurants and takeout places here in Sydney is really, really oily. But Indian home cooking is not. All the flavour with far less oil. Win, win!
“The flatbread dough is just flour, salt and water and takes 3 minutes to make. The filling is flavoured with garam masala, a staple Indian spice, but don’t worry if you don’t have it, there are easy alternatives!”
Parathas (Indian flatbreads) are very popular in India and are typically served for breakfast. However, in the Western world this is served as a side with curries, or as an appetiser. Along with naan, parathas are always a “must have” when I go out for Indian. You can get plain Parathas, but my favourite is Aloo Paratha (“Aloo” means “Potato”). I’m a carb monster. So a double carb hit is pretty much my idea of Perfect Food.
“This is one of those recipes where it doesn’t matter if you don’t have the listed ingredients – you can even substitute the potato! Change it up and use what you have. I’ve provided loads of suggestions for substitutions and alternatives. It is still going to be delicious!”
I promised you right up front that this is really easy and the main reason is because the dough is so easy to make and work with:
1. It is just made with flour, water and salt;
2. It only takes about 1 1/2 minutes to knead;
3. You don’t need to flour the work surface because the dough is not sticky. Even after kneading and rolling it out, the work surface will be perfectly clean; and
4. The dough is smooth, silky and elastic so it is really easy to roll out and stretch into the shape you want.
The filling is very simple: potato, shallots (scallions), ginger, coriander (cilantro) and some spices. The beauty of this recipe is that it doesn’t matter if you don’t have all the ingredients, you can substitute with so many other things or simply leave it out. Sure, what you end up with might not strictly be Aloo Paratha, but it is still going to be delicious. I’ve provided loads of suggestions for substitutions and alternatives. You don’t even need to use potato! You could use, for example, broccoli!
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a pile of Parathas calling my name. Until next time! – Nagi
More things stuffed in flatbreads!
Things stuffed inside flatbreads are always a good thing! I’ve done a few over the years:
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Gozleme – Crispy Turkish olive oil flatbreads stuffed with spinach and feta
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And handy Oven Baked Chicken Quesadillas!
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And though not stuffed, this ever popular Easy Soft Flatbreads has to make the list (use as naan for curries, Greek Gyros, Doner Kebab, Chicken Shawarma – the options are extensive!)
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Aloo Paratha (Indian Potato Stuffed Flatbread)
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 1/2 cups plain white flour (Note 1)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup water (Note 2)
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or any other cooking oil), ghee or butter
Filling
- 1 1/2 cups mashed potato (Notes 3 and 4)
- 1/2 cup shallots/scallions , chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander/cilantro , roughly chopped (optional - adds a nice burst of freshness)
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger , grated (optional - Note 5)
- 1 tsp Garam Masala (Note 6)
- 1 tsp Ajwain/ Carom seeds OR 1 tsp thyme (Note 7)
- 1/4 tsp chili powder (Note 8)
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Place the flour, water and salt in a bowl. Use a table knife to mix the ingredients together, then use your hands.
- Once the dough is sort of formed, turn it out onto a work surface and knead it 60 times. It should be smooth and elastic, not sticky or crumbly.
- Form the dough into a ball, cover with cling wrap and set aside for at least 20 minutes (up to a few hours). Do not refrigerate.
- Meanwhile, make the Filling. Place all Filling ingredients into a bowl and mix to combine.
- Preheat oven to very low (to keep Parathas warm because you can only cook one at a time).
- Cut the dough into 4 pieces with a knife.
- Take one ball and use a rolling pin to roll it out into a round about 18cm/7" in diameter.
- Place 1/3 cup of the Filling into the middle of the rolled out dough.
- Gather the edges of the dough to enclose the Filling (see photo below). Remove as much air as possible from inside then pinch to seal.
- Flatten the ball slightly and shape the flattened disc into a circle using your hands.
- Turn the dough over so the "sealed" side is facing down. Use a rolling pin to roll it out to about 1 1/2 cm / 2/3" thickness. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a non stick fry pan over medium heat.
- Place one Paratha into the fry pan and cook the first side for 1 minute 45 seconds. Use an egg flip to check if it is ready to turn - the underside should be golden brown.
- Turn the Paratha over and cook the other side for 1 minute 30 seconds.
- Remove from fry pan onto a wire rack (this stops the underside from going soggy due to sweat) and place into a low oven to keep warm while you cook the remaining Parathas.
- Add a small drizzle of the remaining oil into the pan (you should not need much). Proceed to cook the remaining Parathas.
- Cut into 4 pieces and serve immediately. It can be served with chutney or yoghurt on the side. I find that the Filling has so much flavour that it doesn't need anything on the side.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
I’ve been making homemade flour tortillas weekly for over a decade and these parathas have caused a cosmic shift in our household.
This was so good!! My partner and I are not very experienced in Indian cooking and we can’t believe how great this came out. All the notes were helpful too. We added some chopped broccoli to the filling and served the meal with mango chutney and harissa. It was all delicious thank you!!
Knead 60 times is that correct
First time making Aloo Paratha, really enjoyed these. A good sub when you have a samosa type craving but don’t want to be bothered with deep frying!
Thank you Nagi!
Excellent recipe, it worked out great and they ere delicious with plain yogurt. Thanks a lot Nagi 👏👏👏
I am so happy you liked them Iris! N x
Hi! Quick question, I put the oil in the dough as it was in the dough ingredients list but I don’t see that in the instructions should I have put it in or not? Thank you!
Hey, I made these as per instructions and they were delicious! How would I go about making these without the filling? Would I just roll them out and cook or fold and roll a couple times for the layers?
Thanks 😊
Just wondering if you think these would work with gluten free flour or would the dough be too crumbly. Thanks
Hey Nagi, thanks for your recipe! I made this a few times already and everyone loves it!
XOXO from LA
My Punjabi Mom approves your recipe! She has been making paranthas ever since I was a child 🙂 I remember Saturday and Sunday morning breakfasts – yummy parantha made from whole wheat or atta flour. Lentils is another thing you could fill with.
looks easy enuf,well lets see?
Wondering if the oil goes in the dough? or is it just on the list for frying? Also, can these be frozen? Thank you.
Hi Nina, the oil is just for cooking here 🙂 N x
Absolutely delicious! And though it’s a bit time consuming, it’s very easy. The only thing I’d advise, though, is cooking on high heat. (Each stove varies, obviously – but it needed to be high on mine.) Even once the oil was hot, my first paratha cooked too slowly and absorbed more oil than it should have.
I love aloo paratha in restaurants and am so excited that now I can make a delicious version of it myself!
Yummy yummy yummy!!! I followed the recipe as posted but used the thyme and dried cilantro instead of fresh. I omitted the ginger, shallots and chili powder
I’m so glad you loved it Jewel! N x
Very tasty , I used your recipe for the naan instead , I filled it with mashed potatoes with the spices mentioned except for the carmon seeds and the the green cilantro , it was very nice
Yum! Sounds fabulous Reham! N x
I love aalu parathas my mom makes! And I made your version today!! Loved them too!! Thank you for your recipe! ❤
really good, i did tried this recipe
Excellent!
Hi Nagi! I made your paratha on Saturday & everyone loved them! So delicious. I have just prepped the dough & filling (spinach this time) to make again today. However, both times, my dough was pretty sticky. What am I doing wrong? Even when I add more flour, it’s still sticky, not smooth & dry like you say. Should I be adding much less water? Thanks
Hi Frances, how much flour in weight are you using? N x
I use 2 1/2 cups flour as your recipe says. I don’t have a food scale so don’t know weight. Does temperature of the water matter? I used cold.
I made this with gluten-free flour (difficult to work with) and stuffed with braised sweet potato. Heavenly, thank you!
Hi I like your recipe 😊 I am going to try them
I hope you love them Sameer! N x