Aloo Chapathis (Mashed Potato Flat-bread)

Chapatis(wheat-flour flat bread) are very staple at my home. We have them on daily basis. Once in a while I like to add grated or mashed vegetable to make Chapatis bit more tastier.
I use Potatoes (aloo) mainly, while making the mashed veggie Chapatis. Adding potatoes makes the Chapatis very soft and this will be good for lunch boxes, since it stays soft for longer hours.



Ingredients :
Potatoes (Aloo/Alugadde)- 2 medium size (boiled, peeled and mashed)
(Substitute potatoes with mashed lentils or beans for more wholesome and nutritious Chapatis)
Whole wheat flour (godi hittu) - about 2 cups (use Chapatis atta instead)
Spices : Black pepper powder (menasu), red chili powder, turmeric powder and salt - about 1/2 to 1 tsp.

*Above measurement makes about 10-12 medium size Chapatis.

1. Wash and boil potatoes till soft, once cooled peel the skin and mash them coarsely.
2. Add wheat flour, and spices and mix together with the mashed potatoes. No water is required, moisture from the potatoes will help bind the flour.
3. Mix all the flour and spices until ever thing is combined well and from a stiff dough. Add more flour if required.
4. Keep the dough covered, for 10-15 minutes.
5. Then take a big lemon size ball, roll to a circular shape. And toast them on a griddle/tava on both sides. See this link for rolling and toasting Chapatis.

Once ready, enjoy them warm with a some spicy pickle and curds on side.

Phulkas

Day 6 of 7 days of Recipe Marathon.

Phulkas are the softest of all Indian flat-breads with out the use of any oil. They are made to puff up by the heat(fire), which creates a air pocket in between, hence making the bread very soft.

Few days back, one of my dear friend suggested me, to blog about Phulkas and gave me the recipe and procedure for making them. I did follow her recipe, and did some trail and error and finally was able to get the Phulkas right.

3 things to keep in mind while making Phulkas, 1. kind of flour we use ( Indian atta are the best kind), 2. kneading them to stiff dough and rolling them to circle just about palm size. 3. dry roasting them on tava/griddle and then putting them on a open flame, and let it puff.

Ingredients:

• All-purpose flour/maida - 1 cup
• Wheat flour - 1/2 cup
• Water - about 3/4 cup (to knead the dough.)

*Due to the non-availability of Indian atta, I have used the above proportion of wheat and all -purpose flour.

Mix the flour with little water at a time to make to stiff dough. cover and let is sit for at least an hour. This makes the dough soft and will be easy to work with.

Making Phulkas :

1. Once ready to make the Phulkas. Make small ball ( lime size) roll them not bigger than palm size, and don't roll them too thin.
2. Heat tava/ griddle to medium high heat. Put the rolled dough on the tava, when you see small bubbles (half cooked) turn them around.
3. Roast the other side for just few seconds.



4. Then with the help of tongues or a spatula put (first side/top side down) on the open flame and it will puff, with in a few seconds (don't allow it sit for too long, it will burn). Take out as soon as it puffs. Refer pic above.
5. Follow the same steps and do with the rest of the dough. Keep the left overs closed in a box, stay soft up to a day.

Serve warm with favorite sidedish. Enjoy !

I owe a Big thank you to my dear friend Suju, I wouldn't have made it otherwise.

Recipe Marathon : Day 1- Chapatis , Day 2- Jodala Rotti , Day 3- Homemade Bread, Day 4- Naan , Day 5- Aloo paratha .

Aloo Paratha (Potato flatbread)

Day 5 of 7 days of Recipe Marathon.

Paratha/Parotha is a wheat flour flat bread mostly stuffed with potatoes(aloo) or mixed vegetables and spices. This tastes good on its own, no side dishes required. I like making this when we travel. Simple and satisfying meal on the go. But at home we like to eat this with a cup of Curds/yogurt and little pickle(Indian pickle) on the side.

Making aloo Paratha requires 2 steps,
1. Making the dough &
2. Making stuffing (Aloo Palya/curry).

Making Dough :

• All purpose flour (Maida)- 2cups
• Wheat flour - 1/2 cup
• Salt - 1tsp
• Water - about 1 cup

Add salt to maida & wheat flour, then add water little by little to make a stiff dough. Knead well to soft and cover and keep it aside until ready to stuff them.

For Aloo/Potato Stuffing :

• Potatoes - 3 medium size ( boiled and skin peeled)
• Onion- 1 medium size(chop finely)
• Spices - 1/2 tsp of each Red chili powder, Turmeric and Garam masala.
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste.

1. Boil potatoes. Once cooled, peel the skin and mash them and keep aside.
2. Heat oil, when hot add finely chopped onions. Cook them until it soft .
3. Add all the spices and salt. Switch off and add the mashed potatoes. Mix well to combine.
4. Adjust salt. Let it cool.
5. Make small balls and keep them ready.

Making Parathas.

1. Make a medium to big size balls out of the dough, roll them to small circle shape.

2.Now take a aloo stuffing and put it in the middle. Bring all the sides together and press them in the middle.

3.Now roll them gently to a small to medium size circle.Use dry flour if require for rolling.

4.Then roast them on a heated pan/tawa for few seconds on each size. I like to cut them into small wedges and serve. Enjoy when warm.

* Making stuffed Paratha takes bit time, sometimes stuffing tends to peep out of the dough. So to keep the stuffing inside, roll the dough to smaller size and bit thick than usual flat breads. I am still learning to make a perfect round shaped Parathas, I need more practice and have to make them as often as possible.

Recipe Marathon : Day 1- Chapatis , Day 2- Jodala Rotti , Day 3- Homemade Bread, Day 4- Naan.

Naan with Nigella seeds

Day 4 0f 7 days of Recipe Marathon.

Today I decided to make Naan (Indian flat bread). This is my favorite type of bread to order, in any Indian restaurants we go.

Recipe is very simple, takes few minutes to make the dough. But has to rest for at least an hour before proceeding to roast/bake them. Once the basic dough is ready, one can top them with different spices, seeds, nuts and even herbs.

I have toped it with Nigella/Kalonji seeds (which looks similar to black sesame seeds, but has very mild onion flavor, mostly used in Bengali cuisine). I use them for its flavor and as a topping on this bread, Naan looks so pretty when topped with this seeds.

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour - 1 cup ( I use unbleached flour)
• Whole wheat flour - 1 cup
• Salt - 1tsp
• Sugar - 1tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp ( for kneading)
• Yogurt/curds - 1/2 cup
• Yeast - 2 tsp
• Warm water - about 1 cup (2 tbsp for dissolving yeast + 3/4 cup for kneading).
• Nigella seeds - few tbsp for sprinkling on top (substitute with sesame seeds(ellu) or cumin seeds)

1. Take 2 tbsp of warm water, dissolve yeast in it,add little sugar to it. Cover and let it sit for 5-10 mins.
2. Now add yogurt to yeast mixture. Combine all purpose flour, wheat flour and salt. Add this to the yeast mixture. Mix well, add little oil for kneading.
3. Cover and let it rest for at least 1 hour, until raise in the volume.
4. When ready, make lemon size balls, roll to circle shape(use little dry flour, if the dough is sticking while rolling).



5. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp of Nigella seeds on top of the rolled dough. Press/roll gently with a rolling pin(so the seeds won't fall while roasting).
6. Heat griddle/tawa on a medium high heat.When hot,put the rolled dough on the tava.



7. Leave it for few seconds, until you see small puffy bubbles on top. Flip/ turn over and cook the other side for few more seconds, till you see golden brown spots.
8. Soft Naan is ready to be served. Enjoy with a side dish.

Recipe Marathon : Day 1- Chapatis , Day 2- Jodala Rotti , Day 3- Homemade Bread.

Chapatis (Wheat flour Flat-bread)

Today is the first day of seven days of recipe marathon, a group of 29 food bloggers will be preparing and posting a recipe a day for 7 days, to countdown to the New Years.

Nupur who is the creator of this marathon was kind enough to let me join in for the event last minute, thanks Girl . I decided to make breads (flat breads as well as baked breads), so I'll be posting recipes for 7 different breads for next 7 consecutive days.

Chapatis or Wholewheat flour breads(flat bread) is our daily bread, we eat them for our dinner daily (almost). So today I'll be posting the recipe I use for making this type of flat bread.

Ingredients

• Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
• Wheat germ - 2 tbsp (optional, but very nutritional addition)
• Flaxseed's (powdered) - 2 tbsp (known as Agasi seeds in Kannada)
• Salt - 1tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp ( for kneading)
• Water - 1- 1& 1/2 cups
• Yogurt (curds) - 2 tbsp (optional, I add to make the breads soft)

1. Take a wide mouthed bowl, mix whole wheat flour, wheat germ, flax seeds, curds and salt.
2. Mix them using enough water to form a thick dough, knead them using little oil to make soft dough. Close and keep side for at least 15 mins.
3. When ready to eat, heat a flat pan/tava (i use cast-iron one). Put it on medium-high heat.
4. Divide the dough to small balls, flatten it and roll them to circular shape as thin as possible (refer the pics above). Roll the rest of the dough and keep it ready.
5. Then put the rolled dough on a hot pan, when you start to see few puffy bubbles, press it with the spatula and turn it around . Let it cook for few seconds on the other side, until you see few brown spots. Add oil on top if you prefer.
6. Above measurement makes up to 8 medium size Chapatis/flat breads.

Enjoy the soft and nutritious bread warm , with your favorite side dish.

Grated Vegetable Parathas

Chapathis(flat breads made with wheat flour) or Parathas(flat breads made by combining wheat flour with vegetable and spices) are very staple at our home. I make them almost everyday for our lunch or dinner.
Today I made with some grated vegetables along with cumin and Nigella seeds and had with coconut chutney.



Ingredients I have used :

• Grated Vegetables - Zucchini, Carrots, Radish all grated- about 2cups mixed together.
• Green onion, dried methi leaves - about 2tsp each
• Cumin(jeera) powder and red chili powder- 1tsp
• Cumin seeds and Nigella (kalonji) seeds - 1tsp.
• Oil - 1tsp
• Salt to taste
• Whole wheat flour/atta flour- 2cups or more.

1. Wash and grate the vegetables to (remove/peel the outer skin if its tough).
2. To the vegetables mix chopped green onions and methi leaves and spice powders and seeds..Add salt and keep aside for 5 mins.
3. To this vegetable mixture, add wheat flour and mix well to combine, moisture from the veggies will soften the flour so add water little by little to make a stiff dough.
4. Add little oil and knead for few minutes. Then take a small size ball , roll them thin and cook them on griddle/tava.
5. Enjoy them warm with chutneys or plain yogurt/curds.

I am sending this to Think spice -Kalonji(nigella seeds) hosted by Ammalu's Kitchen which was originally started by Sunita of Sunita's World.

Sweet-Potato Paratha(Flat-Bread)

Yesterday for our dinner I made parathas out of sweet-potatoes, I usually make these kind of paratha with regular russet potatoes, I tried them with sweet-potatoes. So here is how I made it.

• Sweet potato - 1 medium
• Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
• Kalonji/nigella/onion seeds- 1tsp
• Dried Dill leaves-2 tsp

1. Cook sweet potato in water till soft, mash it well.
2. Mix all the above ingredients to soft dough (no need to add water water content in the sweet potato is enough to make the dough), add more flour if required.
3. Once it forms to stiff dough, roll to thin circles and cook them on griddle/tava.
4. Eat warm with favorite side dish. Enjoy.

Mooli Parathas /Flat bread with Radishes

Mooli is the hindi name for radish, in USA its known as daikon and Mulangi in kannda. While growing up in Mysore (my home town) we got lots of fresh white radishes, so my mom made sambars and raithas with it, and we all like it. After getting married, I came to know that my hubby didn't like radish. So I hardly prepared anything with it.

Like many parathas, I discovered mooli paratha after I started blogging. Since it was a new recipe to me, I did try it once and for my surprise, he did like the parathas. So from there on I make use of the fresh radishes, when ever I get in the store.

I have previously tried stuffing them, I find mixing everything in one bowl, is much more convenient to me. So this is how I make these Parathas.



Ingredients :

• Radish - 1 big grated (about 1 cup,look for fresh and crisp radishes when buying them)
• Green/Spring onions - 2or 3 springs (optional, I use this to give nice color and mild onion flavor)
• Cilantro/coriander leaves - one hand full chopped
• Spices : Turmeric, Cumin seeds, Red chili powder - 1tsp each
• Whole wheat flour/ atta flour - 2 cups + more for dusting and kneading if needed.

1. Peel skin and grate radish ( i use large hole grater,so the mixture won't be very watery), finely chop onions and cilantro. mix everything with spices mentioned above, add some salt and keep for 10 min.
2. Then add wheat flour mix well to combine, add little oil and knead well. Since radish leave lots of liquid, i have not used any water.
3. Once it forms to stiff dough , cover and leave for 10 more Min's.
4. If you find the dough is sticky, add more flour and knead well and make small balls with it and roll to small,thin circles.
5. Heat a griddle/tava on medium high heat, once hot transfer the rolled paratha and cook for a min or so on each side until you see small brown blisters( don't leave rotis too long, flip/turn to other side as soon as see little bubbles). If its too dry add little oil while cooking.

We had ours with spicy chili pickle and some curds/yogurt. Enjoy !

Methi-Onion Chapathis

My mother makes this for morning breakfast/tiffin. Back in Mysore(my home town) a lady used to bring fresh green to the door steps every morning, mom used to by fresh bunches of methi leaves(menthi soppu as we call in kannada) atleast once a week to make this kind of chapathis. Now when I think back those simple things like getting veggies and fresh greens at your doorsteps feels like luxuary.

Here in Barrow, Alaska its dream to get fresh methi leaves in grocery store. I have used dried methi leaves a.k.a kasuri methi for making this. Its very aromatic and onions gives little crunch and sweetness to chapathis. One can eat these chapathis on its own, good for lunch boxes or while travelling. Sometimes I use boiled and mashed potatoes to mix with this, adding potatoes makes it even more softer.

So here is what I used to make.

• 2 cups- whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup - dried methi leaves
• 1 medium- onion
• 1 tsp-salt and red chilli powder
• 2 tsp oil

1. Chop onion very finely, heat oil when hot add onion and methi leaves fry untill onion is soft and tanslucent. Now add salt and chilli powder, let it cool then mix with wheat flour to a stiff dough adding little water at a time. Keep it covered for atleast 15 mins.
2. Then you can roll them into chapathis. Above measurements makes about 8 medium size chapathis.

* Using fresh methi leaves gives much more flavour. Chop onion very finely so it combines well with the flour.

Tomato-Onion Gojju

Tomato-onion gojju is made most in my kitchen, it goes with everthing like dosa, idly, rotti ,rice ,chapathis and even as a spread on bread. I always keep onions and tomatos on hand. It can be made very quickly and tastes delicous. For the first time I tried cherry tomatoes for making this gojju it tasted awesome like really gojju. Same can also be made using capsicum(bell peppers), spring onions and eggplants.

Recipe

• Tomatoes- 25 cherry tomatoes( or 3- roma tomatoes)
• Onion- 1 medim
• Sambar powder- 1tbsp (can used chilli powder)
• Jaggery - 1tsp (or brown sugar)
• Salt as for taste
• Clilantro leaves for garnish- a handful
• Oil- 1tbsp

*I used little bit of tamarind paste, while using roma tomatoes to give a little tanginess.

1. Heat oil in a pan , when hot add onion saute it untill soft then add tomatoes cover and cook untill its soft. It takes very less time to cook tomatoes.
2. Now add sambar powder, jaggery and salt cover and cook till all the flavours combines well and turn off the heat and garnish with cilantro leaves. Its ready to be served.

*If veggies are dry add water while adding sambar powder. I haven't added any water while making mine,juices from tomatoes were enough for the consistancy.

I made this for our lunch today and had this with tomato-onion gojju and with some home made curd/yougurt. I consider this as a healthy meal and will send it to Suganya's Tasty Palettes for WBB-Healthy Eats.