This post is me paying homage to my Punjabi genes. What’s more Punjabi than a butter laden Aloo Paratha ?

They also happen to be part of my favourite childhood memories. Mum used to give us different types of parathas for school lunches. This was a way my mum used to incorporate vegetables in our diet. The most common fillings were curried potatoes, carrot mint, gram flour pickle, paneer (cottage cheese), mix vegetable. I have even had lauki (bottle gourd) bhurjee paratha. Yep! that’s how creative she got once.

Quick note to self – Should share my grandma’s recipe for Lauki Bhurjee!

It’s amazing that how after all these years as a kid fussing over these and looking at these menu options as annoying. Life takes a full circle and here I am, reminiscing and longing for those same old things. How I crave these in my office lunch.

My mum has a grin on her face when I Skype her and say that I miss those methi theplas (Thin Fenugreek Flatbreads) and Gobi (Cauliflower) parathas she makes. I insist she feed me these when I go back home.

So when mum was the gobi parathas and methi thepla making queen, I found the best aloo parathas made by Bahadur Bhaiya. He is a star when it comes to making these flaky pockets of joy.

Doused with butter and relished with mango pickle and cold yoghurt, this meal is what epicurean dreams are made of. See here:

Think I got carried away, ask any one hailing from Punjab and they would tell you how critical it is to find an eatery or a person who dishes out delicious parathas.

No trip of ours to Delhi is complete without a visit to the epic “Parathane Wali Galli” in Old Dilli. It’s a ritual me and Sahil follow religiously, we have to go to Old Dilli for a paratha breakfast.

There gorge on aloo pyaaz parathas, papad parathas (yes! there is such a thing), bedmi aloo, Daulat ki Chaat, Jalebi with Rabdi, Malai Kulfi Falooda and the works!

Ahh! Just the mere mention of these delicacies make me salivate. Let’s move on to the recipe.

Ingredients
Makes : 6 Parathas

For Stuffing:
3 potatoes boiled and mashed
1 large onion finely chopped
1 brunch spring onion stems finely chopped
Handful of finely chopped fresh coriander / mint
1 tsp carrom seeds
1 1/2 tsp anardana powder
2 green chillies finely chopped
1/2 tsp red chilly powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp freshly grated ginger (optional)
1 tsp chaat masala
Salt to taste

For Parathas:
Whole wheat dough
Canola oil for frying

For the stuffing, boil potatoes in salted water. Peel them and proceed to mash the potatoes with help of a fork once they have cooled down.

Add all the dry spices, onion, green chilly, coriander, mint to the mashed potatoes and mix them well.

Make small balls from the rested wheat dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface.

Add the potato stuffing in the centre, seal the dough ball and flatten it out.

You could also use your finger tips to flatten the dough ball.

Heat a tawa, lightly brush some oil on the surface and place the rolled out paratha on the tawa.

Cook it well on one side and flip over, brush some oil on both the sides and edges as you allow the paratha to get a even brown color.

Serve straight from the tawa to the plate with a generous dollop of butter, mango pickle, mint chutney, pickled onions and raita.

That’s how butter soaked the paratha is for husband extraordinaire Sahil.

Until next time happy cooking!