Palak Paratha (Spinach Paratha) is an unleavened Indian flatbread made using whole wheat flour, spinach, and mild spices. It can be served for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Learn to make it in 3 different ways.
Here are some more Indian paratha recipes that you may like – Aloo Paratha, Gobi Paratha, Broccoli Paratha, Methi Paratha, Thepla, Masala Paratha, Palak Paneer Paratha, and Gujarati Lauki Thepla.
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About Palak Paratha (Spinach Paratha)
Palak means ‘spinach’ and paratha means Indian flatbread with unleavened dough. So palak paratha (spinach paratha) is nothing but a flatbread made using whole wheat flour, spinach, and a few mild spices.
These paratha are super healthy, have a vibrant green hue, and can be made in under 30 minutes.
Palak Ka Paratha is an excellent way to include the goodness of spinach in your family’s diet.
Serve spinach paratha for breakfast, lunch, or dinner with a cup of tea. They taste amazing with a side of plain yogurt (or raita), a pickle, and a hot cup of masala chai. These are also great to pack for school or office lunch boxes.
These delicious palak parathas can be made in multiple ways. You can make them by kneading the dough with finely chopped spinach, kneading the dough with palak puree, or by stuffing spinach inside the dough.
In this post, I am sharing 3 ways to make these. Each of the techniques is very different from the others and the parathas also taste different. Try out all three as they are all very delicious.
You can also make spinach roti or palak poori using the same dough. If making puri, then knead a tight dough instead of a soft dough.
Here are some more palak recipes that you want to try
Spinach Health Benefits
Fresh spinach is an excellent source of vitamins A, C, and K, folic acid, magnesium, iron, and manganese.
It also contains calcium, potassium, copper, zinc, and protein. Spinach is low in calories and fat and provides a range of other health benefits.
Studies have shown that spinach can help to protect against cancer, improve brain function and reduce the risk of age-related cognitive decline.
It is also thought to promote heart health by helping to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Ingredients
Flour – Palak Paratha are mostly made using whole wheat flour but you can try multigrain flour too.
Spinach – Spinach is a versatile food that can be used in a variety of recipes. It can be eaten fresh in salads or cooked in soups, stews, and casseroles. It can also be used as a healthy alternative to pasta or rice in main meals.
You can use fresh or frozen spinach to make the paratha.
When buying fresh spinach, look for leaves that are dark green in color and free from brown spots. Avoid leaves that are wilted or have been washed several times as these will be less fresh and nutritious.
Fresh spinach can be stored in the fridge for up to three days. Cooked spinach can be frozen for up to six months.
Oil – I prefer to cook palak paratha recipe in ghee, but you can also go for vegetable oil, butter, or light olive oil.
Others – You will also need fresh ginger, green chilies, salt, carom seeds (ajwain), and red pepper flakes. Adjust the green chilies and red pepper flakes as per your taste.
How To Make Palak Paratha
Preparation
Discard the hard stems from the spinach leaves and measure 200 grams of spinach. Rinse the spinach 2-3 times with water until the water runs clear. Drain well.
Chop the spinach finely.
If using frozen spinach, then thaw it and squeeze it to get rid of any liquid. Then chop and use in the recipe.
Grate a 1- inch piece of ginger using a small grater. Finely chop 1 green chili.
Gather the remaining ingredients.
Make Palak Paratha Dough
Add
- 2 cups of whole wheat flour
- 200 g chopped spinach
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 teaspoon finely chopped green chilies
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
- 2 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
to a large mixing bowl or a parat (an Indian utensil).
Mix well using your fingers and leave aside for 10 minutes. Palak will release some water during this time.
Mix well again.
Now add water (approx ¼ cup) little by little and knead to make a slightly soft smooth dough.
Cover the dough with a dishcloth and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
Make Palak Paratha
Keep a griddle over medium-high heat.
Knead the dough once again for a couple of minutes and divide it into 8 equal portions.
Note – If the dough looks soft at his stage, then add some dry flour and knead well again.
Take one portion and roll it into a ball using a rolling pin. Slightly flatten the ball in between your palms. Apply some dry flour to your palms if it’s sticking.
Keep the rest of the dough balls covered with cloth to prevent them from drying out.
Dust the ball with little flour and roll to make a 5-inch circle.
Apply ghee over the circle generously and fold to make a semi-circle.
Apply ghee over the semi-circle and fold to make a triangle.
Dust the triangle with some dry flour and roll to make a 5-6 inch triangle. Roll the edges slightly thinner than the center.
Transfer the paratha to the hot tawa (griddle).
Cook until brown spots appear on the bottom side.
Flip the paratha and apply ghee (approx 1 tsp) on the cooked side.
Flip again and apply ghee (approx 1 tsp) on the other side as well.
Press the paratha using the back of a spatula and cook until nicely browned from both sides.
Make all the palak paratha in the same manner. Serve hot.
Wipe the griddle with a paper towel after frying 4-5 parathas to get rid of the burnt dry flour.
Frequently Asked Questions
Spinach or any other leafy greens have a lot of mud in them and cleaning them properly is very important. Start by plucking the leaves and discarding the hard stems. Now fill a large pot with water and soak the spinach leaves in the water. Gently rub the leaves with your palms and let them sit for a minute. The mud will settle at the bottom of the pot. Now very gently, remove the leaves from the pot and discard the water with the mud. Repeat this process until the water is clear.
To save time, buy already-washed spinach.
Preparation
Discard the hard stems from the spinach leaves and measure 200 grams of spinach. Rinse the spinach 2-3 times with water until the water runs clear. Drain well.
Heat 8-10 cups of water in a large pot.
When the water comes to a boil add ½ teaspoon baking soda and the spinach leaves and cook for 1 minute.
Note – Adding baking soda while blanching the spinach preserves its bright green color.
Drain the water and add the leaves to a bowl filled with ice-cold water.
Now drain the leaves and add them to a blender with ¼ cup of water and make a smooth puree.
Note – You can puree the spinach without blanching but it might taste bitter.
Make Palak Paratha Dough
Add
2 cups of whole wheat flour
spinach puree
1 teaspoon grated ginger
2 teaspoon finely chopped green chilies
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
2 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
to a large bowl.
Mix well using your fingers.
Now add water (approx 2-3 tbsp) little by little and knead to make a slightly soft dough.
Cover the dough with a dishcloth and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
Make Palak Paratha
Divide the dough into 8 equal balls and make the paratha as mentioned in the recipe.
Make The Spinach Filling
Discard the hard stems from the spinach leaves and measure 200 grams of spinach. Rinse the spinach 2-3 times with water until the water runs clear. Drain well.
Chop the spinach finely.
Heat 2 teaspoon ghee in a pan over medium heat. Once the ghee is hot, add 1 teaspoon cumin seeds and 1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain) and let them crackle for 4-5 seconds.
Pour this tempering over chopped spinach.
Add 1 teaspoon grated ginger, 2 teaspoon finely chopped green chilies, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes and mix well.
Make Palak Paratha Dough
Take 2 cups of whole wheat flour in a bowl.
Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and mix well.
Add water (approx ½ cup) little by little and knead to make a slightly soft dough.
Cover the dough with a dishcloth and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
Make Palak Paratha
Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Make smooth balls from each part and slightly flatten them between your palms.
Take one dough ball and dust it with dry flour. Roll it to make a 5-inch circle.
Sprinkle 1 tablespoon roasted gram flour (besan) over the circle. It will prevent the paratha from becoming soggy.
Keep 2 tablespoon of spinach filling in the center of the circle and bring the ends together to make a ball.
Dust the ball and gently roll it to make a 5-6 inch circle.
Fry spinach paratha as mentioned in the recipe above.
Variations
Aloo Palak Paratha – You can knead the dough along with palak puree and stuff aloo filling (potato filling) inside it just like how you make aloo paratha.
Palak Methi Paratha – Replace half of the spinach leaves with methi leaves (fenugreek leaves) and make palak methi paratha.
Serving Suggestions
Serve spinach paratha with plain yogurt or your choice of raita for lunch or dinner. It can also be packed in your school or lunch box with a pickle or chutney on the side.
It’s also a healthy breakfast to enjoy with a hot cup of masala tea or filter coffee.
Serve it with a curry and dal for lunch or dinner.
This delicious palak paratha can also be used to make rolls or wraps. A great way to make your wraps a little more healthy.
Storage Suggestions
Spinach Paratha tastes great when served right out of the griddle. Leftovers can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for a day. You can refrigerate it for 3 to 4 days.
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Recipe Card
Palak Paratha Recipe (Spinach Paratha)
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 7 ounce spinach (200 g, fresh or frozen, finely chopped)
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped green chilies
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
- ghee or oil for frying
Instructions
Make The Dough
- Add whole wheat flour, chopped spinach, ginger, green chilies, salt, carom seeds, vegetable oil, and red pepper flakes to a large bowl or a parat (an Indian wide and large utensil).
- Mix well using your fingers and leave aside for 10 minutes. Palak will release some water during this time.
- Mix well again.
- Now add water (approx ¼ cup) little by little and knead to make a slightly soft smooth dough.
- Cover the dough with a dishcloth and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
Make Palak Paratha
- Keep a griddle over medium-high heat.
- Knead the dough once again for a couple of minutes and divide it into 8 equal portions.
- Note – If the dough looks soft at his stage, then add some dry flour and knead well again.
- Take one part and roll it into a ball. Slightly flatten the ball in between your palms. Apply some dry flour to your palms if it's sticking.
- Keep the rest of the dough balls covered with cloth to prevent them from drying out.
- Dust the ball with more dry flour and roll to make a 5-inch circle.
- Apply ghee over the circle generously and fold to make a semi-circle.
- Apply ghee over the semi-circle and fold to make a triangle.
- Dust the triangle with some dry flour and roll to make a 5-6 inch triangle. Roll the edges slightly thinner than the center.
- Transfer the paratha to the hot griddle.
- Cook until brown spots appear on the lower side.
- Flip the paratha and apply ghee (approx 1 teaspoon) on the cooked side.
- Flip again and apply ghee (approx 1 teaspoon) on the other side as well.
- Press the paratha using the back of a spatula and cook until nicely browned from both sides.
- Make all the palak paratha in the same manner. Serve hot.
- Wipe the griddle with a paper towel after frying 4-5 parathas to get rid of the burnt dry flour.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!