Palak Paratha Recipe (Spinach Paratha)
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 224kcal
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. Try it!
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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.
- 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.
Notes
Method 2 (Pureed Palak Kneaded In The Dough)
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 The 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, and 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes to a large bowl or a parat (an Indian wide and large utensil).
Mix well using your fingers.
Now add water (approx 2-3 tablespoons) 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 above.
Method 3 (Palak Stuffed Inside The Dough)
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 The 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 tablespoons of spinach filling in the center of the circle and bring the ends together to make a ball.
Nutrition
Calories: 224kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 57mg | Potassium: 516mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 4954IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 4mg