Matar ke paranthe
Green peas are a versatile vegetable that can be prepared in many different ways and can be used in a variety of dishes. From stews to curries to soups, green peas can add a fresh flavour and a pop of colour to even the most boring of dishes!
Green peas stuffed parantha is one such preparation that celebrates to the fullest, the fresh flavour of this nutrient rich veggie. It is a simple preparation that uses just 2 main ingredients; green peas(fresh / frozen / canned) and whole wheat flour.
These paranthas are packed with deliciousness and can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. They go great with a bowl of fresh curd or a pickle/ chutney of your choice.
You can have a butter-topped green peas parantha all by itself.
For this recipe I used 1.5 kg fresh green pea pods. It yielded about 800g of peas (6 cups).
It makes 6-8 large paranthas.
Ingredients:
For the filling:
- Green peas – 6 cups (fresh / frozen / canned)
- Green chillies – 4-5 (as per taste)
- Ginger – 2”-3” piece
- Hing (asafoetida) – ¼ tsp
- Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
- Jeera (cumin) powder – 2 tsp
- Dhaniya (coriander) powder – 1 Tbsp
- Garam masala – 1.5 tsp
- Amchoor (dry mango powder) – 1.5 Tbsp
- Red chilli poder – 2 tsp (optional)
- Salt – to taste
- Oil – 1 Tbsp + for roasting the paranthas
For the dough:
- Whole wheat flour – 1.5 – 2 cups
- Salt – to taste
- Water – as required to knead a soft dough
- Method:
Kneading the dough:
- In a large bowl mix flour and salt.
- Gradually, add water and knead into a soft, pliable dough. If the dough is too hard, the paranthas will break while rolling.
- Add a tsp of oil/ghee and knead the dough for a few more seconds. This helps to smoothen the dough.
- Cover with a damp cloth and keep aside for atleast 15-20 mintues.
Preparing the filling:
- Thoroughly wash the peas and grind them coarsely in a food processor/chopper. You can also use a regular mixer. Make sure that the peas do not turn mushy/pasty. Keep them coarse.
- Grind the green chillies and ginger to a paste or chop them finely. Keep aside.
- In a large heavy-bottomed kadhai/pan, heat 1 Tbsp oil. Keep the heat medium.
- Add hing.
- Add ground peas.
- Give it a good stir
- Add turmeric, jeera powder and dhaniya powder.
- Mix well and let the peas cook on medium heat .
- Keep stirring frequently.
- The peas should be cooked through and all the moisture should evaporate. It takes about 30-40 minutes for the peas to become dry. If the filling is wet, it will taste raw and the paranthas will get soggy.
- When the peas are almost done (after about 20-25 minutes) add ginger-green chilli paste and mix well. Adding ginger-chilli paste at this stage prevents it from cooking too much or sticking to the bottom.
- Add the remaining masalas and mix well.
- Keep stirring frequently.
- When the peas have turned brownish and they start looking dry turn off the heat and add salt.
- Mix well and let the filling cool down.
Making the paranthas:
- Place a tawa/griddle on a low flame so that it’s hot enough to start cooking the paranthas by the time you’re done rolling.
- Make a small-apple-sized dough ball.
- Roll the dough ball in dry flour. Place it on a flat surface/ rolling board and roll it out into a circle of diameter 4”-5”. Do not roll it out too thin. It should be about 1.5mm-2mm thick
- Place ½ to ¾ th cup of filling on to the rolled circle. Use a quantity of filling that you are comfortable handling. But the more the filling the better
- Gather the edges and seal by pressing together.
- Pinch off the extra dough.
- Gently press the stuffed dough ball and roll it in dry flour.
- Place it on the rolling board/surface, sealed side up.
- Roll it with a rolling pin into a parantha of 6”- 7” diameter
- It is natural for the parantha to slightly tear in places while rolling.
- Be careful not to apply too much pressure while rolling as this will make the parantha break and the filling will pop out.
- Keep dusting the parantha while rolling to prevent it from sticking to the rolling pin or board.
- Carefully, lift the parantha and transfer immediately on to the hot tawa/griddle. Tawa should be nicely hot but not smoking.
- Let the parantha cook on one side for 30-40 seconds on medium heat.
- Run a flat spatula under the parantha to ensure that it is not stuck to the tawa. Carefully, flip it over.
- I prefer flipping it, for the first time, by hand as the parantha is still uncooked on one side. Using a pair of tongs or spatula for flipping, at this stage, might cause it to tear or break.
- Brush the parantha with a tsp of oil/ghee. Put a few drops of oil/ghee along the edges of the parantha.
- Cook for 30-40 seconds on this side as well and flip again.
- Brush the other side as well with a tsp of oil/ghee and put a few drops along the edges.
- You can adjust the quantity of oil/ghee to your liking. The paranthas can even be roasted without any oil/ghee at all.
- Roast the parantha on both sides to a pinkish golden colour.
- Serve with a blob of butter on top and fresh curd.
- You can also serve the parantha with a pickle or chutney of your choice.
Watch the recipe video here: