Cabbage and Carrot paratha

Cabbage-carrot paratha, this will surely put a smile on your face

A paratha/parantha/parauntha is an Indian flat-bread that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Paratha is an amalgamation of the words parat and atta which literally means layers of cooked dough.  I also came to know that in Burma, it is known as palata while it is known as farata in the Maldives.


It is one of the most popular unleavened flat-breads in Indian cuisine. It is made by pan frying rolled whole wheat dough on a tava or flat surface griddle. Parathas are usually stuffed with vegetables and/or Paneer (Indian cheese). You need to be very careful while rolling these parathas as you do not want the stuffing to come out. There is one more style of parathas popular in western part of India in which vegetables are finely grated or chopped and are mixed with dough and spices. This way the rolling becomes little easier. But again, this works with specific kind of vegetables like carrots, cabbage, spinach, methi leaves, coriander, dudhi (bottle gourd) or muli (white radish) etc.

Sizzling hot paratha with a chunk of butter on top

Whichever way you make, parathas are all time favorites. They are good as snack or light lunch. You can serve it with ketchup, chutney, Indian style pickles or roll it and eat it along with tea or coffee. I think this is the best way to feed different veggies to kids.  Kids love it with a dollop of butter or with generous amount of ghee on top. (Ghee is widely used in Indian cooking, it is also called clarified butter) This is a healthy dish for breakfast and a lot filling too. Vegetable parathas can be made in advance and stay fresh for 2-3 days at room temp. Paneer parathas maybe will stay for a day outside then need to be refrigerated.

Specks of green and white can be seen on the golden-brown parathas

Today we are making cabbage and carrot parathas. This recipe will make around 12-13 parathas.


Ingredients :-

1/2 cup cabbage, grated fine
1    carrot, grated fine
4-5 cloves garlic
3-4 green chillies (or acc. to taste)
1 inch piece of ginger
Handful of coriander leaves, chopped fine (optional)
Salt (acc. to taste)
1 - 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tbsp gram flour or besan
2 tbsp rice flour
3 tbsp plain yogurt or dahi
Oil/butter/ghee for shallow frying

Process :-

1.  Make a fine paste using green chillies, garlic and ginger. You can also use store bought paste but i encourage on using fresh ingredients and believe me it takes just a couple of mins. of your time and the food tastes excellent.

Cabbage, carrots and green-chillies, ginger and garlic paste

2.  Mix the rest of the ingredients except oil to make a soft pliable dough. You must have noticed that we substituted yogurt instead of oil while making the dough. The reason is yogurt is a healthy ingredient and it does the same task as oil - keeping the parathas soft. The dough has specks of orange, green and white due to the veggies.

Dough ready to get rolled

3.  Heat the tava or flat surface griddle on medium high heat.

4.  As this dough is soft, you need to be careful while rolling it. Use a lot of flour on the rolling pin as well as on the surface. Divide the dough into 12 or 13 equal parts and shape them into balls. Take one ball and roll it gently into a 6-7 inch diameter.

Paratha ready to hit the hot griddle

5.  Place the paratha on the tava. After 15-20 secs. u will see bubbles forming on it, turn the paratha using a spatula and smear it with a tsp of oil/butter/ghee. Turn the paratha again and let the buttered side cook for 1-2 mins. till golden brown spots start appearing. Meanwhile smear a tsp of oil/butter/ghee on the other side and repeat the process. Serve them sizzling hot with a dollop of butter/ghee on top.

Golden brown spots appear on the paratha, get ready to plate it

Isn't this a fabulous way to start your day :)

Chhunda (Sweet, tangy and slightly spicy Mango pickle)

Chhunda

It's summer again!!! And it's time for MANGOES! Chhunda is a pickle made from raw mangoes and it has mixed flavors like sweet, tangy and little bit spicy. This pickle comes from western part of India, from a state called "Gujarat". 

Growing up, i remember the kitchen shelf filled with 10-15 different varieties of mango pickles - sweet memories :) Thanks Aai!

Traditionally, this pickle is prepared using heat of the sun. It may sound weird but it is really very flavorful this way. Here's how it is done,  first of all the ingredients are properly mixed in a big stainless steel bowl. Then it is covered with a muslin cloth (cheese cloth) and left in the sun for a couple of days, typically 10-15 days. Every night it is brought in the house and next morning the cloth is removed and mixed thoroughly with a big spoon and again covered and left in the sun. What happens here is, slowly all the ingredients mingle properly and the raw mango starts cooking with the sun's heat and after a couple of days you can see that the pickle is ready. It is stored in an air-tight jar for the whole year. And believe me it tastes yummy and needs no artificial preservatives at all. Isn't this something great - the preparation and preservation of pickles. 

Chhunda

I made this pickle using a stove top, no doubt there is slight  taste change - the one with the above recipe is a lot tastier but trust me this too is worth making.  For this you will need raw green mangoes, press and make sure the mango is firm. The most important thing for this pickle is the mango should be tangy, it shouldn't have a bland taste, else it is not at all right for the pickle. You will need a couple more spices, i have listed them below. I have used 1 medium sized mango and it makes a small bottle of pickle (around 13 oz)

Ingredients :-

1 medium sized raw green mango
1/4 tsp methi (dried fenugreek) seeds
2 1/2 tbsp oil
5-6 cloves whole
7-8 black pepper whole
4-5 dried red chillies, broken into half
1 inch cinnamon stick, broken into half
1 tsp red chilli pwd
Salt (acc. to taste)
3/4 cup - 1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder


Process :-

Raw mango

1.  Peel the mango and grate using a thick grater. This way when we cook it, the pickle won't turn mushy and we will be able to see the mango shreds.

Grated mango

2.  Measure the grated mango using a measuring cup. Taste the mango, the quantity of sugar depends on how tangy it is. If the mango is extremely tangy then you will needed equal quantity of sugar else reduce the amount of sugar. See if the following helps,

If mango extreme tangy :
            1 cup shredded mango = 1 cup sugar
If mango less tangy        :
           1 cup shredded mango = 3/4 cup sugar

3.  In a saucepan, heat the oil to medium heat, add the spices (cloves, black pepper, red chillies, cinnamon stick and fenugreek seeds).

Mango and spices getting cooked

4.  Now add the grated mango, salt and mix everything with a spatula and let it cook covered for 5-10 mins, it should not turn to a mush.

This tip is for beginners, just take a piece between your thumb and fore finger and press it, if it gets pressed without effort it means it is cooked.

5.  Add sugar, mix properly  and let it cook uncovered for 10-15 mins on medium heat. Now the sugar will melt and start to thicken, keep an eye on it. When the syrup becomes the consistency as that of  "honey", add cinnamon powder and turn off the heat.

The final result should be thick like a jam, it should have syrup. Keep this in mind, once the chhunda starts cooling, it is going to thicken. So keep a close watch during this process.

Sugar getting melted

6.  After 2-3 mins, add red chilli powder and mix. If we add it during the above process, red chilli pwd. can burn or change color. We want our pickle to be red, the color of chilli pwd and so we add it once the heat is turned off.

Red chilli pwd. added to chhunda

7.  Once chhunda is cooled, store it in an airtight container. Stays good on shelf for months. It can be used as a spread for chappatis or tortillas, also eaten along with chappati and sabji. As this pickle also has a sweet taste, it is a favourite with kids, this is a good way to add mango to their diet.

Chhunda - ready to enjoy!

Lasuni Gobi (feeds 2-3)

Delicious Lasuni Gobi

This is a yummy and filling appetizer from India with a Chinese twist on it. And this makes it different from the traditional Indian taste. It comprises of fried cauliflower florets coated with tangy and spicy sauce concoction. This recipe can be made well in advance and can be heated up when needed. It goes well with Punjabi food. Also it tastes great all by itself.

As its name suggests, it uses 2 main ingredients - Gobi i.e. cauliflower  and Lasun i.e. garlic. It also uses chinese sauces - soy (which gives a salty tangy taste)  and chili (to spice it up). Other ingredients are easily available in your day-to-day pantry.

Let's have a look at the ingredients and then its process.

Ingredients :-

For the batter :

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic (grated fine)
3/4 - 1 cup water (for thick batter)

20-25 bite sized cauliflower florets, washed and rinsed
Oil for frying

For the gravy/sauce :

2 tbsp oil
1 onion chopped
4 cloves garlic chopped fine
2 green chillies chopped fine
Salt (as required)
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp red chilli sauce
3 tsp tomato ketchup
coriander, chopped for garnish
scallions (green part), chopped  for garnish

Process :-


1. Mix flour, salt and garlic. Add water to form a thick paste. Thick enough to coat the cauliflower florets. Keep aside.

Bite sized cauliflower florets -washed and rinsed

Florets dipped in thick batter - ready to get fried

2. Pour oil in a large frying pan. Heat the oil over medium heat. Start dipping 4-5 florets in the thick batter (make sure they are coated evenly) and fry till they are golden brown and cooked through.

Do not over crowd the pan with more florets else the temperature of oil will be reduced and florets will turn soggy instead of crispy.

Deep fried golden florets

3.  Once all the florets are fried, mix soy sauce, chili sauce and ketchup in a bowl properly. Keep this mixture aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok or a skillet.

Soy sauce, Chili sauce and tomato ketchup

Soy, chili and ketchup mixture

4.  Add onions and saute it they turn slightly golden and translucent. Now add garlic, saute for a minute - don't let it burn. Add green chillies, saute and then add all the fried yummy florets. Also add the sauce mixture and mix gently - don't let the florets fall apart. Taste and add salt if necessary as soy sauce already contains salt.

Sauteed onions - slightly golden and translucent

Chatpati Lasuni Gobi - garnished and ready to eat

5.  Garnish with finely chopped coriander and scallions. Serve hot.  

Eat, live and enjoy!!!