Kale and Paneer Parathas
On a calming rainy Monday, these Kale and Paneer Parathas are what I pulled together. This serving to break my silence and hiatus from this blog for a hot minute. Kale has been growing happily in the yard. Kale unlike purslane is cultivated. In general hardier than spinach it is the green of choice. I love working with flatbreads, they are calming and generally good for you. Well, it is another thing that most people in the house seem to have gone low carb. I am firmly sticking on.
My Case for Carbs and these Parathas
Whole grains actually do provide a good amount of fiber and in my opinion the good carb way to go. Well, long story short, I do not think I will be going sans carbs anytime soon. Parathas are a plenty on this site, there are recipes for
Adding some added superfood power to the paneer parathas, I bring you today’s kale and paneer parathas. Truth be told, the paneer parathas have been on my radar as I have been working on a USDA project with these parathas. And I had some paneer on hand, so combining the two these parathas come by.
Making them vegan
I do like the richness and soft composition of paneer. Especially since I make the paneer at home, you can see how I do this here. This said, you can use tofu. To use tofu, please make sure that you are using firm tofu and that the tofu is pressed to remove excess water. This is very important or you will end up with soggy parathas.
Boosting the Fiber in the Dough
You can replace the some of the flour with chickpea flour or besan. This makes for a slightly softer but more nutritious dough. I think this essentially gets you to a lot of options. And for me, it is absolutely essential to serve the parathas with raita. Today I served them with this cucumber and mint raita. Yes, putting the cucumbers in the yard to good use.
Ingredients
- Ingredients
- 2 cups of whole wheat flour (plus more for rolling)
- 2 tablespoons oil plus more for pan frying
- salt to taste for the dough and the filling
- 3/4 cup paneer
- 1/2 pound of fresh coarsely chopped kale
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoon dried fenugreek
- 1 small Serrano Pepper
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon powdered ginger
- Place the flour in a mixing bowl and add in the two tablespoons of oil, work this in with the salt. Gradually add in the water to form a smooth supple dough. Gather into a ball and cover and let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour.
- In the meantime crumble the paneer into a bowl, stir in the thyme and cilantro. Mix in the bell pepper, salt, garam masala powder, and the red cayenne pepper.
- Shape the dough into small even numbered balls. I made 6 parathas so twelve balls from this mixture.
- Take a ball roll out to about 6 inch in diameter, set aside. Do the same with the second piece of the dough. Spread the filling evenly out into the dough. Cover with the first piece. Seal the edges and pat to seal gently.
- Roll out to smoothen the paratha and seal shut.
- Roll out all the parathas in this manner.
- Heat a skillet and place a paratha on the skillet. Roast one side for about 2 to 3 minutes, turn and roast the second side.
- Flip, gently add a little oil on the edges and smear the top. Fry until it is filled with golden spots. Turn and allow the second side to cook.
- Continue all the parathas in this manner.
Instructions
- Place the flour in a mixing bowl and add in the two tablespoons of oil, work this in with the salt. Gradually add in the water to form a smooth supple dough. Gather into a ball and cover and let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour.
- In the meantime crumble the paneer into a food processor. Add in the kale, cilantro, dried fenugreek, small Serrano pepper, garam masala powder, salt and the powdered ginger and process until everything is blended. The mixture should be smooth and green.
- Shape the dough into small even numbered balls. I made 6 parathas so twelve balls from this mixture.
- Take a ball roll out to about 6 inch in diameter, set aside. Do the same with the second piece of the dough. Spread the filling evenly out into the dough. You can pack in a good amount of filling as the paneer is soft and is easy to roll without popping out.
- Cover with the first piece. Seal the edges and pat to seal gently.
- Roll out to smoothen the paratha and seal shut.
- Roll out all the parathas in this manner.
- Heat a skillet and place a paratha on the skillet. Roast one side for about 2 to 3 minutes, turn and roast the second side.
- Flip, gently add a little oil on the edges and smear the top. Fry until it is filled with golden spots. Turn and allow the second side to cook.
- Continue all the parathas in this manner.
Nancy Evelyn Swallow
Looks good. Please note that the ingredients are somewhat different from the ones you mention in the instructions. But I get the idea. Nancy