Matar Paneer Paratha
Matar Paneer Paratha is a tawa cooked whole wheat flour flatbread made with a spicy stuffing of green peas and paneer. This is a unique stuffed paratha which is not only rich in protein, but tastes absolutely delicious.
Stuffed Parathas are quite versatile, as the choice of filling can be endless. Though the most common ones are Aloo, Gobi, Mooli, Paneer etc., but there are some interesting variations that can be done especially during winters, when the veggies are available in abundance. One such favourite choice for paratha is fresh green peas. I have combined the goodness of paneer with matar/ peas to curate this interesting spin on stuffed parathas.
This paratha is not to be confused with Matar Paneer Sabzi and in no way it is made with this gravy as the stuffing 🙂 The stuffing for this paratha has the classic flavour profile of peas with coriander, mint and fresh masalas. The mix is somewhat similar to the Matar Kachori, but the addition of paneer makes it rich and perfect for a stuffed paratha.
This paratha is fairly simple to make and can be made quickly for breakfast, lunch or dinner. An array of spices like whole coriander seeds, cumin powder, red chilli powder, chaat masala, kala namak and garam masala are added to the mix and enhances the taste of this Paratha. While you can make this paratha with the frozen peas as well, but it tastes best when made with fresh green peas that are available in abundance during winters.
The only part where one needs to be careful while making this paratha is to make sure that the stuffing does not contain excess water, else it would be a total mess while rolling it! I am sharing below tips to avoid this issue:
- The peas needs to be boiled in water for 5-6 minutes on high flame, then transferred to cold water to retain the bright green colour. Do not overcook the peas. Next drain the water completely and transfer the peas to a kitchen towel to remove any residual water. This step is quite important, else the stuffing would be quite sticky. Also just pulse grind the peas.
- Adding 1 tablespoon of roasted gram flour or besan helps absorb any excess moisture and gives a good binding to the stuffing.
- Grate the paneer in the large setting of a grater to get uniform and homogeneous mixture. This works better than just crumbling paneer with hands.
- Be gentle while rolling the paratha. If you apply excess pressure, the stuffing will squeeze out.
Serving Suggestion
Matar Paneer Paratha is quite wholesome and also loaded with flavours, so it can be had with any pickle, chutney and a bowl of curd or raitha. A side salad shall be quite refreshing too. This dish tastes great for any meal of the day, let it be breakfast, lunch or dinner. This paratha is also a perfect choice for packed lunch or tiffin.
Matar Paneer Paratha
Ingredients
For the stuffing
- 1½ Cup Fresh Green Peas
- 150 grams Paneer
- 1 inch Ginger
- 2 Green Chillies
- 1 tbsp Roasted Gram Flour
- 1 tsp Red Chilli Powder
- 1 tsp Jeera or Cumin Powder
- 1½ tsp Dhania Powder
- ¼ tsp Asafoetida
- 1 tsp Amchur Powder
- ½ tsp Chaat Masala
- ½ tsp Kala Namak
- 1 tsp Garam Masala
- 1 tbsp Roasted and roughly crushed Coriander Seeds
- Fresh Coriander Leaves handful
- Fresh Mint Leaves handful
- Salt to taste
For the dough
- 2½ cups Whole Wheat Flour
- Water to knead dough
- Ghee or Oil to cook Paratha
- Butter for greasing
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Knead the whole wheat flour with 1 tablespoon ghee, required amount of salt and water to make a medium soft dough. Finish kneading with little oil and let the dough rest for 10-15 minutes.
- For making the stuffing, boil the green peas in open on high flame for 5-6 minutes. The peas need not be fully cooked.
- Drain the peas and transfer to cold water immediately to retain the green colour.
- Now drain the peas again and transfer to kitchen towel. Rub well and let it sit on the towel for 3 to 4 minutes till the water is completely absorbed.
- In a mixer jar, add 2 green chillies, 1 inch ginger and fresh coriander and mint leaves. Grind to a fine paste.
- Now add the cooked and dried peas to the mixer jar and just pulse grind to a coarse paste.
- Transfer the ground peas mixture to a plate. Grate the paneer also onto the plate. Add roasted gram flour and all the remaining dry spices and salt to taste. Mix well.
- If the mixture looks wet, you can add one more tablespoon of gram flour and mix. The stuffing is ready now.
- Now take a large portion of the wheat flour dough and roll into a ball. Now slightly roll this using a rolling pin and place a generous amount of stuffing in the centre.
- Gently fold together all the edges to cover the stuffing (just like a modak)
- Now gently press the dough and flatten it using your hand to distribute the stuffing evenly. It is important to enlarge the roti using hand as it would avoid the filling from coming out.
- Dust the roti thoroughly on both sides with dry wheat flour and gently roll it using a rolling pin to a medium thick paratha.
- Heat iron tawa and transfer the rolled paratha to the tawa. Let it cook for 30 seconds on this side before it is flipped.
- Now let it cook on other side for 15-20 seconds and then pour some ghee or oil and cook on medium flame. Press the paratha to get a crisp and flaky texture.
- Flip one more time and add ghee or oil on other side too. Press and cook further, till it is golden brown. Finally grease the cooked parathas with butter. Continue cooking the remaining parathas.
Notes
- Make sure not to completely cook the peas. Also completely pat dry the cooked peas to get rid of any excess moisture or water, before it is ground.
- Pulse grind the green peas to a coarse paste and do not grind it to a fine paste.
- Addition of roasted gram flour helps absorb any residual moisture.
- Make sure to flatten the dough using hand after stuffing the filling. This will distribute the filling evenly and avoid the filling coming out of the paratha.
- Roll the parathas gently. If you apply excess pressure, the filling will squeeze out.
- Pressing the parathas with a masher while cooking the parathas gives it a crispy and flaky texture.
- Cook the parathas on medium flame.
