Cheesy Stuffed Parathas

Rishi Nanavati AKA @dish_by_rish shares his recipe for stuffed parathas ahead of Diwali

40 minutes prep

20 minutes cook

Serves 6-8

Guest Contributor

Ingredients

Paratha dough:

420gElephant atta medium flour

300gboiling water (added in 2 stages)

30gghee

pinchsalt

Filling:

40gextra mature cheddar, grated

160glow moisture mozzarella/pizza mozzarella, grated

1red chilli, finely chopped

1green chilli, finely chopped

handfulcoriander, finely chopped

1/2red onion, finely chopped

1 tspchaat masala

1tspkasuri methi (dried fenugreek), crushed

60gharissa

To serve:

Greek yoghurt

Achar (South Asian pickle)

Flaky, golden parathas stuffed with a spicy chilli-cheese filling. Crisp on the outside, gooey in the middle, and best served warm with cooling yoghurt and tangy South Asian pickle.

Method

In a large heatproof mixing bowl, combine the Elephant Atta and salt. Pour in half of the boiling water and stir with a fork until incorporated. Add the remaining water and mix again. Work in the ghee, then knead for 5 minutes until smooth and soft. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.

Divide the dough into 8 equal portions, roll into balls, cover, and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes—the longer they rest, the less likely they are to crack when rolling.

For the filling, combine all the ingredients. Deseed the chillies if you prefer less heat. Divide into 8 equal portions and roll into balls—it will be slightly wet.

When ready to stuff, dust a dough ball with atta and roll it out on a flat surface until just larger than your palm. Place a ball of chilli-cheese filling in the centre, then crimp and pinch the edges to seal.

Pat the stuffed dough ball between your hands to flatten, then dust with more atta and roll out until the filling begins to show through. Don’t worry if it breaks through—those bits crisp and caramelise beautifully during cooking.

Brush off any excess flour with a pastry brush.

Heat a dry tawa or flat frying pan over medium heat. Cook the paratha for 30–40 seconds until lightly seared, then flip. Brush the cooked surface with ghee, cook the second side for 30–40 seconds, then flip again. Brush the second side with ghee and continue cooking until golden brown on the base. Flip once more to allow the top to turn golden brown, then set aside.

Serve warm with mixed pickle and Greek yoghurt.