Cooking web notes

Everyone has their own version of aaloo paratha and here is mine. The most popular paratha is a favorite at  my home.  My kids are happy when I serve these and that in turn makes me happy.  What I like the most about parathas is that I do not have to make any side dish to go with them.  Whip up a raita (spiced yogurt) and a spoon of pickle and the deal is sealed.

Photography: There have been a couple of questions over time about  our photography.  Neither of us feel equipped enough to field all your questions, but some of the basic information you asked us are as follows.  We both use Canon DSLRs, do not use photoshop for editing. However, sharpness and contrast are worked on minimally at times using the software that comes with canon cameras or flickr.  No reflectors nor special lights are used unless taken at night which is usually under tungsten light (regular bulbs). Both of us takes pictures by the windows and sometimes patio working with plenty of light.  We hope some of this information is helpful.  We will work on a detailed post covering our interest and what we have gleaned about photography over this short time of blogging.  Please give us time as we don't foresee it happening at least for 6 months.  We still think we are learning and growing in this area and do not want to talk more than we know.  Thank you all for you continued support.




Ingredients:

For Bread :

Whole wheat flour- 2 Cups
Salt- To taste
Water- ~1 cup

For filling:

Potato,boiled and mashed- 2 Medium sized
Onion,finely chopped- 1 small or half of a big one
Coriander leaves chopped - 2-3 Tbsp
Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
Chaat masala- 1/2 tsp
Salt
Oil



Method:

1.Mix the salt and flour, slowly pour the water and knead the dough well.
2.Knead for a few minutes and let the dough rest at least for 15 minutes before you start rolling them
3.Meanwhile prepare the filling. Heat oil in a pan. Saute the chopped onions till they turn translucent.
4. Add the masala powders and saute for a minute.Add the salt
5.Switch off the heat , add the mashed potatoes (make sure that there are no chunks) and chopped coriander leaves into this and mix everything well.
6.Make small balls of dough for making rotis.
7.Make the equal number of balls from the potato mixture too. These should be at least equal in size as the dough balls or bigger than that.
8.Roll each ball of dough till it reaches the size of poori, place the potato ball in the center and fold from all sides to close it.
9.Leave these stuffed balls with the closed edge facing to the bottom, and let it sit for at least of couple more minutes before rolling.
10.Repeat the same for other dough and potato mixture. You should keep the filled balls covered all the time.
11.Now roll out the stuffed balls till they reach about 1/4 inch thickness.
12.Heat a skillet and cook the parathas on both sides by flipping them over. Brush with oil/ghee/butter on both sides
13.Serve with raita/yogurt and pickle/your choice of side dish.



Notes:

1.Do not overcook the potatoes, also do not keep them in cold water for cooling them down. Both these lead to excess of water which is not good for parathas.
2.Keeping the potato filled dough for a couple of minutes helps to prevent the sides from breaking while you roll them.