Mooli Paratha Recipe (Stuffed Radish Paratha)

Ingredients

For whole wheat dough

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 to 2 teaspoons oil or ghee (clarified butter)
• ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt or add as required
• water as required to knead

For radish stuffing

• 1 radish white, (mooli, daikon) – medium to large with or without leaves
• 1 or 2 green chilies finely chopped
• red chilli powder as required – or cayenne pepper or paprika
• salt as needed
• garam masala – optional
• ghee (clarified butter) or oil for roasting
• white butter to serve with the paratha

Steps

Preparation

1. Work the flour, salt and oil into a whole wheat dough, adding water as needed while kneading until soft and pliable. Leave it aside.
2. After grating the mooli (white radish), leave it for 15 to 20 minutes, then squeeze out its water.
3. Squeezing out the juice helps prevent the parathas from breaking during rolling. That radish juice may replace the water used to make the dough.
4. Put the chopped green chilies in with the grated mooli.

Rolling mooli paratha

1. Take two lemon-sized portions of dough. On a rolling board dusted with wheat flour, roll them into small circles about 5 to 6 cms across.
2. Place a good amount of mooli stuffing on one of the rolled dough rounds.
3. Avoid overfilling: too much stuffing can break the parathas as you roll.
4. Evenly sprinkle one or two pinch of salt, red chilli powder and garam masala powder. Put the other dough round over it and join the edges.
5. Heat the griddle or tava meanwhile, and roll the filled dough to the size of a paratha or roti.
6. Roll carefully to keep the paratha from breaking.
7. Adding salt to the mooli will cause some juice to ooze from the paratha; this is expected.

Making mooli paratha

1. Heat a tawa (skillet) until medium hot, then put the paratha on it. Keep the flame medium-high to high; avoid a low flame, which can make the parathas hard or dense and keep them from tasting good.
2. On a hot tava or griddle, roast with ghee and oil over medium-high to high heat.
3. Roast with plenty of ghee or oil. A well-fried paratha develops some brown spots and may puff slightly.
4. Make sure the edges fry well; you may press them with a spatula.
5. Flip a couple of times until brown spots appear and the paratha cooks evenly. Both sides should be golden and crisp. Cook the remaining parathas the same way.
6. Offer the parathas hot with butter, curd or a pickle of your choice. They can also be packed in a lunch box. Plain curd is an accompaniment, and they may be served as an evening snack with a cup of hot tea.