Indian Aloo Paratha – whole wheat pan-fried flatbread stuffed with a spicy potato filling.

This paratha is best enjoyed with yogurt, pickle, butter and a side of chai!

Parathas were a staple in my home growing up. We ate them for breakfast, even for dinner at times. Mom made all types of parathas- gobi paratha, mooli paratha, matar paratha, sattu paratha (stuffed with sattu which is a roasted chana flour) among many others.

But the most common and frequently made one was Aloo Paratha – the one stuffed with spiced mashed potatoes. 

The reason must be that potatoes are so readily available everywhere. I know that I always have potatoes in my house and so aloo paratha becomes the top choice when we crave parathas.

Indian Aloo Paratha

Aloo paratha is a whole wheat flatbread which is stuffed with spicy mashed potatoes. It is pan fried with oil or ghee and is usually enjoyed with butter, yogurt or pickle.

My aloo paratha is nothing fancy, it’s a basic simple recipe which is made in so many homes across India.

Just some boiled mashed potatoes, mixed with spices and then stuffed in the dough, which is then rolled and pan-fried. Some people like to grate the potatoes for more texture, I just go the traditional way and mash the potatoes.

Also you can cook the potatoes with some oil and temper them with cumin before adding all the spices. It just varies from person to person. I straightaway added all the spices to the mashed potatoes. There’s no right or wrong way here to make aloo paratha, it always tastes good no matter how you make it.

The thickness of the parathas is also a personal preference. At my in-laws place, parathas are made quite thick (that’s a traditional Punjabi way) but I know some people make their parathas very thin. So again, no right or wrong here.

Ingredients

There are two parts to a paratha recipe- the dough and the filling.

Atta (whole wheat flour): the dough for the paratha is made with everyday atta which we use in Indian kitchens for making rotis. My favorite brand for atta here in the US is sujata gold. You can find it at Indian grocery stores.

Potatoes: since this is aloo paratha, the filling is entirely made of potatoes. You can use either russet potatoes or gold potatoes. I actually prefer gold potatoes for this paratha but others will work too.

Spices: I have used spices like cumin, amchur (dried mango powder), garam masala, ajwain (carom seeds), Kashmiri red chili powder in the filling.

But honestly you can use whatever spices you want. Even kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) would be a good addition.

Herbs: I like using lots of chopped cilantro in my aloo paratha. And for that little kick, a green chili is must!

Other than these, there’s of course salt and some oil which is used in the dough and also to pan fry the parathas. 

A lot of people cook their parathas in ghee, I just prefer roasting them in oil.

Tips to Make Good Stuffed Paratha

My parathas didn’t turn out that way they do now when I first started. They would often be hard and just not good.

Here are some tips that will ensure that your parathas turn out good.

The key to making a good paratha lies in kneading a soft dough. So knead a soft dough and do use some oil in the dough. That will help keep the dough soft and eventually the parathas will also turn our better.

Roll evenly– so when rolling the parathas, try to roll evenly. Move your rolling pin in single strokes across the entire length of the paratha so that it rolls evenly. This will ensure that the stuffing is evenly distributed throughout the paratha. 

The center can get thicker than the edges and then that doesn’t roast well and remains uncooked. So pay attention to that.

Always make sure that your tawa/griddle on which you will be making the aloo paratha is hot before you put the paratha on it. If it’s just medium hot, the paratha will take time to cook and that will result in a “not so soft” paratha.

Be generous with oil or ghee when roasting! If you want your parathas to be softer, then apply a little extra ghee or oil. That definitely helps. 

Serving Suggestions

Aloo paratha is best enjoyed with yogurt, achar (pickle), butter and a cup of chai!

You can also enjoy it with some cilantro chutney. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Method

1- In a bowl mix together atta (whole wheat flour), salt and oil.

2- Add water little by little and start mixing the dough.

3- Knead to form a smooth and soft dough. The dough should be soft, if it isn’t add little more water. I added around 3/4 cup + 1-2 tablespoons water here.

You can also use the dough hook attachment of your stand mixer to knead the dough. 

4- Cover and let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes. Divide the dough into 4-6 equal parts.

5- To make the filling, boil the potatoes first until they are completely done.

You can use a regular pressure cooker and cook on high for 8 to 9 whistles or in instant pot for 10-15 minutes (or even more depending on the size of the potatoes). Once potatoes are boiled, peel the skin, let them cool a bit and then transfer to a bowl.

6-  Mash the potatoes and then add chopped green chili, cumin, amchur (dried mango powder), garam masala, ajwain (carom seeds), kashmiri red chili powder, salt and cilantro.

7- Mix until everything is well combined. Taste test and adjust seasoning to taste. The stuffing for the paratha is now ready.

8- Take the dough and divided it into 8 to 10 equal parts (depending on how big you want your parathas to be). My dough weighed around 60 grams each.

Now, take one of the dough balls and roll it into a circle of around 4-5 inches in diameter. Apply around 1/2 teaspoon oil on the rolled dough. Then place around 2 tablespoons of the filling in the center (you can add more filling but don’t overfill). 

9 & 10- Now, bring all the edges together to the center and then pinch to seal the edges.

11- Flatten the dough ball using your hands.

12- Now using your rolling pin, roll the dough to a circle of around 7 to 8 inches diameter. Use dry atta as needed while rolling. Dip the dough ball in dry atta as and when it becomes difficult to roll and then roll again. The trick here is to apply equal pressure while rolling. If you do that, your paratha will turn round automatically.

Heat a skillet/tawa on medium-high heat.

13- Transfer the rolled paratha onto the hot tawa. Make sure your tawa is hot before you add the paratha on it.

14- Cook the side for a minute or two until it’s partially cooked and then flip over. Apply oil or ghee, around 1/2 teaspoon on the half-cooked side and flip again.

15- Now apply oil on the other side as well. Press with a spatula and cook the paratha until both sides have golden brown spots on them. Make sure to press the edges so that they get cooked as well.

Repeat with the remaining dough balls and cook all the parathas similarly.

Serve aloo paratha hot with butter, pickle and a cup of chai!

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This post has been updated from the recipe archives, first published in January 2017.