Want to make something for breakfast that is delicious as well as nutritious? Especially when it comes to feeding healthy things like bottle gourd, carrots and lentils to children, parents often have to work hard. In such a situation, special paratha made from vegetables and pulses can be a good option.
This recipe from content creator Poorna Mehra shows an easy way to make breakfast tasty and nutritious. In this, bottle gourd, carrots and pulses of choice are cooked in steam instead of boiling in water. After this they are ground and mixed with wheat flour and freshly ground spices. Then such parathas are made from the prepared dough, which are crunchy from outside and soft from inside. The special thing about this recipe is that vegetables and pulses are included together in it. This provides sources of nutrients like fiber, vitamins and proteins in breakfast. Let us know the easy way to make it at home.
1. First steam bottle gourd, carrots and lentils
To make this healthy paratha, first wash bottle gourd and carrot thoroughly and cut it into small pieces. Now place them in a steamer along with the dal of your choice. Steam everything until the vegetables and dal become soft. Steaming can reduce the possibility of some water-soluble nutrients leaching into the water. However, the amount of nutrients also depends on the cooking method and time.
2. Make paste of steamed vegetables
When the gourd, carrots and lentils are cooked well, let them cool a little. After this, put them in a chopper or blender and grind them finely. Keep in mind that the paste should not be too thin. By making a thick paste, it will be easier to knead the dough and the shape of the paratha will also be formed well. This paste is the main basis of this recipe.
3. Enhance taste with freshly ground spices
Prepare fresh spices to make the paratha spicy and aromatic. For this, take whole coriander, cumin, garlic cloves and red chilli as per taste. Grind all these things coarsely in a mortar or pestle. The aroma of freshly ground spices enhances the taste of paratha. If you are making paratha for children, then you can keep the quantity of red chilli less.
4. Mix wheat flour in vegetable paste
Now take out the prepared paste of bottle gourd, carrot and lentils in a big vessel. Add crushed spices, wheat flour, salt as per taste and finely chopped coriander to it. Mix everything well and knead the dough. There may be no need to add water separately in the beginning, because moisture will already be present in the vegetable paste. If the dough is too sticky, add wheat flour little by little. At the same time, if the flour seems too dry, you can add some water as per requirement.
The dough should be soft and easily rollable.
5. Roll out and bake on pan until golden
Make medium sized balls from the prepared dough. Apply dry flour and roll them into round paratha with the help of a rolling pin.
Now heat the pan and put the paratha on it. Cook well on both sides on medium flame. Apply some ghee or oil as per requirement and cook the paratha by turning it till it becomes golden and crisp.
Keep in mind that the paratha is cooked well from inside. In this way, crispy outside and soft inside paratha will be prepared.
6. Serve with curd or raita
When the parathas are cooked well, take them out in a hot plate. These can be served with plain curd, boondi raita or chutney of your choice.
This paratha can also be a good option for children's tiffin, morning breakfast or light evening meal. Mixing vegetables and pulses with flour can encourage them to eat even those children who do not like to eat vegetables separately.
Tips to make healthy paratha better
-
Keep the spices mild while preparing for children.
-
Do not make the vegetable paste very thin, so that the dough can be kneaded easily.
-
Avoid baking the paratha in more ghee or oil than necessary.
-
You can also add other vegetables of your choice in small quantities to change the taste.
-
Lentils and wheat flour add sources of protein and energy to this breakfast.
In this way, paratha made from bottle gourd, carrots and lentils can become a good combination of taste and nutrition. By making slight changes in your everyday breakfast, you can adopt an easy way to feed different foods to your family.