Paratha (, also known by other spellings) is a flatbread from the Indian subcontinent, consisting of a wheat dough, typically whole wheat, that is folded and rolled with ghee, forming multiple layers, and shallow fried. Paratha may be stuffed with various fillings, the most common being potato. Paratha is one of the most popular flatbreads in India. The folded, whole-wheat version is prevalent in the Northern Indian subcontinent, and is distinct from South Indian parotta, which uses refined flour. Variations also exist in the cuisines of Myanmar, Mauritius, Malaysia (where it is known as roti canai), and the Caribbean (where it is known as buss-up-shut).
Although paratha is sometimes said to have originated in Punjabi cuisine, it may have evolved from similar flatbreads from regions connected to India via the Silk Road. Possible origins include the Persian flatbread or from breads introduced by Arabs in India. Sanskrit recipes for versions of paratha appeared in the 12th century. The popularity of paratha increased during the Mughal Empire, which introduced it across the region. During the British imperial era, indentured workers from India introduced paratha to Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and Mauritius. In India, several versions of paratha were popularised after the 1947 partition.
Paratha is eaten as the central component of a meal, with various accompaniments, often including dahi and pickle. Paratha is eaten for any meal; for breakfast, it is commonly paired with tea. Some types of paratha are made with spiraling layers, such as lachha paratha. Stuffed parathas include aloo paratha, using potatoes; gobhi paratha, using cauliflower; mooli paratha, using radish; methi paratha, using fenugreek leaves, and keema paratha, using minced meat. Paratha is also used for wraps, including the kathi roll and paratha roll.
Names The word paratha is from Hindi, derived from the word , meaning 'layer'. In Indian English, the bread is always referred to by the specific term paratha, rather than bread.
The word for paratha differs across India. Alternative spellings include parantha, prantha, parata, prata, and parotta. It is spelled as () in Myanmar and in Mauritius. In the Gulf countries, as well as in East Africa, the breads referred to as chapati are more similar to a paratha.
Preparation
Like most Indian breads, paratha is wheat-based and unleavened. The dough is made of atta (whole wheat flour), water, and salt, which is covered in ghee. Oil may be used instead of ghee, and white flour (maida) may be used instead of whole wheat; maida is used for more tender, flaky parathas. Vegetables, herbs, and spices may be added; ajowan is a commonly used spice in plain paratha.
The common wheat, the dominant species of wheat in the northern Indian subcontinent, results in the light, spongy texture of North Indian breads such as paratha. The flour used in paratha is typically of low extraction, although high-extraction flour is sometimes used. It may also use resultant atta, the coarse byproduct of sifting atta. In commercial preparations, potato flakes may be used as a binding agent.
The dough is kneaded by hand. It is rolled out with oil or ghee, then folded. This process of lamination is performed two or more times. This usually forms a triangle with four to six layers; it may also be folded into a circle or square. Stuffed versions of paratha are instead made by shaping the dough into balls and placing a filling inside before rolling them out. Paratha may be rolled out using a dough sheeting machine that may produce thousands of parathas per hour.
Both plain and stuffed parathas are shallow fried on a tava, a type of iron griddle, until browned, with or without additional ghee. Sometimes, particularly among street vendors, paratha is fried in a shallow pan filled with oil, thus containing more fat than a paratha cooked on a tava. Some versions are instead baked. Paratha may be brushed with ghee after serving.
While frying, paratha forms distinct layers. The lamination of the dough results in a soft, flaky flatbread. Its lamination process and layered texture are much like a puff pastry, but it does not rise as a puff pastry does. Frying (rather than baking) results in a slightly crispy outside, and, in the absence of leavening, the formation of steam is responsible for the separation of crust and crumb.
Paratha is similar to chapati, with the only difference in physical composition being the use of oil, while paratha also has multiple layers. Paratha is slightly thicker and denser, with a more prominent crumb. The starch properties of the two breads differ as paratha has fat in its crumb as well as fat coverage that causes more thorough heat transfer. Paratha has starch granules in its crumb that are deformed and shrunken compared to those of chapati. The Gujarati bread thepla resembles a cross between paratha and chapati.
Paratha is the same size as chapati; a single paratha weighs about . Both plain and stuffed parathas are about in diameter and 3 mm thick, with plain parathas sometimes ranging to as thin as 2.5 mm. Paratha has a sturdy texture, enabling it to be served with thick foods. Stuffed paratha has a softer texture than plain paratha.
Paratha is eaten quickly; a study in the journal Appetite found that it took about 9 minutes to eat a 250-calorie serving. According to a 2020 study in Delhi, the median portion size of paratha is 60 grams, averaging 1 paratha for women and 2 parathas for men. According to a 2013 study in the United Kingdom, the mean portion size is 121 grams for children and 100 grams for adults.
Varieties Paratha exists in both plain and stuffed varieties. Dozens of varieties are commonly consumed. Regional variations differ based on cooking method or filling.
Plain varieties
India has two categories of plain paratha: North Indian paratha (also known as sada paratha), made from atta, and South Indian parotta, made from maida. Both are similarly flaky and layered, but the South Indian version achieves this texture through repeated stretching and coiling rather than rolling and folding.
Some versions of paratha have spiraling layers, forming a circle or square. Lachha paratha () is a kind of North Indian paratha with many circular layers, formed by shaping a circle of dough into a coil before rolling it out again. It has a crispy texture and is the same size as a regular paratha. is a North Indian paratha cooked on the bottom side of the pan, the same method as roomali roti.
Cornmeal, atta, palm sugar, ajowan, and green chilli are used to make makkai paratha, while ginger and chilli are used for . Sattu, a type of chickpea flour, is used to make sattu paratha, a breakfast dish eaten in Bihar, Jharkhand, and part of Uttar Pradesh. In the Eastern Himalayas, the legume gahat is crushed into a paste that is added to paratha dough. Paratha has been made with atypical ingredients for nutritional value. For example, it may be made with mulberry leaves as a nutritional supplement, which also increases shelf stability of the flour. Other ingredients that may sometimes be used in the dough include amaranth, flaxseed, sorghum flour, and buckwheat flour.
Stuffed varieties Many varieties of stuffed paratha exist. The most common is aloo paratha, with a spiced potato filling. Aloo paratha uses ingredients such as coriander leaf and green chilli and spices such as amchoor and garam masala, and its proportion of dough to filling may vary. Along with aloo paratha, the stuffed parathas common in Punjabi cuisine are gobhi paratha, with cauliflower, and mooli paratha, with radish. Keema paratha uses keema (minced meat), such as lamb, while methi paratha uses fenugreek leaves. Other common fillings include peas (matar), onions, spinach, and paneer. Aloo palak paratha contains both potatoes and spinach. Dal paratha is stuffed with cooked dal such as mung beans. Pudina paratha uses mint. Sweet parathas include (jaggery paratha).
Anda paratha contains beaten eggs; the paratha may simply be coated in eggs, or it may have a filling of eggs, onions, chilli, coriander seed, and ginger added during frying. Anda paratha is a common Punjabi breakfast. Among the Sunni Bohras of Gujarat, egg paratha, known as , is a festive food.
In Punjabi cuisine, stuffed parathas are often prepared from leftovers. For example, paratha filled with leftover rice dishes is known as . Bathua paratha has dough mixed with the boiled leaf vegetable bathua and green chilli. This is eaten as breakfast in winter in North India. Paratha stuffed with besan (chickpea flour) is known as birahi. A type of paratha from Chhattisgarh uses a dough with wheat flour, rice flour, and leaf vegetables. Khoa (milk solids) may also be a paratha filling. Modern variations of paratha use ingredients such as cheese, mushrooms, or soya, and meat fillings are used for some fusion versions of paratha.
Regional variants
The version eaten in the South Indian cuisines of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu is like a chapati made of maida. South Indian variations called Malabar parotta and Ceylon parotta resemble lachha paratha. Malabar parotta, from the cuisine of Kerala, has layers formed by kneading oil into the dough. Another preparation from Kerala is kothu parotta, a mixture of chopped parotta with other ingredients. Veechu parotta is a square-shaped parotta eaten in Tamil Nadu. Ceylon parotta is similar to this, with the addition of a minced meat filling. Madurai, Tamil Nadu, has a variant called bun parotta, shaped like a bun. Bidar, Karnataka, is home to the Bidari paratha, distinguished from regular paratha by the addition of a small amount of semolina flour.
In Bengali cuisine, the typical paratha—or —is triangular and usually combines atta and maida. This is common among both Hindu and Muslim Bengalis. Circular parathas also exist in the region, with five or six layers. The Dhakai paratha is deep-fried and has many layers, with a hollow centre. Taking its name from Dhaka, Bangladesh, it is also found in Kolkata, India. Mughlai paratha, a dish from Kolkata, which is prepared by folding a paratha over a filling with beaten eggs and chopped onions, sometimes with minced meat. It is one of the more complex forms of stuffed paratha. Another Bengali version, petai porota (), is tossed and torn apart after cooking, resembling kothu parotta. It is a common street food meal, served with ghugni or aloo dum, and is eaten for breakfast. Vendors sell petai porota by weight.
Some regions of India serve unique forms of paratha. () is a variant in Awadhi cuisine, originating in Lucknow. It is made of white flour and a large amount of ghee, sometimes with sugar and saffron, and it is folded and rolled. A type of paratha in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar is called . Dulhan paratha, originating from Hyderabad, Pakistan, is named for its elaborate presentation, which is reminiscent of the ornate appearance of a bride ( in Urdu); this dish is known for its combination of flavorful ingredients.
Versions of paratha exist beyond the Indian subcontinent. Caribbean cuisine features parathas that are milk-based and crispy, known as buss-up-shut. In Trinidad and Tobago, this is classified as a roti, distinguished from other rotis by using more oil. The roti served in Suriname also evolved from paratha. The Malaysian variation, roti canai, is a type of South Indian parotta. The Burmese version, , may use whole-wheat dough with a filling of peas, served with fried onions on top. It is eaten using chopsticks. Other Burmese versions include a banana-stuffed version and a pigeon pea-stuffed version known as . The Afghan version, known as , is leavened and cooked on a griddle. In Sri Lankan cuisine, paratha is known as .
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