Want to make delicious besan parathas? Here's all you need to know - 24 Mantra Organic

Besan, also known as gram flour, is made from a type of ground chickpea called the gram and is yellow in colour [1]. It has extensive culinary uses in countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, and India, for making delicious recipes, including besan paratha, which is tasty flatbread.

Besan paratha is prepared by making a dough of besan flour by mixing besan, whole wheat flour, and several zesty spices. Since besan is gluten-free, it is usually mixed with wheat flour to prepare the dough. However, if you have a gluten allergy, then use mashed boiled potatoes instead of wheat flour.

Add spices along with chopped onions and green chillies into the dough. You can have besan paratha with tangy aloo tamatar sabzi, gobi aloo, or with any vegetable of your choice.

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make the perfect paratha that you can have for breakfast or lunch.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup besan flour (gram flour)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1 inch of asafetida or hing
• ¼ cup finely chopped onion
• 1 finely chopped medium green chilli
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped coriander leaves (optional)
• Salt according to taste
• Water to make the dough
• Vegetable oil or clarified butter (ghee) to make the parathas

Method for making besan flour dough

To make the dough, follow the steps below:

• In a bowl, mix whole wheat and besan powder. If you want to make a gluten-free paratha, then mix mashed boiled potatoes with gram flour. Into the mixture, add chopped onions, coriander leaves, green chillies, salt, red chilli powder, and hing.
• Mix everything together.
• Slowly add little water by mixing the dough in a rotating motion. Mix all the ingredients until it becomes a lump and cleans the sides of the bowl.
• Knead the mixture for a few minutes until all the ingredients bind together to form the dough.
• If the dough appears to be sticky, then knead it a little more with hands greased with oil. Keep the dough aside by covering it for at least 30 minutes.

Method to prepare besan paratha:

• Preheat a flat pan, or tava (cast iron flat griddle), using medium heat.
• Grease the pan with a little oil or ghee.
• Set aside some extra flour to dust the paratha.
• Uncover the dough and knead it again for a minute with oily hands.
• Roughly divide the dough into ten equal parts.
• Use the plain flour to dust your hands, and take one portion of the dough to make a ball.
• Place the ball into dry flour and press flat. Dust it on both sides.
• Place the flat dough ball on a rolling board, and with the help of a rolling pin, create a 6” circle or as thin and big as you like.
• Dust with dry flour if the dough sticks on the rolling board.
• Once you’ve done rolling, place the paratha between your hands and pat it to remove excess dry flour.
• Place the paratha on the tava and let it cook for at least 30 seconds or until you see little bubbles start appearing. Flip the paratha and cook the other side for 30 seconds as well. If the paratha starts sticking to the pan, then that means the pan isn’t hot enough. If you see the paratha is too dark or burnt, then it means the pan is too hot. Therefore, ensure the heat is properly adjusted.
• Once you flip the paratha, drizzle ½ teaspoon of oil and use a spatula to spread it evenly. Repeat the process on the other side and cook.
• While drizzling the oil, use the spatula to gently press down the paratha so that its sides are evenly cooked, and the paratha is crispy.
• Keep flipping the paratha a few times until both sides are light brown.
• Serve besan paratha hot.

There you have it, hot besan paratha ready to be served. Bon Appetit!

Try 24 Mantra Organic’s Besan flour and savour the taste of organic goodness.