Aloo paratha or potato roti is one of my favorite types of roti. This is a flat bread stuffed with seasoned mashed potatoes and it is absolutely delicious.
My mom made potato rotis or aloo parathas very often during my childhood. These thin, stuffed roti always glistened when fresh off the tawa. She kept the scallions whole but ground up the rest of her seasoning into paste with a mortar and pestle. These days I just use garlic and onion powder and the flavor is still same.
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Ingredients:
For this recipe you will need:
- All Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Instant or Rapid Rising Yeast
- Oil
- Potatoes
- Scallions (green onions)
- Wiri wiri peppers (or similar chilis)
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Geera (roasted ground cumin)
See recipe card below for exact measurements.
Frequently Asked Questions and Answers:
- Why do you add yeast to the roti dough? A little bit of yeast helps to stabilize the dough and make it a bit more stretchy than if you skipped it. However, if you already make a really soft and stretchy traditional roti dough you can skip the yeast.
- Why is my dough so sticky? For this recipe you need a really soft dough. If the dough it too sticky for you to work with, add a dusting of flour, but be careful not to add too much flour as this will make the dough too stiff
- My dough came out stiff what am I doing wrong? Sometimes the way we measure flour impacts the recipe. Here is a great article on How to measure flour accurately.
- What size of roti does this recipe make? This recipe makes 8, 10 inch (diameter) rotis, that are very thin. The initial dough ball will look tiny but trust me it will stretch to size when you add the potato filling.
- My filling is bursting out of the dough as I roll, how can I fix this? This is a common problem. It happens for two reasons, your dough was too stiff and did not stretch enough during rolling or you've over stuffed the roti. Resist the urge to over stuff these rotis or they will pop open during rolling. Also if it does pop open that's ok, you will still have really tasty rotis.
Step by Step Recipe Guide:
The dough is very critical to a soft pliable, easy to manage aloo paratha. In this recipe I add a little bit of self rising yeast to stabilize the dough. However, if you are pretty confident with your traditional roti dough, then you can skip the yeast.
Use warm water to make your dough (about 110°F). You can add the water all at once, or a little at a time.
Then gently knead together to form a soft dough. Once my dough comes together I damp my palm and gently rub water over the top to keep it from crusting while it rests.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it rest for 30 minutes. Then divide the dough into 8 (this recipe makes 8 10 inch rotis), and roll each piece into a smooth ball.
Making the Potato Filling
Peel and dice your potatoes.
Then cook until fork tender.
Crush your cooked potatoes until there are no lumps. I used a wire mesh strainer to push the cooked potatoes through and create easy lump free potatoes. You can also use a potato ricer.
Add your seasoning and aromatics to the crushed potatoes.
Then mix together well until the seasoning in well distributed with the potatoes.
Stuffing and sealing the aloo paratha dough
Flatten each of the 8 ball into a round disk then brush with oil
Then scoop about ¼ cup of filling into the oil brushed piece of dough
Then press the stuffing into the dough with your thumb, while pulling the dough over the stuffing.
Continue to use your thumb from the hand holding the dough to secure the top of the dough ball.
Then using your free hand to pull the dough around thee stuffing and secure.
Repeat until the stuffing in no longer visible and sealed in the dough.
Then pinch together the end of the dough to completely seal in the stuffing
Then gently rub the stuffed dough ball between your fingers to shape it back into a ball. You can also gently rub the dough on a flat surface to achieve the same.
Rolling out and cooking the aloo paratha /potato roti
First, dust your stuffed roti ball (loi) with some flour.
Then place on a flat floured surface and gently press to flatten
Next, add a dusting of flour to your rolling pin and gently roll the dough until it is a thin flat disk.
Roti should be about 10 inches in diameter and ⅛ of an inch thick.
Then cook your roti on a tawa or a flat cast iron skillet. Here I am using a flat cast iron skillet. You can find a similar one at my amazon affiliate link here. It is 10 inches in diameter and makes the perfect sized roti for my family.
Brush your aloo paratha / potato roti with oil on both sides and cook until it inflates into a ball.
Step by Step Aloo Paratha / Potato Roti Video Tutorial
Printable Recipe Card
Aloo Paratha (Potato Roti)
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups of flour plus ¼ cup for dusting
- ¾ cup warm water plus 2 tablespoon
- ¼ teaspoon Rapid Rising Yeast
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ lb white potatoes peeled and diced
- 4 cups water or enough water to cover the potatoes for cooking
- 3 scallions (green onions) thinly sliced
- 2 wiri wiri pepper seeds removed and finely chopped (sub scotch bonnet or other chili pepper)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder or granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon geera or roasted ground cumin
- about 1 teaspoon of salt or salt to taste
- ½ cup oil for cooking such avocado or sunflower oil (high smoke point, light oils)
Instructions
Make the roti dough
- Add flour, baking power, instant yeast and a pinch of salt to a large mixing bowl (or to the bowl of your stand mixer). Mix together well
- If using a mixing bowl make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add water, then mix together to form a soft dough
- If using your stand mixer add water to the flour mixture and mix with your dough hook or paddle attachment to form a smooth dough ball
- Once you've mixed the dry and wet ingredients together to form a dough ball, turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead by squeezing the dough (not folding and pushing like bread dough) for about 5 minutes until a the dough is soft. Dough may feel sticky but this is ok
- Then place dough in a clean bowl, cover with a damn paper towel or plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes
Make the Potato Filling
- While the dough is resting, prepare the potato filling by adding the peeled and diced potatoes to a medium sized sauce pan
- Cover potatoes with water (about 4-5 cups) and add ½ teaspoon of salt to the water
- Bring to a boil on high heat and continue to cook uncovered until potato is soft and can be easily crushed with a fork
- Remove potatoes from the heat and drain into a colander then rinse with cold water and set aside
- Crush the potatoes until really smooth. You can use a potato masher or a fork
- Then add the wiri wiri pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, geera and about ¼ teaspoon of salt to the crushed potatoes, mix together well and set aside
Stuff the roti dough
- Next start assembling the aloo parathas by turning the resting dough ball onto a floured surface and cutting it into 8 equal pieces, then kneading each dough ball into a smooth ball and set aside
- Then take one dough ball, and dust it with flour then using your rolling pin, roll it into a flat disk about 3 inches in diameter
- Brush one side of the dough disk with oil then add 3 tablespoons of potato filling to the center, then pinch the sides and seal in the potato filling (see above for step by step visuals)
- Continue with steps 16-18 until all of the pieces of dough are stuffed with potato
Cook the aloo parathas / potato roti
- To cook the aloo parathas / potato rotis bring a tawah or flat skillet up to temperature on medium heat
- While the tawah is warming up, roll out your stuffed dough ball on a floured surface until it is a think round disk about 10 inches in diameter. Ensuring to add flour to the dough ball and your rolling pin to prevent sticking
- Then place the rolled out roti on the hot skillet and cook for 30 seconds, then flip and brush with oil, cook for another 30 seconds, then flip and brush with more oil
- Wait for roti to inflate (about another 30 seconds) then remove from heat and placed in a clean kitchen towel
- Continue steps 21-25 until you've cooked all of the aloo parathas
- Cover cooked parathas with a kitchen towel to keep it warm
- Serve warm
Notes
- To crush the potatoes with zero lumps you can use a potato ricer or a wire mesh strainer. I love results I get when I push the potatoes through a wire mesh strainer. It requires a little effort but the results are worth it!
- When rolling out the rotis be careful and gentle, trying not to flip it too many times to prevent tearing
- When cooking the roti sometimes holes may appear where the scallions are press these spots with your spatula to create a seal and allow the roti to inflate
Antoinette Browne says
Making this recipe today will have to let you know how it comes out/love the video's it really helps me to stay on track once I am making the recipe. Love being here with you
Jewan says
I tried your Paratha recipe and it was wonderfully successful. My wife was amazed as well. Your recipe is concise and very well written and in my opinion the accompanying pictures are quite adequate.
Will be trying the Aloo Paratha soon.
Althea Brown says
Thank you so much. I’m sure you will love the aloo Paratha.
Lisa says
Looks delicious
Chelsea says
Where does it state how much water i have to use?
Althea Brown says
Hi Chelsea, on the recipe card it days 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons. Hope this helps.
Yvonne says
Hello! Do you know if I can use GF flour for this recipe? If not, is there something else you'd recommend?
Thank you for your delicious recipes!
Althea Brown says
Hi it's not a simple substitution. Sharing the gluten free version soon.
Gwen says
This recipe is PERFECT! I have made many attempts at roti, and each time, they came out "okay" but this recipe is the one. Thank you for your detailed instructions and actual measurements (getting measurements from my mother was not helpful, she makes her roti without measurements so I was never able to replicate hers!) Thank you, Althea!
Naudia says
I'm gonna try this recipe today and will let you know how it comes out! However, I think you forgot to add the green onions to your instructions. 😉