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It is a continuation of my last post on Mutton Rezala. Infact it is part of our Noboborsho / Poila Baisakh (Bengali New Year)Special Meal. Without this Lachha Paratha there is no other way to complement the Bengali Mutton Rezala. I was planning to make this paratha since I started cooking. But I always used to think it must be a tough job cause we had never seen this paratha at our home. I only had them in restaurants. But recently when I was reading an article on paratha or Indian Flat Bread I again got attracted to this Lachha Paratha and found out it’s not actually that tough job. It is more like tricky and the real secret is to apply the right technique.
Laccha paratha is an unique paratha which can be made of both wheat flour and all-purpose flour. It is layered flat bread which is crispy and flaky. The layers are visible from outside. Lachha Paratha looks more like ‘pin wheel cookie’. Once you start eating this paratha it will melt in your mouth and you will feel that the layers are coming off one by another. Most importantly traditionally it is fried only with ghee. But these days any kind of cooking oil is used. Sometimes oil is mixed with little amount of ghee.
Here is the recipe of Lachha Paratha or Crispy Flaky Layered Indian Flat Bread.
Preparation Time: 30 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Resting time: 180 mins
Total Time: 240 mins
Yield: 6 parathas
Ingredients:
All-purpose flour: 2 cup + ½ cup (for dusting)
Sugar: 2 tsp
Salt: 1 tsp
Egg: 1
Water: 1 cup
Ghee (clarified butter): 1 cup Or Melted Butter: 1 cup
Preparation:
Sieve flour in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle and crack the egg in it.
Beat the egg with a fork.
Mix the egg with the flour in light hand. It will look like crumbles.
Pour 2 tbsp of ghee in the middle of flour.
Add sugar and salt and mix with your fingers.
Pour little water in the middle and rub in your palms.
Add more water and knead to make soft pliable dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and allow it to rest for 1 hr. or at-least 30 mins. I kept for 3 hrs.
After the resting period remove the cloth. By this time the volume of the dough will be increased and texture will be smoother. Take out 6 equal portions out of the dough.
Place flour on a flat bottomed dish. Dip one dough ball at a time in the flour and roll out to a large roti or flat layer.
Now dip one side of the roti in the flour. Place it back to the rolling board floured side down. Apply some ghee on the opposite side with brush.
Now dip the greased side in the flour and place it back on the rolling board.
Here starts the tricky part. Fold the roti just like a fan till you reach the end.
It will look like a layered rope. Now gently hold two opposite ends of the rope
Now tap the dough-rope on the kitchen counter or rolling board. The dough will be stretched bit by bit automatically. It’s completely all right if the rope get a bit torn in middle or edges. Press the torn pieces back together to stick them back.
When the rope is long enough to handle or is tearing quite frequently place the rope on the kitchen counter or rolling board. Gently start rolling the rope just like a snail and at the end it will look like a pin wheel cookie dough. Roll until you reach the opposite end. Press the end gently in the middle just like the below image.
Do the same with rest of the dough. Place the pin wheel shaped dough balls in a previously floured flat palate or pan. Don’t overlap the dough balls and if you have to make sure you place a parchment paper in between two layers. Cover the pan/palate with cling film or foil tightly. Keep it in the refrigerator for 3 hrs. I kept them over night which is around 8 hrs.
Remove the pan from refrigerator and bring them to room temperature. Now take one ball at a time and roll them on dusted rolling board with a rolling pin.
Follow the same with rest of the dough.
Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a pan. When the pan is mildly hot add the paratha to the pan and fry on medium heat. The temperature is very important here. As the paratha has layers it will take longer time to cook than usual roti or paratha. So don’t be impatient to increase the flame. It will only make the outer layer crispy and will leave with inner layers raw.
Cook for 1-2 mins and flip. Add another tbsp of ghee on the edges and continue frying for another 2-3 mins or until paratha is golden brown in color and real flaky in texture. Use additional ghee if required. Repeat the same with rest of the paratha.
Lachha Paratha or Crispy Flaky Layered Indian Flat Bread tastes best when served hot. Serve this special paratha with any chicken (i.e. Chicken Do Pyaza) or mutton or veg (i.e. spicy Aloo Dum) curry. I served it with Mutton Rezala.
Enjoy !!!
awesome recipe
What's ghee butter? Can I use any butter?
Ghee is a type of clarified butter which is used in Indian, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Nepali and Sri Lankan cuisine. You can use any regular butter or oil (without any flavor) as substitute.
I tried to make this exactly how you explained it but the dough was not smooth like in your picture.
If your dough is not smooth enough then either you dint knead it well (it requires little bit pressure from your palm) or you dint allow it to rest properly. Otherwise the dough should come out very smooth and soft.