Gobi Paratha (Cauliflower Paratha)

Gobi Paratha are North Indian whole wheat flatbreads with a spiced cauliflower stuffing. Gobi is the Hindi word for cauliflower and Parathas are unleavened flatbreads. These Gobi Paratha make for an amazing weekend breakfast, brunch or an anytime meal. Served with raita, chutney or pickle, they make a healthy and nutritious meal.

Gobi Paratha are a winter staple in the North Indian homes. Traditionally, grated uncooked/raw cauliflower is mixed with spices, herbs and salt for a delicious and crunchy filling. This is later stuffed into the wheat flour dough and rolled.

Cauliflower is minimally steam cooked when the parathas are toasted, keeping them undercooked and crunchy.

My recipe deviates from the traditional method and roasts the grated cauliflower. This step not only enhances the flavor but also reduces the moisture in the gratings, keeping them crunchy.

These Gobi Paratha are easy to make and once you try them I’m sure you will love these for their flavor, texture & taste.

I have shown roasting gobi in the oven, but you can easily make it on the stovetop too in a large wide steel pan. But if you are making a larger batch, using your oven to roast the cauliflower is easier, hands-free and saves plenty of time.

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How to Make Gobi Paratha (Step by step photos)

Preparation

1. Make sure your cauliflower is not cold, from the refrigerator. Rinse the whole cauliflower, upside down under running water. Break down the florets. Optional – If you want you may add them to a bowl of salted warm water (not hot) & rest for 2 to 3 mins. This step brings out the worms from inside, if any. Drain and rinse again. Drain them to a colander, and shake off gently to remove any excess water.

2. Spread them on a few kitchen tissues or cloth to air dry for a while, until no moisture remains on the surface. You will need 450 g (1 lb.) florets. If you more or less than this, adjust the spices as needed.

3. Add them to a food processor chute, with a medium grater (not fine) attachment. Grate the cauliflower florets to rice. If you want you may also do it using a hand held grater (medium grater, not fine)

4. You should have about 4½ cups grated cauliflower. Optional – I have not done it here. If you think your cauliflower has too much moisture, spread it over a few kitchen tissues/clean cloth and press down gently to remove excess moisture.

5. Stovetop – Roast this (without oil) in a large wide pan (not kadai/wok) on a medium high heat for 2 to 3 mins, until slightly tender, yet crunchy. It should not become mushy.

Oven – Preheat the oven to 430F / 220 C for 15 mins. Spread the cauliflower rice/ gratings in 2 trays and bake for 10 mins. Give a stir and bake for another 10 mins or as required. It should be still crunchy and not too soft. Mine is done by 25 mins. The bottom tray gets roasted faster and cauliflower begins to brown faster so if required you may remove it early. It is fine even if the gobi turns soft but not mushy.

6. Cool the cauliflower completely while you make the dough.

7. Meanwhile add 2 cups wheat flour/atta to a mixing bowl or the same food processor and pour half cup water and 1 teaspoon oil if you want.

8. Knead to a soft and non-sticky dough, adding more water as required. I use another ¼ cup water. Cover and rest aside until the filling is ready.

Make the Stuffing

9. To spice the cauliflower you will need:

• ¾ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (adjust to taste)
• ¾ to 1 teaspoon garam masala
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric (optional)
• ¾ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
• ¼ teaspoon dried ginger powder (ground ginger, optional if using chaat masala)
• ½ to ¾ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
• 1 teaspoon chaat masala or ½ to ¾ teaspoon amchur (dried mango powder)
• ¼ teaspoon ajwain/ carom seeds (crushed slightly)
• ½ tablespoon kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
• 1 to 2 green chilies chopped (optional, leave out for kids)
• 3 to 4 tablespoons coriander leaves (fine chopped)

10. Add the roasted cauliflower along with the above mentioned ingredients. Mix well and taste test to adjust salt. Roughly divide to 8 portions in the bowl. It makes about 2 cups, so I fill about ¼ cup in each paratha. If you are a beginner, start with lesser amounts.

11. Divide the dough to 8 portions. Roll them to smooth balls and keep them covered.

Roll & Fry the Gobi Paratha

12. Lightly flour the rolling area/board. Take a dough ball and dip it in the flour. Dust off the excess by shaking it gently. Press down and flatten, roll to a 4 inch disc or alternately spread the dough ball to shape like a cup, as seen in the picture below.

13. Fill 3 to 4 tbsp cauliflower mixture in the center.

14. Press down the filling with your right thumb so it goes in. As you do this, the dough from the sides comes up.

15. Bring the edges closer and seal the paratha well.

16. Gently flatten with your fingers to spread the filling evenly.

17. Dust the rolling area, sprinkle little flour on the filled disc.

18. Roll this to a 6 to 7 inch paratha. It should not be too thin or too thick. This way roll 6 gobi parathas and begin to cook them while you multi task to make the rest.

19. Heat a tawa/ skillet until hot on a medium flame. Dust off the excess flour from the paratha and place it on the hot tawa.

20. Let cook on a medium high heat, until you begin to see bubbles. Turn them to the other side and let cook. Spread ghee all over the parathas and turn them to the other side.

21. Press down with the spatula so they puff up. Cook them to and fro until you see golden spots on both the sides and across the edges. It is important to cook the parathas on the edges else they will be undercooked. Remove to a serving plate or stack them. If required wipe clean the tawa with a tissue before frying the next paratha.

Serve gobi paratha with pickle, chutney or yogurt.

Pro Tips

• Leaving the cauliflower at room temperature ahead, helps in cutting down the excess moisture. Refrigerated cauliflower that is cold often releases some juices after grating. This can cause the gobi to soften too quickly while roasting.
• It is not essential to keep the gobi crunchy, you can also cook it till soft if you want and it tastes good. But it is very important to keep the cauliflower filling dry. Very moist and soggy cauliflower mixture will let out more moisture and the parathas won’t taste good. If this happens simply serve it as a side with plain parathas.
• If you are using more than 2 cups of grated gobi, it is essential to roast the gobi in batches. Overcrowding can soften it too quickly.
• Avoid cooking these parathas on a low heat. Using too little filling or making them too thin can make them hard.

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