Turnip Wheat Bran Paratha

Whole wheat is good for you, we all know that…but if you would like to maximize that goodness? Thats exactly what this recipe is about. I was browsing through the bulk foods aisle this week when I went grocery shopping and found wheat bran in one of the bins. I was so excited that I bought some. The bulk food aisle is probably your best friend, if you would like to try something knew. You control how much you buy and mostly even if you buy bulk, it ends up being cheaper than the packaged version. Any way, I added the wheat bran I bought to the regular chapati atta which in itself has whole wheat flour and has the bran included in it. But, this is a way to add extra fiber in your diet. If you would like to know what bran is, and why it is deemed so healthy, read my post here.

Wheat bran, is not a very palatable ingredient is what most people think, its because of the cardboard like texture of some cereals in which they have tasted it. Bran absorbs a lot of moisture and when it is moist, it yields a tender flaky texture. I have achieved that by the addition of sour cream and pureed turnips in this paratha. Feel free to substitute yogurt and any kind of pureed vegetable.

Ingredients:

4 medium turnips, boiled and mashed

1/4 cup sour cream/ yogurt

2 cups whole wheat chapati flour

1 cup wheat bran

1 tsp salt

1 tsp olive oil

Method:

Mix together the flour, wheat bran and salt. Add the sour cream and incorporate it in the dough until it resembles small pea sized granules. Add the turnip puree and knead until the dough comes together. Add water if necessary. I didn’t need any water as the moisture from the turnips was plenty enough. If needed you may use the water that you cooked the turnips in. Don’t discard that water. When you get a soft and pliable dough, smear it with the olive oil, cover and let the dough rest for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Chilling the dough helps develop the gluten, and will help you get a tender paratha. It aids the bran absorb moisture in this case.

Remove the chilled dough after 30 minutes or longer(it can be kept for a couple of days in the fridge) and divide it into ping pong sized balls. Roll the dough into thin parathas. Cook on both sides on a hot griddle. Stack cooked parathas in foil lined dish or in a hot pack. Serve hot with curry of choice. I served mine with a Mushroom paneer peanut butter masala(recipe coming soon).

Verdict: The paratha was super tender and flaky, thanks to the sour cream and the turnip. The flavor from the turnip was not very obvious, there was a very mild cabbage like smell/taste which was probably because I knew it was there. My husband had no clue. You could see and taste the bran but not in a bad way. It added a chewy bite but still was very tasty. Much better than bran cereal for breakfast don’t you think?

Speaking of breakfast, sending this to ‘WWC – Whole Wheat for Breakfast’ event.