Sattu Paratha

Sattu Paratha

Sattu is prepared by dry roasting grains or grams, mainly barley or bengal gram (chana dal). The traditional way of preparing Sattu involves the use of an iron vessel in which the grains or grams are roasted in sand. Afterwards they are sieved and then ground to a fine flour.


Sattu is full of fibre, and essential nutrients like protein thus making this one a healthy dish that can be served for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well.


In Bihar it is commonly served cold as a savoury drink or as a porridge or soft dough. Sweet dishes combine sattu with fruit slices, sugar and milk. In savoury dishes sattu may be flavoured with green chilli, lemon juice and salt. It is a popular stuffing in parathas.


A paratha is a flatbread that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Parathas are one of the most popular unleavened flat breads in the northern part of the Indian Subcontinent and they are made by baking or cooking whole wheat dough on a tava, and finishing off with shallow frying. Parathas are thicker and more substantial than chapatis/rotis.


Sattu Paratha is a popular dish/bread in Bihar. It can be served as a breakfast, for lunch or dinner. It goes very well with yogurt/curd, butter and/or pickle.


I ate sattu paratha for the very first time at my in-laws place and I got the recipe of this from my sister-in-law. The ingredients for sattu paratha are: sattu, green chillies, ginger, garlic, onions, lemon juice, achaar masala (pickle masala), salt, ajwain (carom seeds) and some Indian spices. As achaar masala you can use mashed mango pickle or mashed red chilli (mirch) filling pickle or amchur powder (raw mango powder).


It's easy to make and delicious in taste.  I personally like it with yogurt/curd.

  Recipe Servings: 4
  Cooking time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

For Dough:


  • Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 3 cups
  • Salt - 1/2 tsp or as required
  • Ghee/Oil - 1/2 tbsp
  • Water - as required


For Stuffing:


  • Sattu (Roasted Chana Dal Powder) - 2 cups
  • Garlic (finely chopped) - 5 cloves
  • Ginger (finely chopped) - 1"
  • Dry Mango Powder - 1 tsp or Mango Achar Masala (Mango Pickle Masala) - 2 tsp or Red Chilli Pickle Masala - 2 tsp
  • Onions (finely chopped) - 2 medium
  • Green Chillies (finely chopped) - 2-3
  • Lime Juice - 2 tsp
  • Ajwain (Carom Seeds) - 1/2 tsp
  • Salt - to taste
  • Mustard Oil/Oil - 2 tsp
  • Some Water


For Parathas:


  • Whole Wheat Flour/Atta (while rolling paratha) - as required
  • Oil/Ghee (to roast/cook parathas) - as required

Preparation

  • To begin making the Sattu Paratha, first make the dough.


  • For the dough, take 3 cups of whole wheat flour in a big bowl. Add salt and oil/ghee to it. Mix it well.


  • Slowly add water to it and knead it into a soft and smooth dough with your hands.


  • If the dough becomes too sticky add some whole wheat flour and knead again. If it looks dry and crumbly, add some water and knead it well.


  • Cover the dough with a wet cloth and let it rest for 10 - 15 minutes.


  • For Sattu paratha stuffing, take a pan and heat mustard oil/oil in it on a medium flame.


  • Once oil gets hot, add ajwain (carom seeds), finely chopped green chillies and finely chopped ginger in it. Let it sauté for a minute and stir in between.


  • Now add finely chopped garlic and onions into it and sauté it till the onions gets translucent. Stir in between.


  • Now add sattu, 1 tsp dry mango powder or 2 tsp of mango achaar masala (mango pickle masala) or 2 tsp of red chilli pickle masala and mix well.


  • Now add lime juice and salt to taste. You already added salt in the dough so add salt accordingly in the stuffing. Mix well.


  • Add some water into the stuffing so that it will stick together and will not be too dry. Add water accordingly.


  • Mix it well and switch off the flame. Let it cool at the room temperature.


  • Now stuffing is ready to be used in sattu paratha. Divide the stuffing for 8 parathas.


  • Take some dry wheat flour in a plate. Pinch the dough and take a big lemon sized dough. Give it a round shape and press it between your palms to make a dough pattie.

 

  • Take a dough pattie and coat it with dry wheat flour. With the help of rolling pin, roll it into a 3 inch diameter circle/disc.

 

  • Put some sattu stuffing on the centre of the rolled dough. Bring the edges together and join them in the centre.


  • Just tap the centre and it would look like a neat stuffed ball.


  • Coat it with the dry wheat flour. Roll it into a 6-7 inch diameter circle/disc. Use the dry flour while rolling as is required.

 

  • Heat tava or a pan on a high flame. Once its hot place already rolled sattu paratha onto it and reduce the flame to medium.

 

  • When you see bubbles forming on the top, flip it over to the other side and apply some oil or ghee on it. After a minute or so flip it again and apply oil or ghee on the other side also.

 

  • Cook both the sides of the parathas well until some brown spots appear. Paratha is ready. Now follow the same procedure and make the rest of the parathas.

 

  • They are ready to serve.

 

  • Serve the hot sattu parathas with butter, pickle or yogurt/curd.