Healthy Methi Paratha | Punjabi Methi ke Parathe

Methi paratha is a healthy tasty whole wheat flatbread made with fenugreek leaves. These methi ke parathe are packed with flavor and nutrition. Plus they are a great healthier alternative to plain Paratha. Cook this methi paratha recipe in 30 minutes (if you have prepped methi leaves) and serve with curd, pickles, and curries!

About This Methi Paratha

Methi paratha are whole some flatbreads from unleavened whole wheat dough featuring fenugreek leaves, herbs and spices. These healthy flatbreads are also known as “methi ke parathe” or “methi roti”.

Crispy and soft, these parathas have a lovely fragrant aroma and a light bitterness of the fenugreek leaves. They are a quick and healthy breakfast or side that can be eaten with any Indian curry or sabzi.

Fenugreek a.k.a methi leaves are easily found in India and I often end up making lots of dishes using it. When living in Bangalore, we would grow fenugreek leaves in our balcony.

I would often add the fenugreek micro greens to salads and also make a variety of methi recipes from the fully grown harvested leaves. If you have a balcony, terrace garden or a herb garden, then try growing fenugreek.

Another mouth-watering addition to this paratha is garlic. The fenugreek and garlic complement each other so well and both awesome flavors come through when eating the paratha.

In North India, methi ke parathe are made for breakfast or packed in a tiffin box. We like to eat these at any time of the day. So I make them for breakfast, lunch, or at times for dinner.

I usually accompany these methi roti with a dry veggie curry, sweetened curd, or pickle. Some people like to have methi ka paratha with plain curd, mango pickle, lemon pickle, or green chili pickle. It is completely up to you!

2 Ways To Reduce Bitterness in Methi

Methi leaves have a fragrant flavor with a faint bitter taste. The bitterness is not overwhelming to your palate. It is a fragrant light bitterness that you may like if you have not grown up eating fenugreek.

Sometimes the fenugreek leaves can be highly bitter. Follow either of the two methods listed below to reduce the bitterness in the leaves.

1. Mix some salt with the rinsed fenugreek leaves. Set aside for 15 to 20 minutes. Rinse the leaves a few times and drain the water.
2. Blanch the methi leaves in boiling salted water for about a minute. Drain, rinse with fresh water, and use.

How to Make Methi Paratha

Prepping Methi Leaves

Before you begin making methi paratha recipe, you need to prep the leaves. So lets begin.

1. If you buy the fenugreek from the market, first pluck about 1 cup of methi leaves. Then in a bowl, soak the plucked leaves with enough water, 1 tablespoon vinegar and ½ teaspoon baking soda for about 3 to 4 minutes. Gently mix. The baking soda and vinegar gets rid of pesticides from the leaves.

2. Drain this water using a colander.

3. Soak the leaves again in fresh clean water in a bowl for a couple of minutes. Later move the methi leaves gently in the water. This will remove any soil or mud particles that are on the stems or leaves.

Drain the water. You can repeat this process once or twice or opt to thoroughly rinse the leaves under running water for a few times. Finally, drain all the water.

4. Place the leaves on a kitchen towel and spread them evenly on it for a few minutes or you can proceed to chopping them.

Another method is to use a wired rack and place the leaves on it. Keep a tray below the wired rack to collect any water droplets. Finely chop the leaves and set aside.

Kneading Dough

In a bowl add 2 cups of whole wheat flour and ½ teaspoon salt or as required. Add the chopped fenugreek leaves, ½ to 1 teaspoon chopped green chilies (1 to 2 green chillies), 1.5 teaspoons of finely chopped garlic and 2 teaspoons oil.

Use a stand-mixer for kneading the dough if you have it.

2. Pour ⅓ cup of water bit by bit. Do not add all the water at once. Add a portion of water as you go on working on the dough. The fenugreek leaves will release a good amount of water, so take a note of this while kneading.

Keep in mind that the water proportion will vary with the water content in the fenugreek leaves and the type, variety of wheat flour.

3. First mix and then start to knead the dough. Add water as needed when you go about kneading the dough.

4. Knead the mixture into a smooth, soft and pliable dough. Add more water if required while kneading.

TIP 1: If the dough feels sticky, add a few tablespoons of whole wheat flour and knead again.

TIP 2: If the dough is dry or dense, add a couple of tablespoons of water and continue to knead.

Rolling Dough

5. Pinch medium-sized portions from the dough. Roll the dough between your palms to make a neat round ball of dough.

6. Lightly flatten the dough ball and keep it on the rolling board. Lightly dust the dough ball and the rolling board with some flour. Start rolling the paratha with a rolling pin.

7. Roll the dough into medium-sized roti or circles having about 7 to 8 inches diameter, sprinkling flour as needed.

For a flaky, crispy layered paratha, spread ghee/oil all over and fold twice into a triangle shape. Then roll into a triangular shaped paratha dusting flour lightly.

The layering method with ghee or oil adds more fat in your parathas, but if you want a simple lighter version, then roll them plain with brushing any fat on the dough as I have done.

Roasting Methi ka Paratha

8. Place the paratha on a hot skillet or tawa. Keep the heat to medium-high or high before you place the paratha on it. The tawa has to hot before you start making the paratha.

TIP: To check the hotness of the skillet, sprinkle a pinch of flour on it. If the flour browns in a few seconds, the skillet is hot enough for roasting paratha. Wipe this roasted flour on the skillet with a kitchen napkin before placing the paratha.

9. When one side is a bit cooked or about ¼ cooked, flip it. You will see some air pockets beginning to form on the paratha.

10. Spread oil or ghee (clarified butter) on this side that is facing you. Use any neutral oil or peanut oil for roasting.

11. Flip again and you should see some brown or golden spots on the paratha. Spread ghee on this side which has the golden spots.

12. Flip again a couple of times until the methi paratha is evenly cooked and has golden spots or blisters. Press the edges with a spatula so that they get cooked well.

While making the second paratha don’t forget to wipe the skillet with a kitchen napkin if there is any excess whole wheat flour on it.

Roll the remaining dough balls and roast all methi parathas this way on a hot skillet or tawa.

Serving Suggestions

Methi paratha is best served hot. However, it can be served warm or at room temperature. You can also stack them in a roti basket or casserole box/container.

Easily enjoy for breakfast, lunch, or at dinner. My favorite things to serve with methi ka paratha are vegetable curries, sugar-sweetened yogurt, or pickles.

Some people like to have these methi roti with plain Curd (yogurt), Mango Pickle, Lemon Pickle, Red Chilli Pickle, Garlic Pickle or Green Chili Pickle. It all depends on your preference!

They can also be wrapped in foil and packed in lunch boxes or for short journeys. Methi ke parathe make a good tiffin box snack and stay soft when packed in a foil.

Expert Tips for Methi Ke Parathe

• Substituting methi leaves: If you do not get methi leaves, then substitute spinach (palak) or amaranth (chaulai – green or red leaves). The taste will be different and the parathas won’t have the unique methi flavor, but nevertheless, they will be healthy and nutritious.
• Swapping with dried fenugreek leaves: Kasuri methi or dried fenugreek leaves are a great option for fresh ones. I often use kasuri methi when I do not have fresh fenugreek leaves to make these methi roti. Include 2 to 3 tablespoons of kasuri methi to make your methi paratha recipe.
• Roasting tips: Ensure that your skillet or tawa is hot. Roast parathas on medium-high to high heat. Roast paratha on low heat would make them undercooked or chewy and hard. A very high heat would cause the parathas to burn. Regulate the heat as needed when roasting.
• Heat: If you like spicy food then feel free to add more chilies to this methi paratha recipe. Conversely, if you are not too fond of chilies then you can add less.
• Add-ins: Bring more flavors in your methi paratha recipe by including finely chopped onions, minced ginger or ginger-garlic paste. Opt to add ground spices like turmeric powder, garam masala powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder to make a spiced flavorsome methi roti.

FAQs

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This methi paratha recipe post from blog archives (Jan 2013) has been republished and updated on 19 May 2021.