KOTHU PARATHA, how to make minced flat breads tossed in gravy and veggies

What is Kothu Paratha?? It is often called Kothu Parotta also.
It is a Virudhunagar ( a south indian town )  and Srilankan special, wherein the parathas,  along with all the ingredients, and the special gravy called Salna, are thrown into a hot tava with lot of oil, and in front of our eyes, they are all minced together. This can be well named the South Indian Street Food!!
I must make a special mention of the fact that this signature recipe is a  Very Special Family Friend's recipe. He is a great cook, a foodie, an amazing chef and he was extremely kind enough to share this secret recipe of his with me.
 My special thanks to him, and I dedicate this recipe to him.
With my daughter, tried this at home...and yahoo!!!! it was so good.....a slightly modified version....
Please have a look at my Instagram picture also...www.instagram.com/ malpatskitchen

Ingredients

Store bought uncooked malabar or ceylon parathas - 15

For roasting and grinding 

Jeera/cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Saunf/fennel seeds - 1 tsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Ginger - a small piece, chopped

Garlic - 4-5 pods

Onion - 1, chopped

Tomatoes - 4, chopped

Fresh grated coconut - 3 tbsps

Coriander leaves/cilantro - a handful

Oil - 2-3 tsps

For seasoning

Fennel/saunf - 1 tsp

Cinnamon - 4-5 broken bits

Cardamom - 4

Cloves - 4

Few curry leaves

Green chillies - 2, slit

Veggies

Onion - 2, chopped lengthwise

Green bell pepper - 1

Red bell pepper - 1

Tomatoes - 3

Big carrots - 3-4, cut lengthwise

Spices

Chilli powder - 11/2 tsps

Biriyani masala powder - 2-3 tsps

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Oil - 3-4 tbsps

Recipe Cuisine:  South Indian/Srilankan; Category: Lunch/dinner

Prep time: 20 mts; Cooking time: 45 mts

Serves 6-8

All lined up for roasting and grinding

Heat a large pan, add oil, then add jeera, saunf and coriander seeds, roast  for 2 minutes

then add ginger and garlic pieces

turmeric powder added, along with chopped onions.

After allowing the onions to become translucent, add the chopped tomatoes

Let the tomatoes become mushy, then add the grated coconut, mix well and let it cool down

Load the roasted ingredients into a blender jar, add the coriander leaves too

and grind to a smooth paste

In the mean time, cook the parathas

both sides, golden

Keep them aside, allow them to cool down a bit

then, cut them into even sized tiny bits

Heat oil in a pan, add the above mentioned ingredients for seasoning

Now, add the slit green chillies and onions

Fennel also added

Now the bell peppers, and all sauteed well on medium flames

Chilli and biriyani masala powders added

Now, chopped tomatoes added, and sauteed till mushy

Some more curry leaves added 

all mixed and sauteed well

The half cooked carrot pieces added

Now, the ground masala with salt to taste added, and allowed to simmer for 10 minutes on slow flames.

The simmered gravy with lot of vegetables

Toss in the cut paratha pieces and mix well, switch off.

Garnish with cilantro/coriander leaves.

Serve this delicious, spicy and aromatic  Kothu paratha with onion raita.

This post first appeared in www.malpatskitchen.com

Categories: Family contributions, Rotis & Stuffed Parathas