Broccoli and Aloo Lifafa Paratha is an Indian stuffed bread recipe in which cooked broccoli and potato is stuffed inside a paratha which is folded like an envelope i.e. lifafa in Hindi. After stuffing the lifafas we shallow fry them on a tava with ghee or clarified butter.

Broccoli Aloo Paratha recipe is one of the healthiest as it contains the health benefits of superfood broccoli, potato, and whole wheat flour. Apart from this, broccoli helps us to lower cholesterol in the body. It also helps to detoxify our body and helps to improve the much-needed vitamin D. Similarly, potatoes apart from containing carbohydrates, contain phytonutrients which promotes health. They are rich in vitamin C which prevents cell damage. They promote brain health as they are rich in Vitamin B6. Eating potatoes in a controlled way can help us maintain health in a number of ways.

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What is lifafa paratha?

A paratha is an Indian flat bread made with whole wheat flour and literally means layers of cooked dough. They may be spiced or stuffed with vegetables, paneer like in paneer paratha or meat like chicken, egg, or prawns.

Now a lifafa paratha is a paratha shaped as an envelope. In Hindi, lifafa means envelop and hence the name – lifafa paratha. This envelope shaped paratha may or may not be stuffed.

You might be interested in some more paratha recipes:

Cabbage and dal stuffed paratha
Cauliflower and methi stuffed paratha
Stuffed aloo paratha

Let us see the ingredients that go in making aloo broccoli paratha:

Flour: Use whole wheat flour like Vivatta whole wheat flour in this stuffed paratha recipe.
Vegetables: Vegetables like broccoli and potato are used in this lifafa paratha recipe. Coriander leaves are also added while preparing the stuffing.
Spices: Spices like cumin seeds, garam masala and black pepper powder are used in preparing the broccoli potato stuffing.
Lemon juice: Juice from 1 lemon is added while preparing the stuffing to enhance taste.
Ghee: Ghee or clarified butter is used for shallow frying the broccoli paratha with aloo stuffing.
Cornflour: Cornflour slurry is used for sealing the sides during the lifafa paratha making before shallow frying.

How to make broccoli paratha with potato in a lifafa?

First make the dough ready by mixing the whole wheat flour with water, oil, and salt. Remember that while adding water, add little at a time and keep on mixing with your fingers till dough of semi-soft consistency is reached. Cover and keep the dough aside for 30 minutes. When the dough is resting, make the stuffing ready.

Let us prepare the stuffing:

Grate or mash the boiled potatoes. Keep aside.
Add broccoli to boiling water and boil it until soft. On cooling, discard the water and using a masher mash it.
In a mixing bowl, add the grated boiled potato, mashed broccoli, cumin seeds, garam masala, black pepper powder, chopped coriander leaves and salt. Mix everything nicely. Add lemon juice and again mix well. Keep it aside.
Make the slurry ready by mixing the cornflour and water in a small bowl or katori.

Now let us start making the lifafa parathas:

Make 6 small balls of equal size from the dough. The size of the ball is normally bigger than a table tennis ball and smaller than a tennis ball.
Spread some dry flour on the rolling board and flatten the ball into a round shape using a rolling pin, just like how we flatten dough for making a roti.
Heat a tava/ griddle and semi-cook the flattened roti on both sides.
After fine bubbles start appearing on the roti, remove it from the tava and spread one fistful of stuffing right at the centre and spread it around leaving ¾ inches from the sides.
Apply the slurry made from cornflour at the edges where the stuffing is not present.

Making of lifafa paratha:

Fold the two opposite sides first. Start with one side and bring it to the centre. Then bring the opposite side and slightly overlap the first folded side. Then fold the remaining two opposite sides. The stuffing should be completely sealed. After folding, it looks just like an envelope.
Fry the envelope paratha:
Heat the tava, spread 1 tablespoon ghee and cook the stuffed lifafa on both sides till they appear golden brown.

Here are some more recipes using broccoli:

Having this stuffed broccoli and potato paratha for breakfast gives us enough energy and nutrition to kick start our day. You can also serve this broccoli aloo recipe for evening snacks or dinner with pudina chutney or vegetable raita as it makes a wholesome meal. Since it looks very attractive, kids love it. You can pack it in the lunch/snack box. Delight your guests by serving these broccoli and aloo lifafa parathas as they are sure to win their hearts.

My daughter loved this recipe and she herself told me to pack it in her tiffin so that she can show it to her friends that she can eat a envelope paratha 🙂 After eating these lifafa parathas, hubby got home even more broccoli and kept in the fridge hinting to make more of these aloo parathas with broccoli.

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