Plain Paratha (Tikona)
سادہ پراٹھا (تکونا)
The plain triangle paratha is the bread most Pakistani families eat for breakfast, with an egg, khageena or just a cup of chai. It is made from the same dough as roti, but folded twice with into a triangle, which traps thin layers of fat that turn flaky on the . Fold neatly, roll gently so the layers are not pressed together, and cook on medium heat so it crisps all the way through.
- ⏱ Total: 1 hr
- Prep: 40 min
- Cook: 20 min
- Medium
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Mix the , salt and 1 tbsp ghee in a bowl, rubbing the ghee in with your fingers. Add the water little by little and knead for 6–8 minutes into a soft, smooth dough, slightly firmer than roti dough. Cover and rest for 20–30 minutes.
Divide the dough into 4 equal . Dust one with flour and roll it into a thin circle about 15 cm across. Spread 1 tsp ghee over the surface and sprinkle with a pinch of dry flour.
Fold the circle in half to make a semicircle. Spread a little more ghee and a pinch of flour on top, then fold it in half again to make a triangle. Press the edges lightly.
Dust the triangle with flour and roll it out gently, keeping the triangle shape, until each side is about 18–20 cm and it is roughly 3 mm thick. Roll from the centre outwards so the layers stay separate.
Heat a over medium heat. Lay the paratha on it and cook for about 1 minute, until the top looks dry and the underside has pale brown spots. Flip it.
Spread 1–2 tsp ghee over the top, flip, and press around the edges with a spatula. Spread ghee on the second side and flip again. Keep turning and pressing for 2–3 minutes, until both sides are crisp and golden and the layers puff slightly.
Take the paratha off the tawa and, while hot, scrunch it lightly between your palms to open up the layers. Serve straight away with chai, eggs, khageena or yogurt and achar.
Kitchen notes
The pinch of dry flour on the ghee keeps the layers from sticking back together, which is what makes the paratha flaky.
Keep the heat at medium. On high heat the outside browns while the inner layers stay doughy.
Do not press hard with the rolling pin. Heavy rolling squeezes out the ghee and seals the layers together.
The breakfast paratha
In Pakistan, a plain paratha with chai is breakfast for millions of people every day. At home it comes with a fried egg, an omelette or khageena; on cold mornings it might be eaten with leftover salan from the night before. Roadside breakfast stalls fry stacks of them on huge tawas, and office workers eat them rolled around a fried egg on the way to work. The triangle shape, called tikona, is the most common home style because it is the easiest way to build in layers.
How the layers form
A paratha is really a laminated bread. Each fold traps a film of ghee and a dusting of flour between two sheets of dough. When the paratha hits the hot tawa, the water in the dough turns to steam and pushes the sheets apart, while the ghee fries each layer crisp. Two folds give four layers in the triangle. Rolling gently from the centre keeps those layers intact. After cooking, scrunching the hot paratha between your palms breaks the surface and opens up the flakes.
Variations
- Lachha paratha: roll a large thin sheet, brush with ghee, pleat it like a fan, coil it into a spiral and roll out for many more layers.
- Square paratha: fold the circle into a square envelope instead of a triangle.
- Ajwain paratha: sprinkle a pinch of carom seeds over the ghee before folding.
- Mixed flour: half atta and half maida gives a softer, lighter paratha, like those sold at breakfast shops.
Keeping and reheating
Parathas are best eaten hot off the tawa. To keep a batch warm, wrap them in a clean cloth inside a hot pot. Leftovers keep in the fridge for 2 days and crisp up again in a minute on a hot tawa.
Questions people ask
Can I use oil instead of ghee?
Yes. Oil works well and gives a slightly crisper paratha; ghee gives the traditional nutty flavour. Many homes use oil for the layers and a little ghee on the tawa.
Why is my paratha hard?
The dough was too stiff, it was rolled too thin, or it was cooked too long on low heat. Use a soft dough, keep it about 3 mm thick, and cook on steady medium heat.
Can I freeze parathas?
Yes. Cook them on the tawa without ghee until just spotted on both sides, cool, and freeze between sheets of baking paper. Finish from frozen on a hot tawa with ghee.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 395
- Protein
- 8 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Carbs
- 46 g
