Homemade Chicken Keema Paratha

Background

Paratha is a type of flatbread that's originally from India. It's an unleavened type of flatbread which means there's no leavening agent used in the dough. No yeast or baking powder whatsoever.

There are 2 types of paratha, the plain ones and the stuffed ones. And today we'll be feasting on the stuffed paratha.

Which takes us to Keema.

Keema in Urdu means minced meat. It's as simple as that. It's not a type of dish like for example when we say curry. It's the state of the protein source in that particular recipe.

So basically chicken keema paratha is minced chicken flatbread. Yep. Delicious!

Just in case you are wondering I'm using a Lodge cast iron skillet in this recipe. I love it because it gives a good sear for meat, the heat distributes evenly and on top of that it looks rustic and beautiful.

In case you're interested, here is the link for the skillet. It's an affiliate link that if you decided to click and purchase anything through it, it would not cost extra to you but I would get a small commission from it.

How To Make Paratha

This flatbread is a much more simple version of roti canai (also considered as a flatbread). Roti canai is a well known dish from my homeland country Malaysia. Have you tried? Seriously you have to.

Click here to see my roti canai recipe.

As I was saying. This paratha is so simple because you don't need to wait for the dough to rise nor wait for several hours before being able to cook it.

In fact, I just leave the dough to rest for 20 minutes or until my paratha's filling has cooled off.

The ingredients are super basic. Flour, oil, salt and water. It's amazing how such basic ingredients can turn into something this delicious.

And you don't need any machine for kneading the dough because we don't really need to do such extensive kneading. I always knead this paratha dough by hands for 5 minutes only. Just until its surface is smooth, that's all.

Chicken Keema Filling

Honestly it can be however you want it to be. That's the beauty of home cooking, don't you agree?

For this filling I'm making it a tad spicy. Feel free to adjust it to your liking. I'm also using quite a quantity of garam masala for that wonderful spices taste.

One thing though, however you make your filling, don't make it with so much liquid. We kind of want the filling to be juicy but not swimming in sauce.

This is because we will stuff our paratha with it and of course if it's with too much sauce then when we roll the paratha, all the sauce will ooze out and our wonderful chicken keema paratha experience will be a disaster.

Just letting you know, these parathas freeze well also. Whenever I make these, I always freeze the balance by individually wrapping them with cling film and put them inside a zip lock bag. Whenever we have the cravings, I would just defrost some and heat them in our toaster (I'm lazy like that).

More Flatbread Recipes

• Lebanese flatbread
• Spinach and feta gozleme
• Cheese stuffed naan bread
• Murtabak
• Malaysian flatbread (roti canai)

Hope you'll give this super simple recipe a try. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!

Video

Chicken Keema Paratha

My take on the delicious chicken keema paratha. It's basically a flatbread stuffed with minced chicken. The flatbread only requires few basic ingredients and most importantly is it doesn't require any leavening agent.

5 from 1 vote

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Servings: 4 pieces

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients 

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The Filling

• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 red onion , diced
• 1 thumb sized ginger , minced
• 4 garlic cloves , minced
• ½ lb minced chicken (250 gr)

• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp chili flakes
• salt to taste
• ½ cup chopped coriander (15 gr)

The Paratha

• 2 ¼ cup all purpose flour (290 gr)
• ⅔ cup water (160 ml)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp salt

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Instructions

The Filling

• Heat a pan with some oil, on medium heat. Add in cumin seeds and let it fry for a minute. Then add in onion, ginger, garlic and some salt. Sauté until the onion is soften and turns golden brown.
• Add in the meat, tomato paste, garam masala and chili flakes. Continue cooking until the meat is fully cooked, at the same time breaking it into small pieces. Adjust seasoning if needed.
• Once cooked, turn the heat off and sprinkle it the coriander leaves. Give it a few stirs and set aside to cool completely.

The Paratha

• Add all of the paratha ingredients into a bowl. Mix everything together and then pour on a working surface. Lightly knead until everything comes together. Continue kneading for 5 minutes. Rest the dough for 20 minutes, covered with a clean kitchen towel.
• Divide the dough into 4 pieces and form them into balls. Take 1 ball and roll it into a circle, on a lightly floured surface. Put ¼ of cooled filling on the center. Fold the edges and pinch the seams, forming a ball.
• Lightly roll the ball into a circle and set aside. Repeat the same with the rest of the ball. Note: cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel to prevent them from getting dry.
• Heat a pan on medium heat. Place 1 paratha inside and brush the top with some melted butter. Cook for a few minutes until the bottom side turns golden brown with charred marks and then flip it. Brush the cooked side with some melted butter also. Continue cooking while pressing the paratha now and then so that it cooks evenly.
• Remove from the pan and cover it with a kitchen cloth to keep it hot. Repeat with the rest of the un cooked paratha. Best served hot. Enjoy!

Tried this recipe?Mention @elmundoeats and tag #elmundoeats!