Indian street food is a wide and varied affair, but if there’s one thing you are most likely to find across India, it is a humble paratha stall. However, in today’s competitive time, street food vendors are compelled to up their game. We were only reeling from the horror of Gulab Jamun Paratha that went viral a few days ago, and now the internet is having a tough time digesting this ‘Pahalwan Paratha’.
In Hindi the word ‘Pehalwan’ is used to refer to a person with immense strength, even wrestlers are called ‘Pehalwan’ in the language. The diet is ‘Pehalwans’ is obviously meant to be extraordinary, think: loads of vegetables, meat, homemade ghee, butter, malai and fresh milk.
This Nagpur eatery’s ‘Pehalwan Paratha’ has actually divided the internet in two. While some are loving the droolworthy, spinach-potato-cheese stuffed paratha, some are peeved by the amount of cheese used and even calling it the ‘heart attack paratha’ in the comments of the reel posted by Instagram page @eatthisagra. The reel has collected more than 2.1 million views so far.
So, what exactly goes inside this paratha. Looks like the dough of the paratha also comprises a spinach paste, which gives the dough a lovely dark-green colour. The vendor, takes out a big chunk from the dough and rolls it flat using a belan (or rolling pin). Further, she fills the paratha with heaps of grated cheese, then she lands a dry aloo-palak ki sabzi in the centre, on top of the grated cheese and presses it gently. Then she grates more cheese on top of the sabzi, and finally folds and seals the edges of the dough which she further flattens using the belan. She takes the stuffed dough and places it on a hot tawa. Using multiple spoons of ghee, she roasts the tawa from both sides and then folds it in half.
She transfers the cooked paratha on a silver paper plate and cuts it in many small portions using the same spatula she was using to roast the paratha. Then she gartes some more cheese on top of the paratha ans serves it with chutney, a yogurt dip and some mayonanise.
“Aapke cheese me glti se parantha gir gya (the paratha landed on cheese by mistake, it seems)”, wrote a user taking a dig at the amount of cheese used.
“Offo yr joa video dekho cheese har cheez ma cheese hey bhagwan (no matter which video you watch, there’s cheese everywhere)”, wrote another user.
