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Whenever I’m sharing a recipe that has spinach, I always start out by saying that I don’t eat much spinach. However, there are some gems that make me want to enjoy lots of it! One of those recipes would be Palak Paneer, but now this spinach-packed paratha recipe takes the cake!
My mom introduced me to a Palak Paratha recipe, I was instantly craving more of them! I also was really eager to try making them myself. While my mom is quite good at cooking, no offense to her, but I like to find ways to improve her recipes! With this paratha recipe, I’ll show you exactly how to get the softest and greenest parathas that’ll be amazing to serve your family for any occasion!
If you want to explore Indian cooking more, then this easy palak paratha recipe is the best way to get started as part of your Live to Cook one-month challenge! Get started on your exciting cooking adventure for free by signing up to my free email newsletter, plus you’ll receive all of my new recipes right to your inbox so you’ll never wonder what to cook for dinner again!
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What Is This Palak Paratha Recipe?
A typical triangular layered paratha is a soft, thin and flaky bread which is a staple in Indian households. Classic parathas are made with atta flour and can be served with your favorite main dishes, or even enjoyed on their own. Check out the bottom of this post for some serving suggestion ideas!
This palak paratha recipe is similar to the classic paratha, where we’ll still be layering the dough with ghee and water and forming the breads into triangles. However, we’ve got spinach (the Indian word for spinach is “palak”) is thrown into the mix to add an incredibly unique green color and to provide loads of additional vitamins!
What’s the difference between parathas and rotis?▼
While both breads are made with whole wheat atta flour and are flat, parathas and rotis are actually quite different! To begin, rotis are just roasted on the tava over a flame, puffed over a direct source of heat. The ghee or butter is then applied after the roti is done puffing. With parathas, they are cooked by spreading ghee on the raw dough while it is sizzling on the tava to make it golden brown and crispy on each side and then served hot and crispy.
Why You’ll Love This Palak Paratha Recipe
- Easy recipe: There aren’t too many steps to make this healthy paratha recipe. While you do need a bit of patience, this palak paratha recipe will describe exactly how to make the parathas perfectly so you’ve got them hot, soft, and super delicious!
- Great way to get in spinach: Need I say more? You honestly don’t taste the spinach at all here!
- Colorful: My motto is that we eat with our eyes, and the bright green color of the spinach parathas is just so appetizing! This paratha recipe will give you the tips you need to achieve that vibrant green color we want.
- Kid-friendly: As I mentioned, you don’t even taste spinach, but there’s a fair amount of spinach here. This is the perfect easy and delicious way for kids to get in their greens on a regular basis!
Health Benefits of Spinach
There’s a reason why spinach is called a superfood! Here are a few reasons why incorporating spinach into your diet will be beneficial to you:
- High potassium can reduce blood sugar
- Vitamin K assists in improving bone health
- Low in calories
- Anti-inflammatory properties can prevent osteoporosis, migraines, asthma, arthritis and headaches
- High in vitamin A to assist with eye health
- Antioxidants and vitamins A, C and K to help with skin health
Get more details about the health benefits of spinach here.
How do I keep the Spinach parathas soft?▼
For your final breads to be soft, then your dough must be soft. As you’re preparing each bread, making sure that the dough that is not being used is covered so that it stays smooth. Exposing the dough will make the bread dry out.
Also, once each paratha has been cooked, be sure to cover it with a paper towel or kitchen cloth so it stays warm and doesn’t dry out!
How to Make This Palak Paratha Recipe Vegan?
The only ingredient that is not vegan is the ghee. If you need to have vegan parathas, simply substitute it with olive oil or coconut oil. My personal recommendation would be coconut oil because you’ll have a unique aroma and flavor, plus coconut oil is ideal for cooking at high smoke points.
Equipment Needed to Make Spinach Parathas
- Tava pan
- Pot
- KitchenAid Stand Mixer
- Blender
- Marble base with rolling pin (the marble base is a bonus!)
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Fish spatula
Ingredients for Paratha with Spinach
Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this post or press the “Jump to Recipe” button for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card. You can save the recipe for later, and scale the recipe based on how many parathas you want to make! All the individual ingredient quantities will automatically adjust for you so that you don’t have to do any calculations for ratios!
- Atta flour: If you really can’t find atta flour, then you can use regular whole wheat flour. However, atta flour is the authentic choice here, and it will give you a different flavor from whole wheat, because the flour is milled very thin. Aashirvaad Whole Wheat Atta is my personal favorite brand.
- Ghee: Needed to cook the parathas on the tawa pan and to brush in between the layers. You could also use butter, but for authenticity I would recommend ghee.
- Spinach: I’m using baby spinach, which is also known as flat-leaf spinach. This is the perfect type of spinach to use for these parathas because it is not too bitter, and instead it is sweet, so that will give a better overall taste to the paratha.
- Salt: Add salt to taste while kneading the dough to add flavor.
- Water: As needed to give a smooth dough.
How to Make Spinach Paratha
Making the Spinach
Bring water to a rolling boil and in the meanwhile, rinse the spinach well. Add the spinach to the water and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Prepare an ice water bath in a large bowl and then transfer the cooked spinach into the ice water bath to blanch the spinach.
Transfer the spinach to a food processor and about 1/2 Cup of the water from the ice water bath. Blend the spinach leaves on high until smooth. Add more water 2 tbsp at a time if needed to achieve this consistency.
Preparing the Dough
In a large measuring bowl, add atta flour and 1/2 tsp of salt (if using). Mix well to combine. Pour in the spinach prepared from the previous step and start kneading until the dough comes together. Then, knead for 3-4 minutes, or until dough turns into a smooth ball.
Then, knead for 3-4 minutes, or until dough turns into a smooth ball.
Dust the dough with flour and let it rest for 10-15 minutes in a bowl or on your countertop. Cover with a moist kitchen cloth or paper towel.
Rolling Out the Dough
Once the dough has rested, divide the dough into 6-8 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time, roll the portion into a smooth ball. Gently flatten and roll the dough into a disk, about 4-5 inches wide.
Brush the surface with ghee. Dust lightly with atta flour and gently fold dough in half. Brush with ghee and lightly dust with atta flour. Roll the dough in half again, into a triangle and gently roll out the dough into a thin triangle.
Cooking the Paratha
Heat a tava pan on medium high heat. When the tava begins to lightly smoke, place the dough on the pan. Cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until bubbly and lightly browned.
Using a fish spatula, flip the paratha and brush some ghee. Flip again and apply more ghee and cook until light brown patches appear.
Transfer prepared parathas onto a plate or bowl and cover as you cook the remaining parathas. Serve hot and enjoy!
Tips for Making Bright Green and Tasty Parathas
- If you’re unsure about the cleanliness of your spinach, be sure to wash it thoroughly or else there will be some mud residue. When you purchase bagged baby spinach, it will be completely washed.
- Be sure to season the dough with salt while kneading the dough for additional flavor of the spinach that we are adding to the paratha.
- Preparing an ice water bath is key because it ensures that the leaves stay bright green. This will make your parathas have a bright green color as well.
- Use the least amount of spinach water into the blender so that you use as much regular water as possible into the dough. Add a tablespoon of water at a time into the blender to ensure you get a smooth liquid.
- Ensure that you are kneading a soft dough. This will make the rolling process much easier and result in a softer bread overall!
- Allow the dough the full time to rest. The kneading process makes the dough tight from the constant compression. The resting time not only allows you to roll and portion the dough easier, it ensures the dough has no cracks and is soft as ever.
- If you don’t have a tava pan, a cast iron pan will do the job just fine!
- You can use tongs to flip the parathas while cooking if you don’t have a fish spatula.
- Dust the dough with flour while rolling and layering. The layering process adds ghee into several layers of the paratha and the flour helps to ensure the layers remain separate. As the paratha cooks, the steam released from the various layers makes the paratha soft.
- Be careful not to overcook the paratha on the hot tava pan. We are looking for a soft bread, and the crispiness of an overcooked bread will take that away. You want light brown spots, like those of a Dalmatian!
How to store extra parathas▼
- If you are anything like me, I would make sure there is no unused dough! Paratha is just so good. But, in case you do have some, I would suggest wrapping up the dough in plastic wrap and placing it in the refrigerator. Make sure to use it within 2-3 days, the dough may turn dark the longer it stays in the fridge.
- If using refrigerated dough, take the dough out of the fridge at least an hour before to allow it to come up to room temperature. This will make the dough pliable and make the kneading process easy.
- Any cooked paratha, on the other hand can be wrapped in a moist kitchen towel and stored in a container. To reheat, simple place in the microwave/hot tawa/oven for 30 seconds to a minute to bring it back to life.
Serving Suggestions
You can really have this paratha whenever you’d like! You can have it for breakfast, using it as a wrap or side for Scrambled Eggs or Egg Bhurji.
- Murgh Makhani - Restaurant Style Butter Chicken
- Maseladar Chana Dal
- Instant Pot Lobia
- Matar Mushroom
- Shahi Paneer
- Aloo Bhujiya
For Dipping
Other Indian Bread Recipes
Serve it with a comforting rajma masala for a wholesome meal.
This Palak Paratha Is Not Stuffed
Worth saying plainly, because it is the thing people get wrong: the spinach here goes into the dough, not inside it. There is no stuffing at any point. That makes this a different animal from aloo paratha, paneer paratha and the other stuffed kinds of parathas, where you roll a disk, spoon a filling into the middle and seal it shut. Here the palak puree replaces most of the water in the dough, the whole thing turns green, and you fold and roll it exactly like a plain paratha.
The ingredient list is four lines long and stays that way on purpose. There is no green chilli, no ginger and no carom seeds, which turn up in plenty of other palak ka paratha recipes. I leave them out because the spinach is the point, and a dough carrying ajwain and chili starts competing with whatever you serve alongside it. If you want heat, put it in the pickle or the curry, not in the bread.
One practical note on the flour. I measure 8 oz of atta by weight, which lands at a little under two cups of whole wheat flour if you would rather scoop than weigh. Atta is milled finer than most supermarket whole wheat, and Indian grocery stores are the easiest place to find it. Ordinary whole wheat flour does work, just sift it first, and spelt gives you something a shade milder and softer.
The Palak Puree, the Sticky Dough and the Griddle
Blanch the spinach for one to two minutes in rolling water, then straight into an ice bath. Blend it with about half a cup of that same water until you have a genuinely smooth puree, adding more two tablespoons at a time if the blades stall. That palak puree is then the liquid for your dough. This is where the ingredient list confuses people: the half cup of fresh water it names is the water for the puree, not a second pour that goes into the flour. Add the puree to the atta and salt and knead, and only reach for extra water if the dough is still crumbly after three or four minutes.
If the puree carried too much excess moisture you will end up with a sticky dough. Dust it with a little atta and keep kneading rather than dumping in a big handful of flour, which is how a paratha turns tough. Then let it rest for ten to fifteen minutes under a moist cloth. Skipping the rest is the other common cause of dough that fights you at the rolling pin.
Cook them on a tava, which is simply the flat Indian griddle; a cast iron griddle does the same job. Get it hot enough on medium high that it just begins to smoke before the first paratha goes down. Within thirty seconds to a minute you will see air pockets rise across the surface, and that is your cue to flip. Brush with ghee, flip a couple of times, and pull it off when light brown patches have formed on both sides. Serve them hot with curd or a cool raita, a spoonful of pickle and any vegetable curry, and remember they hold up well wrapped for a lunch box the next day.
Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments! If you’ve tried this recipe, be sure to post it on social media and tag it with #cookingwithanadi and mention me @cooking.with.anadi. Thank you!
Recipe by Anadi Misra
Make flaky, layered Palak Paratha at home with this easy spinach flatbread recipe. Soft, nutritious, and packed with flavor — perfect for any meal.
Stovetop
Rate this recipe ✦
15 min
Prep
15 min
Cook
15 min
Rest
45 min
Total
6
parathas
medium
Level
Ingredients
Ingredients
Tap any quantity to scale
- (227 g) atta flourShop →
- (227 g) spinach
- ghee (as required for cooking) · make your ownShop →
- salt(to taste)Shop →
- (120 ml) water(or as required)
Instructions
For the spinach
- 1
Bring water to a rolling boil and in the meantime, rinse the spinach well. Add the spinach to the water and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Bring water to a rolling boil and in the meantime, rinse the spinach well. Add the spinach to the water and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- 2
Prepare an ice water bath in a large bowl and then transfer the cooked spinach into the ice water bath to blanch the spinach.
Prepare an ice water bath in a large bowl and then transfer the cooked spinach into the ice water bath to blanch the spinach.
- 3
Transfer the spinach to a food processor and add about ½ cup of the water from the ice water bath. Blend the spinach leaves on high until smooth. Add more water 2 Tbsp at a time if needed to achieve this consistency.
Transfer the spinach to a food processor and add about ½ cup of the water from the ice water bath. Blend the spinach leaves on high until smooth. Add more water 2 Tbsp at a time if needed to achieve this consistency.
For the spinach parathas
- 1
In a large measuring bowl, add atta flour and ½ tsp of salt (if using). Mix well to combine.
In a large measuring bowl, add atta flour and ½ tsp of salt (if using). Mix well to combine.
- 2
Pour in the spinach prepared from the previous step and start kneading until the dough comes together. Then, knead for 3-4 minutes, or until dough turns into a smooth ball. Dust the dough with flour and let it rest for 10-15 minutes in a bowl or on your countertop. Cover with a moist kitchen cloth or paper towel.
Pour in the spinach prepared from the previous step and start kneading until the dough comes together. Then, knead for 3-4 minutes, or until dough turns into a smooth ball. Dust the dough with flour and let it rest for 10-15 minutes in a bowl or on your countertop. Cover with a moist kitchen cloth or paper towel.
- 3
Once the dough has rested, divide the dough into 6-8 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time, roll the portion into a smooth ball. Gently flatten and roll the dough into a disk, about 4-5 inches wide. Brush the surface with ghee.
Once the dough has rested, divide the dough into 6-8 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time, roll the portion into a smooth ball. Gently flatten and roll the dough into a disk, about 4-5 inches wide. Brush the surface with ghee.
- 4
Dust lightly with atta flour and gently fold dough in half. Brush with ghee and lightly dust with atta flour. Fold the dough in half again, into a triangle and gently roll out the dough into a thin triangle.
Dust lightly with atta flour and gently fold dough in half. Brush with ghee and lightly dust with atta flour. Fold the dough in half again, into a triangle and gently roll out the dough into a thin triangle.
- 5
Heat a tava pan on medium high heat. When the tava begins to lightly smoke, place the dough on the pan. Cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until bubbly and lightly browned.
Heat a tava pan on medium high heat. When the tava begins to lightly smoke, place the dough on the pan. Cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until bubbly and lightly browned.
- 6
Using a fish spatula, flip the paratha and brush some ghee. Flip again and apply more ghee and cook until light brown patches appear.
Using a fish spatula, flip the paratha and brush some ghee. Flip again and apply more ghee and cook until light brown patches appear.
- 7
Transfer prepared parathas onto a plate or bowl and cover as you cook the remaining parathas. Serve hot and enjoy!
Transfer prepared parathas onto a plate or bowl and cover as you cook the remaining parathas. Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
- •Dusting with flour helps keep the layer separate when rolling out the dough. The final product should be immensely soft yet crispy, do not worry, you will get the hang of it.
Did you make this recipe? Tag @cooking.with.anadi on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingwithanadi
Tested & written in Anadi’s kitchen
Recipe history
- April 16, 2026 — Reworked and refreshed for the 2026 relaunch — new photography, restructured and standardized ingredients & instructions.
Filed under
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