Breakfast and the Object of My Affection:Alu Padji and Paratha

Thanks to some generous and loving friends, who take us on wild culinary tours at South Indian restaurants and who make us fantastic homemade things to eat, we are both getting entirely too fat enjoying a new world of flavors and techniques.  This is one of my most favoritest things so far, both in Qatar and in life.

Behold the Alu Padji and Paratha:

John went to breakfast with our most esthpecial Indian/Cajun brother at a hole-in-the-wall Indian restaurant called Jawahar.  This is a place that workers go to eat.  The inside is clean enough but very plain.  It reminds me oh-so-much of small town Texas diners and Tex-Mex places.  The folks that work there are sweet, humble, and very talented at making/serving fantastic food.  No pretensions.  Just deliciousness.

So my Good Man brought me home some traditional South Indian breakfast.  Alu padji (potato stew) is potatoes, onions, curry leaves, mustard seeds, and some other spices.  It has a tiny bit of heat and good spiciness--potatoes are so bland that this is no small feat.  That container holds about a cup of alu padji.  The bread is homemade (made in the restaurant, not in my home) paratha.  Paratha roti is made by layering the dough with ghee (clarified butter).  It is then cooked on a hot griddle, much like a Mexican comal.  After browning, the paratha roti are put in a container where the steam off the hot bread makes the soft layers sort of crust up and separate into layers of luscious.  It's like a cross between a fine flour tortilla and a croissant, if you can imagine. 

Alu padji is the thing (so far) that I have to learn to make.  Our friend gave me a lesson, and his padji was not this creamy/soupy and contained other veggies, too.  So padji's are partially an interpretation/adaptation of their owners.  They are not difficult to make, but I think this is deceptive.  A great alu padji is probably as elusive as a great pot of pinto beans.