Indian Cheese Bread (Paneer Kulcha)

How to prepare indian cheese bread (paneer kulcha)

1. Sift the flour together with the salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Make a well in the center and add the yogurt, water, and oil. Gradually pull the flour over the water, mixing with your fingers until the dough comes together.
2. Knead the dough by hand until smooth. I kneaded it for about 2-3 minutes by hand and then in a bread machine on the 13-minute kneading program. If kneading exclusively by hand, knead for at least 10 minutes until it becomes elastic.
3. Place the dough on a floured work surface, divide into 6-8 equal pieces (I cut mine into 8 and got small breads of only 15cm diameter), shape into balls, and cover with a bowl. Let rest for 1 to 5 hours (the longer, the better; I left mine for 2 hours).
4. For the filling, mash the feta very well with a fork and season with a little pepper. Sauté the finely chopped onion in oil for 10 minutes (until very soft) over low heat. Add the spices (cumin, coriander, chili, turmeric, ginger). Stir well for another 30 seconds on the heat. Add the onion to the cheese along with the chopped parsley and mix.
5. Flatten each piece of dough a bit with your hand (a disc about the size of your palm) on a floured work surface.
6. Place 1 generous tablespoon of filling in the center. Lift the edges of the dough over the filling and seal. Turn over with the sealed side down.
8. Flatten the resulting "bun" with your hands until you get a thick disc. Then continue to roll with a rolling pin until the greens from the filling are clearly visible (the sheet will be about 3mm thick). If the filling bursts through in a few places, don't worry, it's okay.
9. Heat a cast iron or non-stick pan very well (5 minutes over high heat). When hot, dab the pan with a paper towel dipped in oil. You'll dab the pan with oil before cooking each bread.
10. Cook each bread in the pan for 2 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the second side (check underneath to ensure it's browned all over). Remove the bread from the pan with grill tongs and place it directly on the flame of a burner (see photo 9). Leave it a few seconds on each side to get golden "spots" all over the surface. You'll smell a pleasant toasted bread aroma. After removing the bread from the flame, you can dab it with a little oil or rub a cube of butter over it.
11. Stack the cooked breads on a plate and cover with foil until you finish them all.
12. Cut each bread into eight, like pizza. Serve warm with mint yogurt.

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