This Paneer Frankie Roll, also known as Paneer Kathi Rolls, is a popular Indian street food made with flaky flatbread, covered with egg, wrapped with spicy paneer and tangy toppings. Perfect to pack for a grab and go meal, or a special weeknight meal.
Heat oil in a heavy bottom sauce pan on medium heat. Add cumin seeds and let them sizzle for 30 seconds.
Add sliced onions, garlic and fry them for about 2-3 minutes.
Add all the spices and stir them with the onions for a further minute. Add a couple of tablespoons water if the spices stick to the pan.
Add the yellow and red bell peppers and mix with all the spices for about 5 minutes.
Add the chopped tomato and tomato puree and cook for about 2 minutes until the tomatoes mix well with the curry.
Add the paneer cubes and stir well. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the paneer softens. Garnish with cilantro and keep aside.
For the roll by making a dough: (see notes to make as a batter)
Mix flour, oil and salt in a medium sized bowl. Knead well to make a soft dough (see roti recipe). Divide equally into 8 balls and cover with a moist cloth.
Break the eggs and whisk them.
Take one ball of dough and using a rolling pin, roll out to a 6” thin round. This dough is stretchy, so it takes some effort to get a perfect thin roti.
Put a tawa or a griddle pan on medium heat and place the rolled out dough onto it. After about 1 minute, flip it onto the other side and continue to cook for an additional 1 minute.
Apply 1/2 tsp of oil on the roti. Flip it to the other side and add some more oil.
Now apply about 1/8th of the whisked eggs (1/2 an egg) on one side of the roti. Let it cook for about 15 seconds, then flip it over to cook the egg completely. It is okay if some spreads around.
Remove from heat and keep aside. Make all the roti's the same way.
Toppings
Put the diced green chili pepper in the vinegar and set aside. Perfeably have this ready 30 minutes before you assemble the frankie.
Mix the black salt, red chili powder and dry mango powder in a small bowl.
Assembling the Paneer Frankie
Lay the flatbread roti on a plate. Place the paneer filling in a straight line at the center of the roti.
Then spread some onions on the filling.
With a spoon, spread some vinegar. Let some marinated green chilis roll in, if you like spicy food!
Sprinkle the frankie masala.
Roll the roti and wrap a parchment paper or foil around half of the roll, so the filling does not drop or come out. Enjoy you frankie roll!
Notes
Making the flatbread with a batter: This is my mom’s way to make frankie flatbreads. This is a great way to make the bread for people with less experience making a dough and flatbread.
Add all-purpose flour (maida) and salt to a bowl. Mix water to make a smooth batter. This batter should be easy to spread, like a crepe or dosa, but not as thin as a crepe.
Beat 4 eggs in a bowl. Add salt and mix well.
Heat a flat tawa or griddle, then spread a ladle full of batter as shown below. Spread some oil.
After one side is cooked, carefully flip the flatbread to the other side. Let it cook for 30 seconds to a minute until some golden brown spots appear. If needed, apply 1/2 teaspoon more oil.
Then flip back and apply about 1/2 a beaten egg on the roti (in Hindi called maida ki roti).
Let it cook for about 15 seconds, then flip the roti to cook the egg well.
Remove from heat and keep aside. Make all the roti’s the same way. Between each roti, keep a parchment paper or foil, so they don’t stick to each other.
Want to skip making the flatbread from scratch? Here are some options you can use:
Kawan paratha - you can find this in the frozen aisle of indian grocery stores
Naan or Garlic Naan - I get then from the indian grocery or Trader Joes