Search
Login
Foodies Only in your inbox
By clicking "Subscribe", you agree to ourPrivacy Policy and to receive marketing emails from Foodies Only
ITC Portal
Copyright © 2025 Foodies Only
Copyright © 2025 Foodies Only
6 Min
03/02/2026
Seasonal eating is the best way to get the much-needed nutrients, stay healthy, and also protect from seasonal illnesses. When it comes to winter, there are certain vegetables in season that you should definitely consider adding to your office lunches. Afterall even when not hot off the stove, lunchboxes should be delicious. And these parathas do the trick — whether wrapped in foil or packed without any insulation, served as is, or with a side of your favourite curry, curd or pickle.
Pick your favourite winter vegetable, wash, chop and mince it down and add it to your paratha dough or make it into a filling. You can choose hearty parathas made with cauliflower or sweet potato, sauté them with garlic, chillies and spices, or go for ingredients that dye your paratha dough, like spinach and beetroot. It’s the easiest way to sneak more vegetables into comfort food without changing how you cook or compromising on taste. Either way, it’s an easy, seasonal approach to making everyday parathas more wholesome and satisfying. All of these are perfect for office lunchboxes.
The foundation of any great paratha starts with quality atta. Aashirvaad 100% MP Sharbati Atta is made from 100% MP Sharbati wheat sourced exclusively from Madhya Pradesh. The grains are carefully selected for their uniform size and natural golden colour, producing soft rotis that remain tender for longer periods. Enhanced water absorption leads to smoother dough preparation, while offering a pleasant natural aroma and premium quality texture – exactly what you need for parathas that stay delicious in your dabba until lunch.
Winters, especially in North India, mean fresh methi leaves appear in abundance at sabzi mandis, and methi paratha becomes a breakfast staple. The slightly bitter fenugreek leaves are kneaded directly into the dough with ajwain, jeera, and green chillies, which makes a fragrant flatbread that needs minimal accompaniment. What makes methi paratha perfect for office dabbas is its robust flavour, and even when cold, the natural oils and spices remain aromatic.
Peas, also found in abundance during winter, can be mashed and transformed into a mildly sweet filling. Use fresh peas and make a filling mixed with jeera, dhaniya powder, and a bit of amchur, which is a flavoursome stuffing that holds together well even when the paratha cools. Pack it for office lunchboxes, for matar paratha doesn't dry out easily as the peas retain moisture, keeping each bite succulent.
The king of winter parathas, gobi paratha, is comfort food personified. The filling is made with grated cauliflower mixed with ajwain, ginger, and minimal masala, with the moisture in the cauliflower already drawn out through salting. You get a paratha with a crunchy yet yielding filling, with the gobi cooking further as the paratha toasts on the tawa. The mild, nutty flavour of winter cauliflower means you don't need heavy spicing; just a kick from ingredients like green chillies, to complement the vegetable's taste.
While broccoli might not be as popular as gobi, if you like gobi, you can love broccoli too. If the smell is off-putting or the mixture too crumbly, add paneer to spruce up the filling and make it a protein-rich, nutrient-dense filling that's perfect for those who want something more substantial. The paneer makes for a creamy filling that binds the broccoli, while masalas like garam masala, jeera powder, and garlic bring everything together.
Shakarkandi or sweet potatoes are a winter delight and a good swap if you are making aloo parathas. When the paratha cooks, the natural sugars in sweet potato caramelise slightly, creating golden-brown spots that add more flavour. With the potatoes, add ingredients like green chillies, ginger, and a pinch of black pepper. Unlike stuffed parathas, sweet potato is typically mixed directly into the dough, which makes this paratha much easier to make, perfect for busy mornings.
This filling creates a pinkish paratha, made with grated beetroot and carrot, sautéed with jeera and minimal spices, creating a filling that's both sweet and earthy. The beets stain the dough a beautiful pinkish-red colour, which might also make it a good idea to pack for children's lunchboxes. The key is to remove excess moisture by cooking the vegetables slightly and letting them cool completely before stuffing them into your parathas.
Palak paratha is the green powerhouse of winter parathas, being packed with iron. This one uses blanched spinach, pureed with grated ginger, ajwain, and green chillies, and mixed directly into wheat flour, creating a striking green dough that's loaded with vitamins besides iron. Just like most watery veggies, the key to a perfect palak paratha is minimal water in the puree. For this, blanch the leaves, squeeze them thoroughly, then blend. This prevents the dough from becoming sticky and yields deliciously roasted parathas.
Winter vegetables couldn't get tastier and evoke the fuzzies better than this. Whether you knead them into the dough or stuff them as a spiced filling, these parathas turn greens, reds and roots into flavour-packed, wholesome meals. Pair them with yoghurt, pickle, butter, or a curry of choice for breakfast, lunch, or even a lazy dinner.