Flatbread Roti Recipes

WEST INDIAN-STYLE ROTI (FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Place flour(s) in a bowl. Mix in 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil.
• Add the warm water slowly, stirring as you go, until the dough starts to come together. Keep stirring, adding more water in small amounts, until the dough forms a ball.
• Turn the dough out onto the counter and knead for a few minutes, adding a little flour if it is too sticky. The dough should be soft but not sticky enough to adhere to your hands or the counter.
• Let the dough rest for 10 minutes, covered with a damp cloth.
• Roll out the dough into a large circle, about 1/4 inch thick. Spread the remaining 1 teaspoon vegetable oil over the surface of the dough. Roll the dough up into a long roll.
• Slice the log of dough into 8 to 10 pieces. Roll out each piece, cut-side down, into a 6-inch circle. Let the circles rest, covered with a damp cloth, for 5 minutes.
• Heat a flat, heavy griddle or skillet (a cast-iron skillet or crepe pan works well) over medium-low heat.
• Roll the first circle of dough out as thin as possible (to about an 8- to 9-inch circle).
• Add about 1 teaspoon oil to the skillet and add a circle of dough. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, until the bread puffs up and turns light brown on the underside. Slide the roti to the side of the pan and quickly flip to brown the other side, cooking for about 1 to 2 minutes more.
• Remove from the pan and place roti in a colander to cool. Cover roti with a damp towel while you cook the rest; this will help keep them from becoming hard. Add more oil to the skillet as needed.
• Brush the finished roti with melted butter before serving, if desired. Serve and enjoy.

ROTI RECIPE (BUTTERY INDIAN FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• Make the dough. In a large bowl or stand mixer, use a fork to whisk together 2 cups bread flour and 1 teaspoon salt. (I prefer kosher salt, but table salt is fine.)
• Add 2 tablespoons melted butter* and mix it in with the fork until the flour is crumbly. Make sure to break up any big chunks.
• Add 2/3 cup warm water. Mix it together with the fork until the dough pulls together. At this point, I start using the dough hook attachment on my stand mixer, but you can also turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Scrape down any dough that sticks to the side, but it should form itself into a ball pretty quickly.
• Rest the dough. When you are done kneading, shape it into a ball. Leave it in the bowl, cover with a tea towel, and let rest for 20-45 minutes. The longer you rest the dough, the softer and more pliable your roti will be, and the easier it will be to roll out. (It will not rise at all, so don't expect it to look different after the rest period. This ain't no yeast recipe.)
• Roll out the dough. Prepare a work surface with a light dusting of flour. Divide dough into six equal parts. Use your fingers to pinch each piece into a smooth ball. (see photos)Take one ball and pat it into a disk with your fingers. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rough circle about 8-9 inches across. It should be rolled out very thin, see photos. (If you want to roll all the dough out at once before frying, stack the sheets, each one separated with a square of parchment paper so they don't stick together. I prefer to roll out my next piece of dough while I'm frying the first one, so I don't do this.)
• Cook the Roti. Set a cast iron skillet, griddle, or large frying pan over medium or medium high heat. Let it preheat for at least a couple minutes so that it's very hot.Add about a teaspoon of butter to the pan and swirl to coat the bottom.
• Transfer the very thin sheet of roti dough to the pan. Wait about 6 or 7 seconds, then use your fingers or a spatula to flip the roti over. You may need to add more butter; if there is not enough, the roti will not be soft. It will cook in 30 to 50 seconds. Adjust the heat as necessary so that the roti cooks quickly (under a minute) but does not burn. Every stove is different so you will have to play around. You will know it is done when light brown spots appear on the side that is cooking. The top should have a few bubbles. Flip the roti back to the original side (using more butter if necessary) just until the brown spots appear, another 20-30 seconds.
• Steam the Roti. This step is super important to get soft and pliable roti! Place a paper towel inside a large ziplock bag. When the roti is done frying, place roti on top of the paper towel in the bag. Top the roti with another paper towel (it should not be touching the plastic or it will get soggy.) Seal the bag. As you fry the remaining roti, add them to the ziplock directly on top of the first roti, with a paper towel on top. The roti will steam each other in the center. Keep the bag closed as much as possible. You can also skip these steps and steam roti in a tortilla warmer.
• Serve the roti hot, with curry and rice.
• Store leftover roti in a ziplock bag lined with paper towels.
• Freezing Roti: Layer your roti between sheets of parchment paper so they don't stick to each other, and seal in a ziplock bag. Store flat in the freezer.To reheat, you can either let thaw in the bag at room temperature, then reheat gently in the microwave (don't overdo it or they will get tough.) Or you can re-grill the roti straight from frozen, using the same method as the first time.

FLATBREAD: ROTI

Steps:

• Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add oil and enough water until a dough forms, not too dry. Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes, cut dough into 8 equal pieces, and form balls. Allow dough to rest for 2 minutes. Roll dough out on floured board until it measures 6 to 8-inch disks.
• Heat a griddle over medium heat, when hot brush the griddle with oil. Brush the roti disks with oil on both sides, place on cast-iron hot griddle, and cook until top starts to blister. Flip roti and cook for 1 minute more. Serve warm.

MALAYSIAN FLATBREAD (ROTI CANAI) WITH CURRIED LENTIL DIP

Steps:

• Combine bread flour, sugar, kosher salt, egg, melted butter, and water for roti canai in a mixing bowl. Mix with your hands until a shaggy dough forms. Transfer to a work surface and knead until a smooth, elastic dough forms, about 7 minutes.
• Divide dough into 8 equal pieces and form each one into a ball. Coat each ball with vegetable oil, transfer to a plate, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 8 hours, to overnight.
• Melt butter for dip in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, ginger, garlic, kosher salt, curry powder, paprika, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper; stir together and saute until onion has softened and spices are fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it starts to toast and caramelize on the bottom of the pan, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in cold water and coconut milk. Add lentils; stir and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 40 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Reduce heat to low and keep warm while you prepare the roti canai.
• Place 1/4 cup melted butter in a bowl. Transfer rested dough balls onto a lightly oiled work surface. Flatten each ball slightly and rub a little melted butter on top. Cover dough with plastic wrap and let it warm up slightly, about 10 minutes.
• Press on top of the plastic wrap to flatten warmed dough. Remove plastic wrap and add a bit more butter. Stretch each piece from the center out to get it as thin as possible (until almost see-through), adding more butter as needed. Don't worry if there are a few small tears.
• Sprinkle on more melted butter, then pull two sides in towards the center until touching and overlapping slightly. Pull the other two edges in the same way to form a square. Cover with plastic wrap and flatten roti canai one more time.
• Add some melted butter to a skillet set over medium or medium-low heat. Add roti canai and cook until browned, flaky, and crispy on the outside and fully cooked through on the inside, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Remove from the skillet and smush it with your hands to fluff it up and separate the layers of dough. Repeat to cook remaining roti canai.
• Sprinkle the curried red lentil dip with cilantro and sliced serrano peppers and serve alongside the roti canai.