The word ‘roti’ is used to define the genre of breads made with atta flour. There are varies kinds of rotis – phulka, naan, chapati, parathas, etc. Naan rotis and parathas are more well known outside India. Here I will post the recipe for chapati – an unleavened flat bread. I am not exactly sure as to what the difference between phulka and chapati is. (See this).
Ingredients:
| Atta flour | 1 cup | – |
| Water | 1/2 cup | Luke warm |
| Salt | 1/4 tsp | – |
| Plain yoghurt | 1 tbsp | You may also use 2 tbsp of buttermilk instead of the yoghurt |
Procedure:
Preparing the dough:
- Heat the water till its luke warm.
- Take a wide mouthed mixing bowl.
- Add the atta flour, salt, and yoghurt.
- Add half the water and start mixing the ingredients using your dominant hand.
- Do not add all the water at once. The amount of water you will need to add will vary depending on the quality of the flour. So add little by little.
- Keep adding a few tablespoons of water as required and continue kneading.
- Continue kneading using your knuckles and the ball of your thumb. The dough should be even textured and come together as one single ball. The consistency should be the same as play-doh. This usually takes anywhere between 2 minutes to 5 minutes depending on the amount of flour.
- If it is too soft, sprinkle a table spoon of atta flour and knead till desired consistency. If it is too hard, then sprinkle a table spoon of water and knead.
- Once the desired consistency is achieved, smear one teaspoon of cooking oil on your palms and dab it over the dough ball.
- Now put the dough ball in a container with lid and refrigerate it for atleast 1 hour. Do not put it in the freezer.
Rolling the chapatis:
- The measurement provided here yields approximately five chapatis that are about 6.5 inches in diameter and 1.5 mm in thickness.
- You will need about 1/3 cup of atta flour for dabbing the prepared dough and rolling them into chapatis (see video below)
Frying the chapatis:
- The frying pan needs to be medium hot. Have the flame/heat on medium throughout.
- Dust off any loose flour before putting the rolled chapati on the pan.
- Let the chapati on heat for about 40 seconds and then flip it.
- After 30 seconds, move the chapati around slightly. Keep rotating it every 5 seconds for another 30 seconds.
- Flip it back and keep rotating it for 20 seconds. By now, there should be small brown spots on the chapati and the whole chapati must be evenly cooked.
- Use a paper towel or clean cloth to rotate it. Do not press hard. The chapati may start ballooning and that’s a good sign. Don’t worry it won’t burst but be very careful when you take it off the pan since the steam can hit your hand.
- Once taken off the pan, you may choose to smear a little bit of butter on one or both sides.
Gopi's Kitchen 