Monday 16 January 2017

Our House Roti.



Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Finally, it's the turn of the roti.

This traditional wholemeal roti is made everyday in our house and I cannot believe that it's taken almost four years of blogging for me to share it with you.


We make our roti with two ingredients - wholemeal flour and cold water. No salt, no oil, nothing extra. Ours is a very simple, wholesome Pakistani Punjabi roti.

As you'll see in the recipe, the dough is made in a stand mixer. My mother has used the same mixer that was gifted to her by my grandmother some fifteen years previously and has never gone back to kneading the dough by hand. So, if roti is made as often in your house as it is in ours, I highly recommend investing in one.
For us, roti is almost always eaten with a curry and spicy pickles. However, since it is just a simple, wholemeal flatbread, it would also make a great wrap!

Flatbreads, previously: pooris // wholemeal pitta flatbreads // homemade flour tortillas // really soft naan bread // naan bread

A Simple List of Ingredients:
1. Wholemeal Flour
2. Cold Water

Bismillah, let's begin!

We make our roti dough in a stand mixer with a dough hook. You can also make it by hand but I highly recommend investing in a stand mixer especially if you eat roti very often.

Roti in our house is always made with wholemeal flour. We buy a large sack of it from our local Asian cash and carry and store in a large flour bin. 

Into your stand mixer bowl or mixing bowl, place 700g (1lb + 8oz) Wholemeal Flour.

Fit on the dough hook.

Measure out 530 ml Cold Water. You may not need it all.

Gradually add a little water at a time, and mix with the speed on low.

Mix until a ball of dough begins to form. Then, knead the dough over a low speed until it is soft and smooth. The longer you knead, the better.

And, that's the roti dough done!

Pat the dough down with wet hands.

Let the dough rest for 30 minutes before using.

We always cook our rotis on a traditional tawa but you may also use a dry frying pan.

Place the tawa over a medium heat to heat up. You can adjust the heat later, as needed.


We also use a wooden round board and rolling pin to roll the rotis. You may also roll them on a flat surface.

To make a roti, take a small ball of dough.

Dip it in wholemeal flour.

And, shape into a ball by pulling the sides down into the middle and shaping in the palm of your hand.

Flatten the ball into a disc using your fingertips to help you.

Sprinkle with more flour.

Roll the dough on a floured surface until it's as evenly thin as you can get it. We like to roll ours to around 10-12 inches round. Keep turning the roti as needed and sprinkling with more flour if it gets too sticky.

Shake the excess flour off the roti by slapping it between both hands. This will also make the roti a little bigger.

Gently place the roti onto the hot tawa or frying pan.

Cook the roti for a minute or two until it begins to change and darken in colour.

Then, carefully flip.


Cook for a further minute or so.


Next, we like to brown/toast our roti over an open gas flame. You can use a large spatula to do this but we use one of these special spatulas which can be found in large Asian shops.


Place the roti onto the spatula.


Turn the heat to the highest.


And, toast the roti all over, flipping as you go. This is a technique that does take time to master so don't worry if you don't it right first time.


Once the roti has been evenly toasted all over, place onto a tea towel to wrap and stay warm.

We always place our rotis in one of these baskets.


And, that's one roti done. You can serve it as it is.

Or butter with lots of butter! Continue making the rest of the rotis.


In our house, we very rarely cook the entire batch of dough at once. It's usually stored in the fridge for up to 3 days and used as needed.


To store, place the dough into a container and pat down with wet hands.


Cover with an airtight lid and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Roti is always best served fresh with the curry and spicy pickle of your choice.


This time, we had a white lentil curry. You can see a version of this with lamb mince here!


Also, a spicy achar pickle with mangoes, carrots and lemon. This is my favourite!


And, a spicy green chilli achar pickle.

This recipe is an absolute favourite in our house and is made everyday. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Our House Roti.

Prep Time: About 10-15 minutes.
Cook Time: About 3 minutes per roti.
Serves: Makes 12 large rotis.

Ingredients

700g (1lb + 8oz) Wholemeal Flour
530ml Cold Water, as needed

Make the dough:
Place flour into a large bowl. You may make this dough by hand or with a stand mixer. We used a stand mixer and set the speed to the lowest. As it mixes, gradually pour in the water until ball of dough begins to form. Knead the dough on the lowest speed for 5 minutes or until smooth and soft. The more you knead, the better.

Rest the dough:
Pat the dough down with wet hands and leave to it rest for 30 minutes before using.

Roll the rotis:
Heat a tawa or dry frying pan over a medium heat. To make 1 roti, take a piece of the dough and dip it all over in wholemeal flour. Shape it into a ball by pulling the sides down into the middle and shaping in the palm of your hand.

Flatten the ball into a disc using your fingertips to help you. Sprinkle over more flour and roll on a floured surface until it's as evenly thin as you can get it. We like to roll ours to about 10-12 inches round. Turn over as needed and add flour as needed. Shake the excess flour off the roti by slapping it between both hands.

Cook the roti:
Gently place the roti onto the hot tawa. Cook the roti for a minute or so until it begins to change colour. Then, carefully flip. Cook for a further minute or so. Then, place the roti onto a large spatula and toast it over the open gas flame until browned on both sides. Make sure that the roti is turned  so that all the sides are evenly browned. Wrap the roti in a tea towel to keep warm. You may also butter it, if you wish. Continue making the rotis.

To store the dough:
This dough makes around 12 large rotis. You can make them all at once. But you can store the dough in the fridge for up to 3 days. Simply place into an airtight container, pat the dough down with wet hands and cover with a lid. 

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Keep me in your duas please, and enjoy your roti!

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!


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