April Roti
First of all, I love this photo of the Al Camino. Before we moved to here, my Dad used to visit the US for work and he would bring back stories of his adventures. On one of his trips he did a road trip across the country in an Al Camino and I have been in love with it since. It’s the definition of ugly-pretty and more than anything, I love ugly-pretty things.
Let me save the my monologue on ugly-pretty for another day; for now, let me share how to make the perfect roti. During the early pandemic, I shifted focus away from the complicated dishes and really worked on perfecting the basics. The basics can make an average meal 10x more special. A well made roti is a perfect companion to
The perfect Roti
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Serves
4
Ingredients
- Flour
- Salt
- Water
Kitchenware
- A cast iron crepe pan, a griddle, a big frying pan, or a tawa
- A KitchenAid mixer with the kneading hook or strong forearms
- Rolling pin
Steps
- Weight out 200 grams of water, add a tsp of salt and add 190 grams boiling water.
- Start kneading and add water as necessary. Over the kneading process, this will be a 1:1 mixture of flour and water. Knead until all the water is incorporated and the doug ball comes together. This is very much something you need to feel; more on that below.
- Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes
- Knead again briefly and make small palm sized balls.
- Flatten dough balls with a rolling pin. Add dry flour so that the dough doesn’t stick to your rolling pin.
- Heat your cast iron pan and lay on these rotis.
- Finish on an open flame.
The recipe itself is pretty simple but making a roti is an art form. In my family, some people are legendary roti makers and I wanted to drill into every little detail that a recipe cannot encapsulate; the recipe beyond the recipe. This is one of those recipes that you have to learn with someone. One of the biggest things I learned during my pandemic deep-dive was that you have to stand next to an expert and feel the feelings of a recipe. I can’t stand next to you in your kitchen and make rotis but this video is by far the best example I have seen of making a perfect roti.