Roti (Buttery Indian Flatbread)
I can’t get enough of this Roti bread recipe! It’s a super easy and delicious Indian flatbread. It is amazing when served with a saucy Indian dish and is perfect for sopping up extra sauce. Use lots of butter!
Originally posted March 28, 2012
One morning last week I was rushing around trying to get Charlotte and myself out the door. We were late for playgroup, and directly after that we had several errands to run. I was trying to simultaneously dry my hair, feed Charlotte oatmeal, and measure 2/3 cup cocoa into a padded envelope (for the cookie ingredients that I was sending in the mail to my sister Laura for her birthday of course. Happy birthday Laura! I texted her when she received it to see if the sticks of butter I sent were salvageable. She didn’t respond. Oops.)
I finally had everything ready to go and in my arms: purse, diaper bag, Charlotte, perishable butter package, checks/stamps/envelopes for the utility bills I was planning to finish writing at playgroup (so classy), Laura’s birthday card (a very very crafty piece of folded cardstock complete with a decorative sticker that was going to be the height of tangible birthday congratulations until I ran out of creativity. I ended up writing “Happy Birthday Laura” in fading permanent marker while sitting on the church gym floor at playgroup, after Charlotte had stolen and crumpled it several times. She’ll be framing that one.), and my keys. Wait, keys? Where are my keys? Nooooo!!!
After searching the entire house with a flashlight, I called Eric at work, exasperated. Check your pockets, you must have accidentally taken my keys. (I’m sure he could hear what I was really saying: This is all your fault. Sometimes I wonder why Eric puts up with me.) After he convinced me that he really didn’t have them, I dejectedly hung up and stared around my torn-apart house. Finally I decided to check my car. (Only after I fought the urge to grab my keys. How am I supposed to get in my car without the keys?)
So I took Charlotte with me down to the car, and there they were: sitting on the back seat in the unlocked car, fully visible from the window.
Sigh. At least we still have a car. And at least Eric got “I’m sorry” brownies later that day at work. I’m not entirely heartless.
How to make Roti – Indian Flatbread
This Roti flatbread is so delicious! I can’t get enough of it. It is really good by itself, but it is amazing when served with a saucy Indian dish, like this Chicken Tikka Masala I just posted, or this Indian Ginger Chicken. It’s perfect for sopping up extra sauce. This recipe is super easy. It can be made ahead of time and re-heated in the microwave with good results. Use lots of butter! You only live once!
Mmmmm… look at those bubbles!
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One year ago: Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles
Three years ago: Easy Queso Dip Potato Soup
Four years ago: Bacon, Gouda, and Spinach Frittata
Roti (Buttery Indian Flatbread)
Makes 6 roti adjust servingsIngredients
- 2 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour (I have used both and can't tell the difference)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 2/3 cup water
- lots more butter, for frying
Instructions
- In a large bowl, sift or whisk together flour and salt. Add melted butter and mix in with a fork until flour is crumbly. Mix in water until the dough pulls together. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. (I do all this in my stand mixer.) Cover and set aside for 45 minutes. (I have tried this with and without resting the dough and cannot tell a difference.)
- Divide dough into six equal parts. Form each part into a round. Roll out each round as thinly as possible; dust with flour if necessary to keep from sticking. (You seriously want to roll these out super-duper thin. Another tip: do not roll these out all at once and stack them with wax paper in between. It will stick to the wax paper and then you will want to tear your hair out. If you want to roll them all at once, spray wax paper with nonstick-spray, then stack.)
- Set a griddle to high heat, or if you are using a frying pan, set the stove a couple notches above medium heat. When the pan is hot, use a spatula to spread about a half teaspoon or so (eyeball it) of butter on the pan. The butter should melt immediately. Transfer very thin roti dough to the pan. Wait about 6 or 7 seconds, then flip the roti over. You may need to add more butter; if there is not enough, the roti will not be soft. Roti will cook in 30 to 50 seconds. You will know it is done when light brown spots appear on the side that is cooking. Flip the roti back to the original side (using more butter) just until the brown spots appear.
by The Food Charlatan
Source: adapted from Allrecipes.com
Check out these other amazingly delicious Indian-inspired recipes! Bring on the spice!
Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala <<<< The easier version of my favorite Chicken Tikka recipe
Slow Cooker Beef Curry <<<< Not strictly Indian but delicious curry flavors perfect to eat with Roti
6 Ingredient One Pot Vegetable Curry <<< A great vegetarian option
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Amazing. Such an easy recipe. It took me about 20/30 minutes maximum from weighing out the ingredients to putting it on my plate with my chicken curry. Very tasty. I would definitely make it again.
So happy you enjoyed it Andrea! Thanks for reviewing!
I’m not sure what kind of roti you’re trying to make, but Indian roti is not by any means buttery, and it’s made of whole wheat flour.
Roti is WW flour, water, and salt (per taste). That’s it.
this was delicious and easy to make whatever people wanna call it :)
My 10 yr old son made the dough and rolled it out. his sisters asked for a second helping of the flatbread. that’s saying something.
We had it with a chicken korma. And the kid also ate it with sugar.
thanks for the recipe :)
The roti CAN indeed be rolled out earlier and separated by lightly floured parchment sheets. No sticky!
I found I needed to change the amount of water as needed, but this is an excellent guide for rotis. Thanks!
Thank you so much! I love this recipe!
Wow – so good and so easy to make. I’ve been trying a lot of flatbread recipes lately but few use butter and the dough as a result is hard to get just right. But with the butter – they are soft and almost ‘flaky’. I used a little too much salt – but had it with left over rice which wasn’t quite salty enough – combined – perfection!
With respect to what is or is not Roti – I’ve enjoyed many varieties in Sri Lanka, India and the Caribbean. They all call it Roti – but no two were alike :) I’ll call this Charlatan Roti to satisfy the ‘purists’ below ;)
Charlatan Roti! I love it! Thanks for your input Jason!
Must use baking powder unless you use self rising flour, which in my opinion is too salty
Not a roti bro. Looks more like a naan. Also roti “bread/flatbread” is redundant. Roti literally means bread. And uses no butter. This isn’t a “spin” on roti it’s appropriation.
Whete is the baking powder?
Cant proceed without that?
I’m South Asian and this is not even remotely roti. Traditional roti is wheat flour and water. That’s it. My mom has made these everyday of my life.
This recipe looks really delicious and I will definitely give it a try because I have bread flour that I need to use. However, authentic roti chapati is made with a special flour called “atta”. This flour is what gives the chapati its signature texture and taste. How does this compare to that? Does it taste more like a tortilla?
Hey Bella! I’m not sure, I’ve never had truly authentic roti, I’ve never been to India. I just know that this recipe tastes delicious :) Sorry I can’t be more helpful!
Hi Bella
The “atta” you have mentioned is Hindi (an Indian language) for flour.
In case of roti, we use wheat flour mixed with water to make authentic rotis. We do not use any baking soda.
Once the dough is kneaded we apply some oil on the surface to prevent loss of moisture and to get soft rotis.
Cheers
Hey, you left out the baking powder, 1 teaspoon to 1 cup of flour.
You would not have a roti without the baking powder.
I’ve never heard that Judy, thank for the tip! I’ll have to try it next time.
I just tried this as I needed a quick recipe to go with some channa massala I bought at the store. Great instructions and great recipe! I did not have time to make the dough rest, but it still cane out really good. My husband was so impressed . I will surely try this recipe again with a curry or Tikka massala.
This would be so good with tikka masala! I’m so glad you liked the recipe Mel. Here’s my slow cooker tikka masala if you want to try it with that! It’s super easy and SO good. Thanks for commenting! https://thefoodcharlatan.com/slow-cooker-chicken-tikka-masala-recipe/
100% Roti my favourite will make in future
Ok so this has made so many of my dreams come true I can’t even begin to explain it to you. Have you tried roti as a dessert??? Because everyone in their right mind needs to! Please do another post where you put Nutella and bananas on it! In Thailand you can get these from street vendors with bananas and sweetened condensed milk. Andy and I gained a small child on our guts from this alone. Can’t wait to make this and I’m so glad I was scrolling through you recipe index and found this recipe!
“a small child on our guts” HA! I will never describe being full or gaining weight in any other way now, ever.
And I SO need to try this dessertified!! Nutella! Sweetened condensed miiiilk!!!!!!
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once in college i bought groceries for a luncheon at church. i unlocked the passenger side and started loading bags into the car, but my keys were getting in my way so i reached over and stuck them in the ignition. this was a new car, and i had trained myself well to always lock the door, so when i finished, i pushed down the button…and as i slammed the door shut i suddenly started yelling and doing a funny little ‘i-just-locked-my-keys-in-the-car’ dance. at least i knew right where they were!
HA! I wish I could see your awesome dance moves.
Sorry, I must have answered that text in my head instead of via a text back to you. I do things like that sometimes. I’ve also had key mishaps – both in the unlocked car, in my front door, and locked in my car that caused me to be parked in a stupid apt. complex’s lot past too late, thus getting a boot on my car. Oh yeah!
PS, I made the cookies (and the butter was the perfect creaming temperature) and they are, of course, fabulous. THANK YOU!!!!!
Yes! I knew it would work! Fabulous!!
I was sending her ingredients to make a specific cookie recipe. Those particular cookies are very delicate and if I had made them they would have been demolished by the time they arrived. I always send my siblings cookies on their birthday, and since I couldn’t send her the ones I wanted, I sent her the ingredients instead! Genius. Maybe.
And Roti is a lot simpler than Naan. Naan is basically bread (with yeast and eggs) that is fried. Roti has no rising agent, so it is truly flat. They serve the same function when eating Indian food, but they definitely taste different.
Ok, I have to ask – why were you sending Laura cocoa and butter through the mail for her birthday? I don’t get it. It’s not like she lives in a third-world country without butter and cocoa.
And the Roti look a lot like Naan. What’s the difference? They look delicious and they look like naan only round instead of long and oval.
I hear you on the keys, only I usually leave mine in the door so burglars and theives can just walk right in. Kind of me.