Category: Roti / Flatbread

I have also joined the Sourdough baking marathon after waiting for 3 months and giving in right after the lockdown is getting lifted partially. Though there are so many recipes out there with sourdough crackers and pretzels etc. how can you not try it in Indian cuisine given that the starter is wheat flour 😛 But it resulted in a light sour and extremely soft chapatis that stayed soft till lunch the next day !! And let me tell you “perfect round roti” is overrated. As long as it is cooked it can be eaten.

Need-

• 2 cups – Aata (Wheat flour)
• 1-2 tbsp – sourdough discard (non fed)
• Water 1/2 a cup .

Process –

• Mix the aata and discard. Now knead well by adding water slowly or sprinkling every time you add water. Kneed it into a soft pliable dough. Rest it for 15 minutes.
• Now heat a iron flat pan or nonstick , make small balls out of the dough.
• Dust each roll and flatten using a rolling pin. Keep dusting with flour till you have rolled it out thin.
• Remove excess fouls if any and place on the pan. Wait till you see small bubbles appear on the side facing the pan, now turn and cook the other side. It will puff nicely . Avoid flipping continuously as this will make it hard. The key is to turn it only once.
• Add oil or ghee on both sides and serve.

Cabbage is not a vegetable that is loved by many but when prepared in a manner where it incorporates other flavours it is definitely to be enjoyed. Cabbage creates gas hence adding ginger /garlic /carom seeds/hing is necessary. R hates cabbage. So when it is camouflaged he relishes it. But this time I made sure he also eats the cabbage sabzi. So it was everything cabbage for dinner.

Need –

• Cabbage – chopped – 1 small
• Wheat flour + Ragi/Bajra flour – 1 1/2 cup
• Green chilli – 2 chopped
• Coriander – handful – chopped
• Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
• Rock Salt
• Carom seeds – 1 tbsp
• Garam masala – 1 tsp
• Water
• Oil/ Ghee

Process –

• Chop and wash the cabbage .
• In a bowl take the wheat flour mix. Add everything except water.
• Mix well and the add water slowly to kneed.
• Close and keep aside for 15 minutes. Kneed again
• Make small balls and flatten them like rotis using flour dusting.
• They usually tend to be a bit thick. Heat a pan and cook on both sides by applying oil or ghee.
• Serve with either chutney or pickle or curd.

Beetroot is an excellent source of fibre and for blood pressure and blood flow. Beetroot cutlets are famous (recipe to come soon some day). Some day while going through some recipe ideas , I read about beetroot pancakes and wanted to try that. Days passed and the beetroot was dying hence had to use it. So it was a ‘beetroot’ packed dinner of beetroot roti and beetroot chole. Chole recipe to follow.

Need –

• Beetroot – 2 – small
• Water
• Wheat flour – 1 cup – small
• Ragi flour / Finger millet flour – 1 cup – small
• Salt
• Carom seeds/carom seeds – 1 tbsp
• Curd – 1 tbsp
• Ghee

Process –

• Peel and cut beetroot into 4. Pressure cook with water for 3-4 whistles till well cooked.
• When cool , grind and make a paste.
• In a bowl , take the paste and add rest of the items except water and ghee. Crush the carom seeds in-between the palms.
• Mix and add water little by little to kneed into dough. Use the water from boiled beetroot to kneed if you are making a different side dish.
• Close and keep aside for 20 minutes
• Kneed again and roll into small ball ,Flaten them by using a rolling pin
• Heat a flat pan and cook them on both sides by flipping only once till brown spots appear on both sides.. Apply ghee and serve

Cheela is a Gujrathi dish which a vegetarian omelet as the world calls it. It a quick , yummy and full of protein dish. Cheela doesn’t always suit everyone as chickpea flour has a tendency to be gaseous. So to reduce it and to make it more nutritious is the addition of bajra+ ragi flour. It usually consists of only tomatoes and onion in the batter.

Need –

• Besan (Chickpea flour) + Bajra (pearl millet) – 1 cup
• Onion – chopped – 1
• Cabbage – chopped – handful
• Tomato – chopped – 1
• Coriander – handful
• Green chilli – chopped – 1
• Chat masala/ Amchur – 1 tsp
• Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
• Rock Salt
• Water / curd
• Oil

Process –

• In a bowl add the chopped vegetable , add the salt , chilli powder and chat masala.
• After 5 minutes when it leaves water , add the besan and bajra , coriander and green chilli.
• Add water and curd to get to a poring batter consistency
• In a pan, pour a ladle and spread thin. Add oil around and cook
• Flip and cook the other side till brown spots appear.
• Serve with a chutney made or coriander + mint + garlic + salt and 1 dry red chilli.