Chapati (or Roti)

Very simple. Great for any kind of Indian dish. I would almost say, you could completely replace the rice with this lovely, simple and crispy additive. Makes your meal a whole lot more Indian.

The dough is simple, but flattening it can be a little tricky, but there is an easy way to tell if it worked out perfectly: it puffs up evenly like a balloon. Something that I have not been able to achieve yet; I had too many creases and folds, but even then it works out great and definitely good enough.

What you need for 4 rotis:

• 1 cup of flour
• 1/4 cup of warm water
• Some vegetable oil for the hands
• Iron skillet works wonders - adds that rustique taste when it burns around the bubbles.
• Salt

1. Add warm water to salt and flour in a big bowl.

2. Mix together with hands or spoon. Makes a dough that is hardly sticky, but still quite malleable. Roll dough in your palms.

3. Take a knife and cut into four equal bits. Roll them into little balls again.

4. Now comes the tricky part. While the skillet heats up, without any oil, roll them out to a flat thing about 12cm in radius. Should be pretty thin (about a millimeter or less). I used a bottle of wine. Works great. Make sure you sprinkle flour everywhere, so it doesn't stick.

5. Place dough in pan. It will change colour. Flip when brown spots appear. Letting it burn just a tiny bit adds a great taste. It will puff up. That's a good sign.

6. Serve with your butter chicken or chickpea curry or whatever you like. For all I care, cover it in Nutella and peanut butter. Or perhaps lemon and sugar?

Quick and easy.

Tip: Flatten the dough when it puffs up a little. Spread the air within the roti.