Chapati

2. January, 2009

A chapati must be the simplest bread to make in the whole world! Even though it is simple, it is delicious with curries, stews, rice, dhals (lentil soups) and more. You can always find a place for chapatis with your meal! Note that traditionally chapatis vary in size and shape between regions, with Pakistani chapatis being slightly larger than Indian for example. Well size doesn't matter because you can enjoy chapatis whatever the shape or size.

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A simple bread perfect with soups, dhal (lentil soups) and curries and more.

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This recipe is:

Egg free
Lactose (dairy) free
Nut free
Vegan

Chapati

Makes about 10

Ingredients

250 grams(8½ oz) spelt flour
1 teaspoon salt (Himalaya or sea salt)
200 millilitres (7 fluid oz) hot (freshly boiled) water
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Preparation

Mix together 250 grams spelt and 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl.
Make a well in the centre of the bowl.
Pour the 200 millilitres of hot water and 1 tablespoon coconut oil carefully into the mix and stir together with the large wooden spoon. Let the dough cool for 5 minutes.
Knead the dough for 10 minutes or until the dough becomes soft (though not sticky) – you may find that you have to add a further tablespoon or so of water or spelt to get the right consistency.
Cover the bowl and place in the fridge (or in a cool place) for 30 minutes.
Knead the dough again for 2 minutes and divide into 12 small balls. You can use an electric scale and divide by weight.
Prepare a floured surface, turn the dough out on to it and roll out to a round to fit the base of a approximately 20 centimetres (8 inches) frying pan. Don't worry about jagged edges, chapatis are often irregular in shape.
Heat the frying pan to nearly maximum heat. You will not need any extra oil.
Heat each side of the chapati for 2 minutes. The surface of the chapatis will become blistered and bubbles will form. This is perfectly normal. The blisters will become slightly burnt which gives the chapatis character. They should of course not turn black all over!
The chapatis should feel a bit dry and hard where the blisters have formed but will be fairly soft on the inside.
Serve immediately with some coconut oil (or whichever oil your prefer).

Tips

You can freeze the chapatis when cooled and warm up for later. Chapatis are excellent re-heated in the toaster.
If the coconut oil is cold (in which case it becomes solid), place the jar in a bowl filled with hot water for a couple of minutes.
You can add fresh herbs to these chapatis, use basil, coriander or thyme.
You can use wholemeal flour instead of the spelt flour.