Roti (also known as Chappati), Punjabi Whole Wheat Flat bread

Ingredients:

-1 cup whole wheat flour

-1 cup white flour

Or you can buy Atta/chappati flour at an Indian grocery and use 2 cups of that 

-1 cup water

-olive oil or ghee (clarified butter)

Mix two types of flour, if using both. Mix in water a bit at a time. You want the

dough to be tacky, but not sticky.

Take a golf ball sized piece of dough, and roll into a sphere between your hands.

Then flatten and roll into a square using a rolling pin on a floured surface. The

dough should be maybe ⅛ to ¼” thick, you can experiment with how thin you

roll it. You don’t want it to tear when you lift it, and about 3-4 inches per side

is a good size.

Spread a thin layer of oil or ghee on the top, but not quite all the way to the edge.

A silicone brush or a spoon works well for this.

Mentally divide the square into thirds. Fold one edge ⅔ of the way over towards

the other side. Then fold the other side over to meet the folded edge of the first

fold, so you have 3 layers on top of each other, ⅓ of the width of the square you

started with. Fold the same way in the other direction, so you end up with a

square again.

Now roll out this square out, not quite as thin as the first time. Again,

experiment with what thickness works for you. (I promise you will do better

than the roti making machine I once tasted roti from.)

Heat a skillet over medium high heat. You want it hot, but not smoking. Spread

oil/ghee over one side of the roti, and put that side down in the pan. Spread

oil/ghee over the top side. 

If you’ve mastered rolling the dough out, your roti should form bubbles or even

puff up like a pillow while it’s cooking. (If it puffs well you are ready to get married,

per tradition. If there is someone ready to marry you is a different question.)

You can use a folded dish towel to push down on the edges to help them cook

if they’ve lifted off the pan. After a couple minutes, when the side touching the

pan is cooked, flip over and cook the other side. If you have a gas stove, you

can then use tongs to put the roti directly over the flame for a couple of seconds

to get it to puff up once more. It’s fine for there to be some darkened spots, but

the whole thing should not be charred. 

Rotis are probably the first thing I (Elisabeth) ever learned how to cook, standing

on a chair to reach the counter in Grandma’s kitchen.

The aunties can make perfectly round ones! The reason we make square ones

is that Grandma could never get the hang of making them perfectly round. The

aunties will reroll them for you before cooking if they are not perfect.

You can sprinkle with salt and pepper, or even top with Peanut Butter! (That was

Vilo Kay’s topping of choice as a child.)

A traditional Punjabi breakfast is roti with plain yogurt and lemon or mango pickle.

The yogurt can be sprinkled with pepper as well. Or make an omelet and have

the roti with it.

Channa Masala (Chickpea and Tomato Curry)

Cooking oil (vegetable or olive)

1 large onion, yellow or red, diced 

1 Tablespoon grated fresh Ginger (or to taste) 

2 cloves garlic 

3 chopped fresh tomatoes, or stewed/canned tomatoes 

1 Tablespoon (or more to taste) Chana Masala (premixed spice found

at Indian grocery)

1 teaspoon salt

2 cans garbanzo beans or the equivalent cooked from dry.

3 cups water

½ teaspoon baking soda

Can also add lots of fresh dill (use more like a vegetable than

a herb or garnish)

In a large pan, heat oil to medium, add onions and cook until browned.

Add garlic and ginger, and then tomato, spices and chickpeas. Stir

occasionally for 5 min and then add water and baking soda. Bring to a boil

and cover. Simmer for 40 min on low heat.

(Or in pressure cooker for 20 min with 1 ½  cups water instead of 3 cups)

Water amount and cooking time based on using dry beans that have been

soaked overnight. 

I like mine drier, so I cook uncovered for a bit after the 40 min.

You can add more water if you like more of a sauce.

Serve over rice or with chapati (flatbread).

Indian dish: Saag (spinach)

This is James & Nicole's recipe for the dish, with some 
edits by Elisabeth. You can make a similar dish with just 
about any greens--such as red leaf (amaranth leaves) or  
zucchini--in place of the spinach or in addition to. 
Some recipes use one part spinach and one part mustard 
greens.

-One large onion (yellow or white)

-4 cloves garlic

-Olive or canola oil

-2 lbs frozen spinach (can also use fresh if you prefer)

-ginger root, about 1 inch piece or more to taste.

-small can evaporated milk (optional, but makes 
a cream-like sauce)

-1/2 t tumeric

-1/3 t chili powder

-1 t coriander

-3/4 t salt

-Optional: to make Saag Paneer (spinach with cheese) buy a

block of paneer at the Indian grocery (in the refrigerated

section, looks kind of like super firm tofu.) Chop into

cubes.

Chop onion fairly fine. Chop or press garlic. Grate the

ginger using a fine grater and keep the liquid as well.

Defrost spinach, squeeze some of the liquid out.

Heat oil in skillet on medium high, add onions and 
cook until soft and yellowed. Add ginger, cook a few 
more minutes. Add spinach & garlic, add more oil if needed. 

Turn down to a simmer, stirring occasionally. If using

evaporated milk, add and keep heat low enough so that it

won't curdle. If using paneer add cubes now. Add spices and

continue to simmer until thickened. (The longer you can

simmer it, the better.)

This dish may not look the most appetizing, but it is one

of my (Elisabeth's) favorites!