Perfect chapatis and parathas everytime

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Perfect chapatis and parathas everytime

1geneg
Mar 28, 2007, 1:55 pm

I have tried and tried to make perfect chapathis, but am doing something wrong. Only about half of each chapati puffs up, and they tend to burn on the bottom.

Also, I would like some good paratha ideas.

2bluebead First Message
Mar 29, 2007, 6:04 am

umm..really wouldn't know what u are doing 'wrong' as it were. But I can take u thru the process...:)

Basically the aata itself can b the culprit at times. Is your aata soft and ? like a baby's bottom :). The trick to achieving this is to knead knead and knead. And at the end...a few drops of oil...on the ball of aata..and a little gentle knead. Keep aside.

Take a small portion ( keep it small in the beginning so that u get the trick). Roll into a ball, dip in dry flour, dont bother abt shape, bother about keeping the chapati the same width all through. Look at edges for this. Keep using dry flour when needed. On a heated tava ( flame minimum), place the roti, in abt 5 seconds, turn it over. Inc flame ( to full). The roti will start puffing in bits.When that starts happening, pick up the roti (with tongs!!), remove the tava, and place the roti directly on the flame. Turn once...Perfecto!

3geneg
Mar 29, 2007, 4:42 pm

I may not be kneading it enough. Also, I use durum flour instead of white (aata?). How important is an authentic tava to the process. I have access to an Indian grocery that sells tavas. Would your recommend buying one?

4rohinkumar First Message
Mar 30, 2007, 2:08 am

Umm...if you two are members of BREAD then who the heck are you? My guess is geneg is Uma...though I can't figure who bluebead is?

5bluebead
Mar 30, 2007, 2:30 am

hello...bluebead is moi- Disha; did i meet Uma when i had come in for the V S Naipaul discussion?

6rohinkumar
Mar 30, 2007, 4:36 am

Uma was there yes, but not sure if geneg is Uma though.

Knock, knock geneg....

7geneg
Mar 30, 2007, 8:45 am

I do not know anyone named uma. I live in suburban Dallas, Texas, USA and am interested in all types of bread, but the cuisine that I am most interested in in general is anything from the Indian subcontinent.

When I saw rohinkumar as the other member of the group at the time I thought it might be a good opportunity to discuss my chapati problem.

If I have wandered into a group meant to be private, or for a few friends and acquaintances, I apologize. If that's the case, let me know and I will drop out. Otherwise, let's break bread together.