Free from Friday’s: Gluten free roti’s

Gluten free Roti’s by Chinskitchen

Do I hear you say  really? Gluten free roti’s? Yes, you are absolutely correct, this week’s post focuses on gluten free and that even roti to go with a range of free from curry dishes. In Indian cuisine, a meal isn’t complete without roti (also known as chappati )or paratha or naan bread, for those who follow a gluten free diet it restricts them to eating flavoursome and exciting curry dishes with rice. So why should you miss out when you can make these delightful roti’s at home, the great thing about it is it will last you for at least two days, yes you need to warm it up if eating it the next day but there is no compromise on taste or texture. Even those who usually consume wheat base roti’s will enjoy these. To make these roti’s I have combined four different types of flours to achieve the correct texture and taste: gluten free self raising flour, Rajagro flour known as Amaranthus flour, Singoda flour known as chestnut flour and cornflour. Are you looking baffled by these names? Fear not, these flours are readily available at all Indian supermakets hence giving you both the Indian names and English names for it.

Rajagro and Singoda flours are both used in Gujarati cuisine mainly during fasting. Rajagro or Amaranthus flour is made from ground amaranth seeds which is gluten free, known to be low in carbohydrates, rich in iron, protein, magnesium,fibre and lysine. Amaranth flour works really well as a substitute in many recipes and dishes. Singoda flour or Indian water chestnut flour is derived from the starchy seeds of the fruit, it is a good source of vitamins and minerals, low in calories, rich in Vitamin B ,fibre and Potassium. According to web source it makes a good choice of flour for diabetics due to its  mentioned properties and fact it is fat free. In addition it is also known to be great for detoxifying.  By knowing all the wonderful properties these flours have doesn’t it make you want to try them? Oh and it doesn’t stop at it been consumed as just plain roti’s, since these have been made I’ve used them as wraps, tortilla for tortilla tower stack and as crackers/crisp by crisping them in the oven. See didn’t I tell you that you will not want to miss out, one recipe creates many wonderful dishes. So go on have a go, the instructions are detailed and where possible pictures have been added to help you with the process.

Gluten Free Roti’s

Preparation time: 5-8 minutes
Cooking time: 20-30 minutes
Makes: 6-8 roti’s

Ingredients:

3/4 Cup Gluten free self raising flour plus extra for rolling out
1/2 Cup Rajagro/Amaranth flour
1/2 Cup Singoda/Water chestnut flour
3 Tbsp Corn flour
Pinch of salt
1Tbsp oil
140 ml Slightly warm water ( make sure it is not too warm or hot)
Butter for spreading (for dairy free or vegan you can substitute)

Method:

1. In a bowl, add all the flours and salt, stir them together, make a well and pour oil and water. Using your hands, knead mixture and bring together to make a dough. Break off into 6-8 dough balls approx size of golf balls. Leave aside.

2. Set up your work area with roti board if you have one or you can roll out roti on a clean work surface. Place a roti pan or frying pan on medium heat. Have some gluten free self raising flour available in a small bowl as you will require to dip the dough pieces in that prior to rolling.

3. Take a piece of dough ball, roll it into a ball shape between your palms, dip it into the self raising flour, place it on your roti board and flatten slightly to form a small disc. Using your rolling pin, roll your roti, you may need to sprinkle some more flour to prevent sticking. Apply even gentle pressure when rolling to prevent the dough from tearing.

4. Place your roti on the roti pan, you will notice many raised bubbles forming, cook one side for about 50 seconds, flip it over and cook the other side for about a minute.

5. Now this is a tricky part, take the roti pan off the heat, place you roti on open flame for 1-2 seconds, flip it over for another 1-2 seconds. This will give the effect you see on my pictures. If you are not comfortable with this step then you can avoid it, what you will need to do is scrunch up a kitchen towel and whilst the roti is cooking in the pan, gently apply some pressure all around the roti to ensure it cooks through.

6. Spread butter or suitable alternative over the roti.

7. Repeat the process until you finish all the dough. Serve these delicious roti’s hot or if making in advance, re heat roti’s in the pan.

Here’s some of curry dishes that would go well with these roti’s

Roasted Spice and Coconut Flour stuffed Vegetable curry

Classic Spinach and Moong dal curry

Kasoori Methi aur Mitha Aloo ki Subzi

Creamy Spinach and Kale curry

Black turtle bean Dal Makhani