The rich flakey layers of this South Indian bread goes perfectly with anything you are eating or just a cup of chai. No bread baking experience is necessary; only time and simple ingredients.
In a bowl mix together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder.
Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil onto the dry ingredients and using your hand, incorporate the oil into the flour by rubbing your fingers together. You are wanting a sandy texture. Drizzle another tablespoon of oil into the dry ingredients and work in as before.
Start adding the water a little at a time using your hand to bring the dough together. The exact amount of water you need will depend on the flour you are using, the temperature, and the humidity. The last time I made this recipe I needed 1 cup + a tablespoon. The dough will be shaggy and sticky. Don’t worry!
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured countertop, lightly oil your hands, your rolling pin, and the dough. Knead for 5 to 7 minutes, add flour a tablespoon at a time if the dough is too wet.
Coat the dough with a little oil, cover with a damp cloth, and allow it to rest for 30 minutes.
Knead for another 5 minutes, then divide the dough into 9 balls about 2-inches across. They will weigh around 72 grams if you like to weigh when you bake. Feel free to make the bread as small or large as it makes sense for you. Dividing this recipe into 9 pieces of dough will yield flatbreads approximately 6 inches in diameter.
Shape the balls so that they have a smooth surface. This can be done by folding the sides of the ball towards the center. Do this folding motion 3 or 4 times until you have a smooth ball of dough. Cover and rest for another 15 minutes.
Lightly oil the counter and the rolling pin before you begin. Taking a ball of dough roll it out as thin as possible. Roll from the center out in all directions. There is no need for a perfect round shape and if the dough tears, that is okay. All the resting you allowed the dough to do will allow it to be soft and stretchy. Dust with flour as needed.
You can create layers either by using a pizza cutter or a knife and cut 1/4-inch strips. If you would like to see this step in action, watch the video by Salu Kitchen. If you wish, jump to 4:43 minutes and you can see what the cutting looks like. See the Notes below on folding the dough into layers.
After cutting the dough into thin strips, mix the ghee and softened butter together. Brush this mixture sparingly over the cut dough and lightly dust with flour.
Starting on one side, roll your strips of dough carefully into a long gathered roll of strips. Beginning at one end, firmly roll the strips into a coil, tucking the end underneath. Flatten slightly and lightly oil each side. Allow it to rest another 10 minutes.
You can use a rolling pin to flatten your layered balls, but I find placing it in the center of a pie pan and using your fingers to flatten the dough out works best. Work from the center and press the dough out in all directions until the dough is approximate 6 inches across if you’ve divided the recipe into 9 balls.
Heat a skillet or tawa on medium-high heat. When your pan is hot, lightly oil it. You may have to play with the right heat for your stove. The pan needs to be hot enough to cook the bread, but since it is thicker than some flatbreads, you don’t want the heat to be so high it cooks on the outside but is raw in the middle.
Place the parotta on the hot pan and cook for about 2 minutes. It should have some nice browning on the cooked side. Turn it over and brush with ghee or oil. Cook for another couple of minutes, flip and oil or ghee the other side. Flip a time or two more to make sure that both sides have golden brown flecks, bread is crisp, and you don’t see any raw dough in the center. Adjust the heat as needed. Line a lidded pot with a kitchen towel and when each bread is done, place in the prepared pot to stay warm.
When all the flatbreads are cooked remove the stack from its nest and with a hand on each side of the breads, clap your hands together so that the layers separate. It may look a bit messy but that is the flakey glory of a Kerala parotta.
KEEPING: These flatbreads keep well in the freezer. Make the dough to the point when you are ready to cook it. Place wax paper between each shaped bread so they don't stick together. This will allow you to use as many or as little as you want at a time.
Notes
The most important tip is to rest the dough for layered Indian flatbread as suggested so that it is soft and pliable to work with. And so that the final bread is not stiff and tough.
You need oil to keep the dough from sticking but don’t use more than a couple of drops at time or the dough will become slippery and difficult to rollout.
To make the layers, instead of cutting the thinly rolled out dough into strips, you can fold the dough in 1/2-inch folds like an accordion beginning on one side and working your way to the opposite side. To watch this in action, see Vahchef’s method for folding.
You can substitute some whole wheat flour for the white all-purpose flour. I would love to hear about your successes on this, especially if you use more than half whole wheat.
Depending on your mood and what you are serving it with, you can dress parotta up with coarsely ground cumin seeds, chopped mint or cilantro, minced garlic, or red chili flakes.