Roti Canai: Secret to SOFT & FLAKY flatbread, just like in Malaysia

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Here's the definitive guide to making one of my favourite foods ever: Roti Canai. This flaky flatbread hails from Malaysia but traces its roots back to South India's Parotta/Paratha. It's such a textural experience — the crisp flaky exterior shatters apart to reveal tender chewy layers inside. The success of Roti Canai hinges on a perfectly strong yet extensible dough and careful technique. I tried so many recipes and was never able to make a good roti. So, I started experimenting. After going through 30+ recipe iterations and using up almost 10 kilograms of flour, I've finally created my own _perfect_ Roti Canai. Follow along and I'll teach you everything I learned. If you make the roti, please tag me on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/sheldoskitchen/ Sheldo's Very Best Roti Canai Dough - 300mL water, lukewarm (plus up to 3 tsp more water) - 60g (3 tbsp) condensed milk (sweetened) - 35g (2-1/2 tbsp) melted butter OR ghee - 12g (2 tsp) fine sea salt OR table salt - 20g (1-1/2 tbsp) sugar - 600g (4-1/4 cups) all-purpose flour Shaping - ~1/2 cup neutral oil Cooking - Ghee OR neutral oil + butter Make Dough 1. Add water, condensed milk, butter or ghee, salt, and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Stir together until thoroughly combined. 2. Add flour and stir with a spatula then switch to hands and knead to bring the dough together. If there’s excess dry flour, add up to 3 tsp more water. Knead only until all the dry flour is incorporated and the dough is free of any hard lumps. It’ll still be quite rough in texture. 3. Cover and rest 15 minutes. 4. Knead dough until smooth. Should only take about 30 seconds or so. 5. Divide dough into 10 equal portions. If weighing, they’ll be about 100g each. Shape each portion into a smooth tight ball. 6. Add about a 1/3 cup oil to a tray. Spread the oil all over. Generously coat each dough ball in oil. 7. Cover tray tightly and rest dough. At least 1 hour at room temperature. For better results, rest 3 hours at room temperature. For best results, place tray in fridge overnight. The next day, leave the tray at room temperature for 1 hour before proceeding. Stretch & Shape 1. Stretch each dough ball into a large and translucently thin sheet, either by tossing and stretching OR rolling and stretching. Shape by folding top and bottom sides to the centre and then left and right sides. Add some more oil and set aside to rest while shaping the other dough balls. Cook 1. Pre-heat non-stick skillet over medium for 2-3 minutes. 2. Cook the rotis in the order they were shaped. Right before cooking, stretch shaped roti one more time. 3. Add 2-3 tbsp ghee or oil to the pan. When lightly shimmering, place in roti. Cook until the bottom is golden brown. If roti puffs, press down lightly with spatula to encourage even cooking. Once the bottom is golden, flip over and cook other side. If using ghee, cook until both sides are golden and transfer out. If using oil, when the second side is lightly golden, add to the pan a knob of butter (1-2 tbsp). Swirl around to melt and coat both sides of the roti. Continue cooking until golden and transfer out of pan. 4. Place roti on a clean tea towel and allow to cool slightly, 30 seconds. Then, using tea towel to protect hands, vigorously clap the roti between two hands. Repeat until roti is fluffed up and flaky. 5. Serve immediately with curry dip. Dairy-free Dough Formula - 300mL alternative milk (oat, almond, soy, lactose-free, etc) - 35g (2-1/2 tbsp) margarine OR vegan butter, melted - 12g (2 tsp) fine sea salt OR table salt - 54g (4 tbsp + 1 tsp) sugar - 600g (4-1/4 cups) all-purpose flour Super Coconut-y Curry Dip - 1 cup full-fat coconut milk, divided (1/2 cup + 1/2 cup) - 2-3 tbsp Thai red curry paste - 1/4 tsp turmeric - 1/2 tsp five spice OR garam masala - 1/4 cup water - Few dashes fish sauce (sub soy sauce) - 1/4 tsp sugar - Salt to taste 1. Add 1/2 cup coconut milk to a small pot. Set heat to medium and reduce coconut milk until it’s thick, bubbly, and the coconut oil starts to separate out and sizzle, about 5 minutes. 2. Add curry paste to the pan. Stir together with the coconut milk and fry the mixture until a red oil separates out. Add turmeric and five spice. Stir constantly and cook for 20 seconds. 3. Immediately add the other 1/2 cup coconut milk, water, and fish sauce. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. 4. Add sugar and taste to see if it needs more salt. If the consistency is too thick, thin out by adding more water. The curry sauce should have the consistency of heavy cream. There will be a slick of red flavourful oil floating on the surface. 5. Serve right away with fresh Roti Canai. If refrigerated, the curry sauce will solidify. Reheat in the microwave before serving. 00:00 Intro 00:54 Why Roti Canai is so hard to make 01:22 Experiments 02:15 Dough (Recipe Begins) 04:40 Roti Canai History 05:21 Curry Dip 06:59 Stretching & Tossing 09:54 Shaping 10:33 Cooking 12:03 The Final Step 13:30 Freezing 14:13 Outro