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Growing up in a typical Indian household includes at least one meal filled with a plate of rotis. Since traditionally, the rotis are made with wheat flour, they can hinder your gluten-free diet. But who said you have to bid the soft rotis goodbye if you are working your way towards a millet-forward diet?
From bajre ka atta to ragi, no matter which millet flour you like, you can make soft flatbreads to pair with your curries and sabzis. If you’re following the recipe but are still ending up with a harder texture, here are some tips you can follow. So, get your aprons on and enjoy your Indian meal paired with a nutrient-rich and soft millet roti.
Picking The Millet Flour
The market is filled with millet options. From bajra (pearl millet) to jowar (sorghum), you can choose one or a mixture of multiple flours to make a roti. However, each flour can affect the texture of your roti; you should note that since bajra can absorb moisture, it is the perfect choice for making flatbreads. Also, a dough kneaded with jowar atta is easy to roll into rotis, so you can give sorghum flour a try as well.
Knead The Dough With Hot Water
Once you have picked the flour, the next step is to knead a smooth dough. Depending on how soft and fluffy your dough is, the texture of your roti can largely vary. For the best dough, you can take hot or lukewarm water as it helps break down the starch content, thus making the dough smoother. Since the millet dough doesn’t have gluten, make sure to knead the dough with your hands, which helps to keep rotis softer after they are cooked.
Resting And Rolling
After the dough is kneaded, you can apply some oil on the sides and let it rest. Keeping a resting time for a minimum of 30 minutes can help allow the gluten-free dough to hydrate well. Then, you can take small portions of the dough dough and shape them into balls. While rolling the dough into the rotis, avoid applying too much pressure, which can make the roti denser and harder.
Cooking Techniques
The amount of heat and the cooking appliance also hold the power to make or break the fluffiness of your rotis. It is recommended that you use a a cast iron tawa to cook rotis as it dissipates the heat throughout for a uniformly cooked flatbread. Also, cook the roti on both sides on medium heat and press it lightly with a cloth to make it fluff.
Add Ghee
Once you get a fluffy roti, apply some ghee or homemade butter, which will help enhance a soft texture. If you want a vegan alternative, you can always use olive oil or coconut oil.
Storing The Rotis
If you are preparing rotis in advance and are not serving them immediately, you need to store them properly. To ensure that the millet rotis remain soft for a longer period of time, you can wrap the warm rotis in a napkin or kitchen towel and then place them in an insulated casserole.
