Roti Canai | Malaysian Recipes | Malaysian Food | Malaysian Cuisine - Malaysia Kitchen NYC

Roti Canai Recipe

Hasni Ghazali, Bentara Restaurant, New Haven, CT
Serves 8 Serve with Curry Lentil Sauce

Directions

1) Mix the water, condensed milk and salt in a bowl.
2) In a different bowl, mix the flour and ghee and make a well in the center.
3) Pour the liquid ingredients in the well and knead outwardly until all the ingredients are incorporated.
4) Knead for about 5 minutes more to form a soft dough.
5) Drizzle the oil on the dough and knead for a couple more minutes.
6) Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for about 1 hour at room temperature.
7) Divide the dough into 8 portions and mound each into a ball. Coat the dough balls with a bit of ghee so they won't stick to each other. Let rest for 2 hours.
8) On a large, lightly floured surface, roll each ball until paper thin and between 24 and 30 inches in diameter. (Malaysian cooks achieve this thinness with a special technique called "tebar," by which the dough is flattened and tossed in the air several times.)
9) Fold four sides of the dough into the middle to form a square.
10) Melt a little bit of the ghee in a preheated cast-iron skillet (or a large griddle) over medium heat. Cook the roti one at a time, turning once or twice, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. (If using a griddle you can put as many roti on the griddle as there is space for).
11) Put the cooked roti on a flat surface and give it a light whack with your hand, then turn it 90 degrees and give it another light whack (doing this separates the layers a bit and makes the roti fluffier).

Ingredients

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 Tbs. sweetened condensed milk
  • 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
  • 2 1/2 cups high-gluten flour, more for dusting
  • 1 oz. ghee (or clarified butter), at room temperature; more for brushing and cooking
  • 1 Tbs. vegetable oil