A quick and easy recipe for warm, soft, lightly charred chapati. Ready in 40 minutes, I love to make these whilst my curry is bubbling away. The perfect vessel for mopping up that curry sauce.
150g(1 1/4 cups) plain (all-purpose) flourplus 4 tbsp extra for kneading and rolling
1tspsalt
3tbspvegetable oil
210ml(3/4 cup + 2 tbsp) hot water
Instructions
Place the wholemeal flour, plain (all-purpose) flour, and salt in a large bowl (or stand mixer bowl if you're kneading using a stand mixer) and mix together.
150 g (1 1/4 cups) wholemeal flour, 150 g (1 1/4 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour, 1 tsp salt
Add 2 tbsp of the oil and three-quarters of the water and mix again, adding more water as necessary until you have a soft dough that comes together.
3 tbsp vegetable oil, 210 ml (3/4 cup + 2 tbsp) hot water
Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 8-10 minutes until soft, smooth and elastic. You can knead in a stand mixer if preferred.
Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
Roll out each of the balls on a lightly floured surface, using a rolling pin, until they're as thin as a tortilla. Place each chapati on a piece of baking parchment to make transferring to the pan easier.
Brush a large frying pan or flat griddle with a little of the reserved oil and heat over a high heat until smoking hot.
Add a chapati to the pan and cook for 30-60 seconds, until charred brown spots appear. Turn the chapati over and cook the other side until charred spots appear.
Transfer to a plate and place in the oven on it's lowest setting (or place in a plate warming drawer if you have one).
Repeat with the remaining chapati, brushing the pan with a little oil each time before cooking.
Serve the chapatis warm.
Video
Notes
Can I make chapatis using only wholemeal flour?
Yes you can. You may need to add a little more water, as it will absorb more than plain (all purpose) flour.The plain (all-purpose) flour gives a lighter, slightly softer result. Using only wholemeal flour means the finished result will be slightly denser, but still delicious.
Can I leave out the oil?
Yes you can, and you can even cook them in a completely dry pan, with no oil. However the chapati won't be quite as soft, and will crisp up at the edges more quickly.
Can I make chapatis ahead of time?
Yes, you can do this in a few ways:
Make the dough ahead, then transfer to a covered bowl and refrigerate for up to a day. Allow to come up to room temperature for an hour before rolling into individual chapatis.
Par-cook the chapatis - by frying them in the pan until very lightly brown. Then cool, wrap in foil (or place in a covered container) in the fridge for up to 3 days. Finish the cooking by heating them individually in a large pan over a very high heat until brown spots appear.
Cook the chapatis as per the instructions, then cool, wrap in foil in piles of 2-3 (or place in a covered container) in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven (wrapped in foil - in piles of 2-3) at approx 170C/375F for approx 6-8 minutes. You need to wrap them in small piles, as if you reheat in a pile of ten chapatis, the heat of the oven won't penetrate to the chapatis in the centre.