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Homemade Chapatis Recipe

An easy recipe for traditional Indian homemade chapatis, which are flatbreads served with curry.



Homemade Chapatis Recipe


I thought I would try my hand at making chapatis to serve with our Indian meal.

I found a simple recipe by Gayatri Verma on an archived BBC news page from way back in 2003 and converted it into cup measures.

It was easy and it was great fun to make. Especially when I got to hold the chapatis over gas flames to make them puff up.

What are Chapatis?


Chapatis are an Indian flatbread often served with curries.

They are made from chapati or wholemeal flour, oil and water.


How do you make chapatis?


The dough is brought together and kneaded lightly, then left to rest for 10 minutes. Then it is rolled into balls, then rolled out into a flatbread shape.

You then cook then in a hot frying pan or griddle for a couple of minutes on each side.

To puff it up, you then hold it over an open flame. This is where a gas hob comes in handy.


Serve chapatis with curry


The chapatis were just perfect for mopping up the curry sauce and with such an easy and reliable recipe, you can't go wrong.

I do think the chapatis could have done with some seasoning, fresh herbs or a little spice.

I know they don't include any of these as they are just there as an accompliament to spicy food, but I will be adding a little extra flavour next time.

Try them with this easy chickpea curry made with canned chickpeas and tomatoes.




chapatis, flatbread, Indian flatbread, Indian chapatis
bread
Indian, vegan
Yield: 12-14

Homemade Chapatis

Easy traditional Indian homemade chapatis to serve with curry.
prep time: 15 minscook time: 10 minstotal time: 25 mins

ingredients


  • 3 ¼ cups chapati flour (or wholemeal flour)
  • 1 tbsp oil 
  • 1 cup water approx
  • extra flour for dusting

instructions


  1. Mix flour and oil in a bowl and rub lightly. Add water gradually
    and knead it at the same time until a soft dough is formed. Cover and leave it
    for 10 minutes.
  2. Divide the dough into 12 small portions. Dip one portion at a time in the plain flour and roll it with a rolling pin on the board, dipping it in the dry flour frequently to prevent sticking.
  3. In the meantime heat a griddle/frying pan and put the rolled chapati in the pan. Cook one side for 20 to 30 seconds, turn it over and then cook the other side.
  4. Now remove the pan and put the chapati on a high flame for few seconds and soon it will puff up.
  5.  Using a tong, turn the chapati over and wait for few seconds until brown spots appear this side.
  6. Remove from flame and put it on a kitchen towel. 
  7. Repeat the process with rest of the flour balls.
  8. Serve these hot with any curry. 
  9. Enjoy!

NOTES:

To keep the chapatis soft and warm, wrap in foil. They can also be warmed in a microwave for few seconds just before eating.
calories
107
fat (grams)
3.4
sat. fat (grams)
1.3
carbs (grams)
16.1
protein (grams)
2.5
sugar (grams)
0.7
Created using The Recipes Generator

Serve the chapati with...


26 comments

  1. Oh, YUM. These are just evil and habit-forming, aren't they??? I rarely make them because I can sit down and eat the whole batch, curry or no, just with butter. These look quite tasty! I've added chives and fresh Spring onions to mine; they are a bit bland otherwise.

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  2. Chives and spring onions would be great in these Tanita :)

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  3. Throw in some whole cumin seeds and about half as many whole fennel seeds. Yum! We did them on a very hot frying pan, and it worked nicely ('though they did want to stick until the pan got really smoking hot).

    Oooh - may have to make some this evening.

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  4. Those were the spices I was thinking of adding David, although I did think they would be lovely with fresh coriander thrown in. Got yourself in the mood now huh?

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  5. You have me thinking because I wonder what chapati flour consists of. I will have to find out, see if it is available here and get cracking:D

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  6. I prefer chapatis to naans - will have to have a go at making them

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  7. I am always so impressed when people make chapatis or naans! These look perfect - good job Jac! x

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  8. Was chapatis flour difficult to find? These look great. Indian bread is one thing that I really want to make but haven't yet done so. Your recipe is just what I needed.

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  9. Hi Val and TB, Chapati flour is stoneground wholewheat flour. I bought it from an indian supplier.

    They are so easy Beth, I was very impressed and wondered why I hadn't made them sooner.

    Thanks Lucie :)

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  10. never tried these but your courage in the face of fire is inspiring - I think some salt would help the flavour - most breads have salt so am surprised these have none

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  11. You make it sound so easy...I 've been wanting to make chapati but am affarid of it, for some reason.

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  12. Jacqueline, I never had chapatis, they sure look yummie, have to try soon :-)

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  13. I don't have a gas hob - will have to wait until we light a fire ot make these!!!!

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  14. Hi Johanna, yes, I think they needed some salt to, but then I suppose that indian food is so heavily spiced that it was never included.

    They are easy to make Rita, I was very surprised. You should give them a go :)

    They are just perfect for mopping up sauce Juliana :)

    Hi Brownieville Girl, I'm not sure how these would be without the flames. You could try just cooking them through in the pan.

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  15. I have GOT to make these. (Probably would eat them all before I got anything prepared to use with them!)
    Definitely for the grill...that lovely smokey flavor. And perhaps add some ramps or scallions? Yum.

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  16. Mmmmmm, that's a great idea Barbara, start them off in the pan, then throw them on the bbq.

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  17. The chapatis look perfect!

    Maria
    x

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  18. They look great, just the thing for mopping up all the yummy sauces from a curry. Where on earth did you get the flour from?

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  19. Thanks Maria :)

    I got the flour from the indian section in Tesco. It is always the best value for spices, beans, lentils and flours.

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  20. When I read the title of this post I thought there was going to be a fire situation! They look great!

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  21. It still gives me the same message that there is malware from bolgio.net. But I proceeded anyway :)

    Good to know you're enjoying Indian food! Its an easy, flavorful way to eat veggie food. And your chapathis are even better than mine!

    We sometimes add carom seeds or cumin and cayenne pepper to the dough. Adding veggies makes it a paratha :)

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  22. And we do add salt to the dough!

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  23. Yeah and if you knew me well and how clumsy I am, you wouldn't be surprised if I did have a fire situation Alex, he he!

    I checked again A&N and it is still coming up clear. Glad you managed to leave a comment anyway. If anyone else knows about this bolgio.net, please let me know.

    Nice spices to add to the chapatis A &N, mmmmmmmmmmm and I am with you on the salt too :)

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  24. Those look gorgeous! And how fun to make them. I wish I had a gas stove.

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  25. Try them on the bbq as Barbara suggested Ashley :)

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  26. wow..good to see that you like chapatis so much. This is our regular menu here in India. You can add green leafy vegetables while kneading the dough to make them more nutritious. Great post indeed.

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I love reading comments, so thank you for taking the time to leave one. Unfortunately, I'm bombarded with spam, so I've turned on comment moderation. I'll publish your comments as soon as I can and respond to them. Don't panic, they will disappear when you hit publish. Jac x