Chapatis With Salt And Spice

Total Time: 1 hr 45 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 2 cups atta flour
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Recipe

• 1 place the atta flour in a medium bowl and make a well in the center.
• 2 add the water and stir until a soft dough forms.
• 3 turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead until smooth.
• 4 return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and let stand 1/2 to 1 hour so that the dough can relax.
• 5 toast the cumin seeds in a heavy skillet, stirring until they start to brown and smell good.
• 6 remove the cumin, grind in a mortar or spice mill, and set aside.
• 7 in the same fashion, toast and grind the black pepper and set aside.
• 8 split the dough into eight pieces by rolling it out into an oblong, then cutting it in halves, then quarters, then eighths.
• 9 take one piece of dough, roll out into a circle about six inches in diameter, and spread lightly with some of the olive oil.
• 10 sprinkle the bread round with a pinch of the cumin, peppercorns, salt, and chopped cilantro (use 1/8 of each) on the bread.
• 11 roll the bread up into a cylinder, then roll the cylinder up like a snail shell, and then roll out once more into a circle.
• 12 toast the bread on a heated, lightly oiled griddle for 1-2 minutes a side or until lightly toasted.
• 13 repeat with the remaining bread.
• 14 keep the toasted breads on a plate or basket, covered with a clean dishtowel to keep them warm until serving.
• 15 to freeze the breads before cooking, stack the bread rounds with a piece of waxed paper between each pair, then wrap in foil or place in a freezer bag.
• 16 ingredient note: atta flour is a semi-refined flour made from durum wheat. it has some of the bran removed, but isn't all the way processed like the all-purpose flour you find in an american supermarket. according to one source i found, there are different grades of indian flour -- the one with the least bran removed is atta, then there's sooji, then there's maida which seems almost like a cake flour, very finely milled. other sources say that atta has only the husk removed and that it's wholemeal, and it also seems that it varies from brand to brand -- for example, sujatha brand is supposedly wholemeal, golden temple brand contains some maida. you can get atta at indian or many asian groceries, sold in bags just like all-purpose flour in a supermarket, or you can get it mailorder from somewhere like namaste.com, or another suggestion i haven't tried is to substitute red mill 100% whole wheat flour. you can also use all-purpose flour, which is what the recipe i adapted from calls for, but if you can get the atta i think you'll like it better.