Chapati
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Chapati or chapatti (Urdu: چپاتی, Marathi: पोळी Hindi: चपाती, IPA: [tʃəpɑt̪i]; Turkmen: Çapady) is a thin, unleavened flat bread (roti) of South Asia and East Africa. It is also found in Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ghana and parts of West Africa.
Origin
Chapati historically and originally finds mention in Ain-i-Akbari , a 16th century document, by Mughal Emperor, Akbar’s vizier, Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak [1].
Size
Chapati sizes vary depending on region and change slightly from kitchen to kitchen. In general, a Pakistani chapati is between 15 and 30 cm (~6-12 inches) in diameter while an Indian chapati is usually smaller, ranging from 12-15 cm (~5-6 inches) in diameter, although it can be as small as 5 cm across.[2]
Chapatis are made from a dough consisting of atta flour (whole grain durum wheat), water, and salt. The dough is rolled out into discs of approximately 14 cm in diameter on a platform with a rolling pin. It is then heated on both sides on a very hot, dry tava or frying pan (preferably not one coated with Teflon or other nonstick material).
If the chapati is held for about half a second directly into an open flame, causing it to puff up with steam, it becomes the Gujrathi and Punjabi phulka. This steaming can also be achieved by placing the chapati in a microwave oven for five to ten seconds. However, because microwave can cause chapatis to become soggy, a heated grill or open gas flame is often used.
Often, the finished chapatis are smeared with ghee (clarified butter). Variations include replacing part of the wheat flour with pearl millet (bajra) or maize (makka) or (jowar) flour. The chapatis are referred to in Urdu and Hindi as "bajra roti" or "makke ki roti" and in Marathi and Gujarati as "bhakri". When a mixture of pearl millet, maize and gram flour is used, the chapati is called a missi roti. In the southern and eastern parts, one cannot have that option for all the terms roti, chapati, paratha or kulcha would imply majorly, if not exclusively maida contents. In some parts of Maharashtra, chapati is called poli. In Gujarat and Punjab it is called rotli or phulka.
Accompaniment
Chapatis are usually eaten with cooked dal (lentil soup), vegetable curry, chicken and mutton curry dishes, and pieces of the chapati are used to wrap around and pick up each bite of the cooked dish.
See also
References
- ^ Of Bread Ain-i-Akbari , by Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak. English tr. by H. Blochmann and Colonel H. S. Jarrett, 1873 – 1907. The Asiatic Society of Bengal, Calcutta, Volume I, Chapt, 26, page 61.
- ^ Bladholm, Linda (2000). The Indian Grocery Store Demystified. Macmillan. p. 35. ISBN 1580631436.
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