Wait a moment and have a look. No seriously, have a look. Could there be a bread preparation more aesthetically pleasing than this. An absolute delight for eyes, it is no surprise that this roti originates from the land of kings- Rajasthan.
It is the largest state of India by area in which a vast majority of land is the part of Thar Desert. The food that evolved in this state over the period of centuries was deeply influenced by geographical conditions.
Scarcity of water and huge tracts of desert land made vegetation and cultivation very difficult. As they say “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”. This phrase is apt to describe the general populace of Rajasthan. They are the brilliant innovators, which is what explains culinary gems like ker-sangri (Ker- a berry, sangri- beans), bina pani ki roti, khus khus ki roti and several other masterpieces that took the Indian culinary scene by storm.
Being an arid state, wheat, pearl millet and sorghum are some of the commonly produced cereals in Rajasthan and several varieties of rotis are made from its flour. Khoba roti is made of wheat and looking at the ingredient list one can derive that it is a fairly simple preparation. What could be more challenging is that eye-pleasing carving that is visible in the images. It needs to be rolled out flat and thicker than the normal chapatis/phulkas and therefore one must be watchful while cooking it. The outer crust of the bread attains a bit of smoky flavor by direct exposure to flame and also is a bit crisp. The inner surface is soft and perfectly cooked.
A perfect simple Rajasthani lunch for me is Khoba Roti, Rajasthani Panchmel Dal and Lasuni Chutney. Typing these name is making me crave for this meal. Time to end this post and head for the kitchen. Delve into Rajasthani delight this week and remember to post your comments below.
Check out some more Rajasthani dishes
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 3-4
- 300 grams wheat flour
- 1 tbsp crushed dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
- 2 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)
- 1 tsp salt
- Clarified butter (Ghee)
- We will start with kneading the dough.Put salt, carom seeds.crush kasuri methi between your palms,1 tbsp ghee. Mix all ingredients.
- Add water for kneading.Dough should not be as soft as roti dough. Apply some ghee to the dough and allow it to rest for 15 mins.Divide the dough into large sized balls.
- Heat an iron griddle.Dust with some flour and roll the balls flat into a shape of roti. Roll it into thick rotis. Khoba roti must be rolled out thick.Now we will pinch the edges. Make indents in the inner circle.
- Heat an iron griddle.Reduce the heat to medium level.Place the roti on hot griddle and cook the underside.underside is cooked in about 3 mins.Cook rotis from the other side.Let's cook the roti on open flame.
- Khoba roti must be cooked from both sides and also at edges.Pour generous quantity of ghee on the cooked roti. Make other rotis similarly.
- Aesthetically pleasing and absolutely delicious khoba roti. Can be served with Dal Tadka, Panchmel Dal and tastes delicious with Lasuni chutney
Click here to watch recipe video
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