Malabar Parotta

Step 1

Add the sugar, salt, oil and milk to the flour (Maida) along with the water, in the said order while mixing with your hand. When all the ingredients are homogenised - knead the dough till it forms a smooth ball.. Once you have a smooth ball, let it rest at room temperature for 10 minutes. After resting, roll it into a log and divide it into 4 smaller balls. Cover the smaller balls with oil generously. There are 2 methods for rolling these out.

Step 2

roll the ball out into a fairly thick circle with a rolling pin and add some oil on top.Put one hand’s fingers under the rolled out parota with the thumb over it, and the other hand’s fingers above the rolled out parota with the thumb under it - side by side. Lift the parota in a circular motion and swiftly slap it back down on the work surface. Keep moving clockwise/anti-clockwise so that the parota is extending evenly in all directions. Once it’s thin enough to see through - add more oil on top, gather the parota diametrically to make a rope (gather, do not fold) and role it from one end to the other to form a rose

Step 3

roll it out with your hands or rolling pin without the stretch and slap motion. Use a clean workspace where you can roll out the dough balls (will adding more oil gradually) with the rolling pin till it’s thin enough to see through. If you’d like to use your hand - gently use the heel of your palm to push the parota’s edges outwards. It’s essential that both the work surface and top of the parota are well oiled. Once it’s thin enough to see through - add more oil on top, gather the parota diametrically to make a rope (gather, do not fold) and role it from one end to the other to form a rose.

Step 4

Once the roses are formed, rest the dough for another 10 minutes.After the dough is rested, flatten it out into a disk and roll it out as you would a paratha while the pan is heating and plop it onto the hot pan. Lightly press and flip to get good colour - add more oil. As soon as you get the parota off the pan - crush it with your hands and serve hot!

Step 5

Resting the dough at different stages is essential - after kneading, and dividing into smaller portions. It allows the dough to maintain its elasticity and stretch properly. If the dough is not rested after shaping into roses - it will not form the beautiful layers that the Malabari Parota is famous for.

Step 6

Make the Parota on high heat and crush it right off the stove. It helps give the layers more definition and brings out the flakiness of the parota.

Step 7

If you’d like to make it in advance, you can also half-cook the parota and store it between sheets of butter paper in your freezer. to cook it - simply take it out of your freezer and cook it on your pan with some ghee - doesn’t need to be thawed.