Chapati (alternatively spelled chapatti, chappati, chapathi, or chappathi; pronounced as IAST: ), also known as ''

roti Roti (also known as chapati) is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent. It is popular in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Trini ...

'', ''rotli'', ''safati'', ''shabaati'', ''phulka'', (in East Africa) ''chapo'', (in

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

) ''poli'', and (in the

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

) ''roshi,'' is an unleavened flatbread originating from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

and staple in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, Sri Lanka, East Africa, Arabian Peninsula and the Caribbean. Chapatis are made of

whole-wheat flour Whole-wheat flour (in the US) or wholemeal flour (in the UK) is a powdery substance, a basic food ingredient, derived by grinding or mashing the whole grain of wheat, also known as the wheatberry. Whole-wheat flour is used in baking of breads ...

known as atta, mixed into dough with water,

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

(optional), salt (optional) in a mixing utensil called a ''

parat Parat is a large flat plate used to mix the ingredients for making chapati mostly in India. The plate used is mostly made of brass or steel but cheaper version made of aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a ch ...

'', and are cooked on a ''

tava A tava(h) / tawa(h) (mainly on the Indian subcontinent), saj (in Arabic), sac (in Turkish) and other variations and combinations thereof, is a metal-made cooking utensil. The tawa is round and can be flat, but more commonly has a curved prof ...

'' (flat skillet).Nandita Godbole, 2016
Roti: Easy Indian Breads & Sides
Chitra Agrawal, 2017
Vibrant India: Fresh Vegetarian Recipes from Bangalore to Brooklyn
page 35. It is a common staple in the Indian subcontinent as well as amongst expatriates from the Indian subcontinent throughout the world. Chapatis were also introduced to other parts of the world by immigrants from the Indian subcontinent, particularly by Indian merchants to Central Asia, Southeast Asia, East Africa, and the Caribbean islands.

History

Chapati is a form of ''

'' or ''rotta'' (bread). The words are often used interchangeably. The word ''chapat'' () means "slap" or "flat," describing the traditional method of forming round pieces of thin dough by slapping the dough between the wetted palms of the hands. With each slap, the piece of dough is rotated. Chapati is mentioned in the 15th century ''Guru Granth Sahib'' as roti. The

shabad (hymn) ''Shabda'' ( sa, शब्द, ), is the Sanskrit word for "speech sound". In Sanskrit grammar, the term refers to an utterance in the sense of linguistic performance. History In classical Indian philosophy of language, the grammarian Katyaya ...

"Roti meri kath ki, lahvan meri bhukh" was written by

Baba Farid Farīd al-Dīn Masʿūd Ganj-i-Shakar ( ; – 7 May 1266) was a 13th-century Punjabi Sunni Muslim preacher and mystic, who was one of the most revered and distinguished Muslim mystics of the medieval period. He is known reverentially as B ...

in the 12th century. ''Chapati'' is noted in the 16th-century document '' Ain-i-Akbari'' by Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak,

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called '' katib'' (secretary), who was ...

Mughal Emperor The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...

Akbar.Of Bread
'' Ain-i-Akbari'', by Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak. English tr. by Heinrich Blochmann and Colonel Henry Sullivan Jarrett, 1873–1907. The Asiatic Society of Bengal,

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

, Volume I, Chap. 26, page 61. Chapatis are one of the most common forms of wheat bread, a staple food in the Indian subcontinent. The carbonized wheat grains discovered at the excavations at

Mohenjo-daro Mohenjo-daro (; sd, موئن جو دڙو'', ''meaning 'Mound of the Dead Men';Indus Valley is known to be one of the ancestral lands of cultivated wheat. Chapatis, along with rotis, were introduced to other parts of the world by immigrants from the Indian subcontinent, particularly by Indian merchants who settled in Southeast Asia and the Caribbean islands.

Cooking

Chapatis are made using a soft dough comprising wheat flour, salt and water. It is more finely ground than most western-style whole wheat flours. Chapati dough is typically prepared with flour, salt and water, kneaded with the knuckles of the hand made into a fist and left to rest for at least 10 or 15 minutes to an hour for the gluten in the dough to relax. After proofing, the dough becomes softer and more pliable. Small portions of the dough are pinched off and formed into round balls that are pressed between the two palms to form discs which are then dipped into flour and rolled out on a circular rolling board (a '' chakla''), using a

rolling pin Rolling is a type of motion that combines rotation (commonly, of an axially symmetric object) and translation of that object with respect to a surface (either one or the other moves), such that, if ideal conditions exist, the two are in contact ...

known as a ''velan'' or ''belan'', into a flat disc. There are also automatic roti makers which automate the whole process. The rolled-out dough is then thrown on the preheated dry ''

'' and cooked on both sides. In some regions of the Indian subcontinent chapatis are only partially cooked on the skillet, and then cooked directly over a flame, which makes them puff up. The hot steam cooks the chapati rapidly from the inside. In some parts of northern India and eastern Pakistan, this is called a ''phulka''. In southern parts of India, it is called a ''pulka''. It is also possible to puff up the roti directly on the tava. Once cooked, chapatis are often topped with butter or ghee. In western regions of Maharashtra, some oil is added inside rolled out dough and then put on tava, this is distinct from paratha. Chapati diameter and thickness vary from region to region. Chapatis made in domestic kitchens are usually not larger than to in diameter since the ''tava'' on which they are made comes in sizes that fit comfortably on a domestic stovetop. ''Tavas'' were traditionally made of unglazed earthenware, but are now typically made from metal. The shape of the rolling pin also varies from region to region. Some households simply use a kitchen worktop as a sort of pastry board, but round flat-topped "boards" made of wood, stone, or stainless steel are available specifically for rolling out chapatis. In most parts of the Indian subcontinent, there is a distinction made between a ''chapati'' and other related flatbreads eaten in the region like

paratha Paratha () is a flatbread native to South Asia, prevalent throughout the modern-day nations of India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana, Suriname, and Trinidad a ...

kulcha Kulcha is a type of mildly leavened flatbread that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Recipe Kulcha is made from maida flour, water, a pinch of salt and a leavening agent (yeast or old kulcha dough), mixed together by hand to make a very ti ...

puri Puri () is a coastal city and a municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state capital of Bhubaneswar. It is also known as '' ...

and

naan Naan ( fa, نان, nān, ur, , ps, نان, ug, نان, hi, नान, bn, নান) is a leavened, oven-baked or tawa-fried flatbread which is found in the cuisines mainly of Western Asia, Central Asia, Indian subcontinent, Indonesia, ...

based on cooking technique, texture and use of different types of flours. For example,

s are either made layered by spreading with ghee, folding and rolling out again into a disc which turns out flakey once cooked or is filled with spinach,

dal In Indian cuisine, ''dal'' (also spelled ''daal'' or ''dhal''; pronunciation: , Hindi: दाल, Urdu: ) are dried, split pulses (e.g., lentils, peas, and beans) that do not require soaking before cooking. India is the largest producer of pu ...

or cooked radish or potato. Parathas are mostly made using all-purpose flour instead of whole wheat flour. There are many regional varieties of chapati in India. *

Paneer Paneer (), also known as ponir () is a fresh acid-set cheese common in the Indian subcontinent (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) made from full-fat buffalo milk or cow milk. It is a non-aged, non-melting sof ...

chapati: Grated paneer is added to the usual chapati dough which is also called 'paneer paratha'. *

Radish The radish (''Raphanus raphanistrum'' subsp. ''sativus'') is an edible root vegetable of the family Brassicaceae that was domesticated in Asia prior to Roman times. Radishes are grown and consumed throughout the world, being mostly eaten raw ...

/ mullangi chapati: Grated radish and

turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...

powder is added to the dough and the chapati is usually thick. It is often eaten by lorry drivers who eat in roadside

dhaba A dhaba is a roadside restaurant in the Indian subcontinent, primarily across Pakistan and India. They are on highways, generally serve local cuisine, and also serve as truck stops. They are most commonly found next to petrol stations, and mo ...

s during long trips. It is also called 'mooli paratha'. * Vegetable-stuffed chapati: Mashed carrot, potato,

pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...

s, and fenugreek are slightly sautéed into a masala gravy. These chapatis are usually served rolled, and many households prepare them using their own combinations of available vegetables. The Aloo paratha (Chapati stuffed with boiled Potato and onions) is very famous in Northern parts of India especially New Delhi, Punjab and hilly areas of Shimla. It is eaten along with Pickle and Curd. In winters there are two more varieties of Parathas i.e. the Gobhi Paratha (Chapati stuffed with Cauliflower) and Mooli Paratha (Chapati Stuffed with Raddish). In the Maldives, chapatis are traditionally eaten for breakfast along with a dish known as ''

mas huni Mas huni ( dv, މަސްހުނި) is a typical Maldivian breakfast, comprises tuna, onion, coconut, and chili. All ingredients are finely chopped and mixed with the grated meat of the coconut. This dish is usually eaten with freshly baked roshi f ...

''.

Xavier Romero-Frias Xavier or Xabier may refer to: Place * Xavier, Spain People * Xavier (surname) * Xavier (given name) * Francis Xavier (1506–1552), Catholic saint ** St. Francis Xavier (disambiguation) * St. Xavier (disambiguation) * Xavier (footballer, ...

, ''The Maldive Islanders: A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom'', Barcelona 1999, The

Indian bread Indian breads are a wide variety of flatbreads and crêpes which are an integral part of Indian cuisine. Their variation reflects the diversity of Indian culture and food habits. Ingredients Most flat breads from northern India are unleavened ...

s are tasty and equally nutritious. Flatbreads are staples of Indian food. Chapatis go well with

curries A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradi ...

, dry sabjis,

chutneys A chutney is a spread in the cuisines of the Indian subcontinent. Chutneys are made in a wide variety of forms, such as a tomato relish, a ground peanut garnish, yogurt or curd, cucumber, spicy coconut, spicy onion or mint dipping sauce. ...

Gallery

చపాతీలు (2).jpg, Chapatis File:Baking Chapatis.jpg, A girl baking chapatis in the traditional way. File:Fulka Roti like ball.jpg, Chapatis are cooked on open-flame once it's partly cooked on ''tava'', which fluffs it. File:Tava Roti 02.jpg, Freshly cooked chapatis once off open-flame. File:Chapaticooking.jpg, Preparing chapati with a

File:Roti - Perfect Gujarati Fulka Roti.JPG, Gujarati chapati, known as ''Rotli'' which is thinner. File:An Athesthtic Sapati.jpg, Afghan chapati File:Chuni Roti.jpg, Chapati served with various sides and topped with butter. File:Cooking a chapati (sp) on open flame.JPG, Chapati cooked on open-flame after being cooked on ''tava''.

References

{{bread Andhra cuisine Articles containing video clips Bangladeshi cuisine Bengali cuisine Bihari cuisine Burmese cuisine Flatbreads Indian breads Indian cuisine Indonesian breads Karnataka cuisine Malaysian breads Mauritian cuisine Muhajir cuisine Nepalese cuisine Pakistani breads Punjabi cuisine Roti Singaporean cuisine Tamil cuisine Telangana cuisine Trinidad and Tobago cuisine Uttar Pradeshi cuisine Gujarati cuisine Kutchi cuisine Maharashtrian cuisine Jharkhandi cuisine