Recipe for Roti Canai

This is for Amrita

Roti Canai
Ingredients:
400g all purpose flour sifted with ½ tsp salt
40g chilled butter, cut up into small pieces
3 tablespoon condensed milk*
1 egg, beaten
1/2 – ¾ cup water
Oil/ghee, for soaking and shaping

Method to Prepare Dough Balls:
1. Place sifted flour on your worktable and rub in butter with your fingertips
2. Mix egg and condensed milk together and stir into flour till just combined.
3. Gradually add 1/2 cup water, mixing it in the flour with your hands until it forms a soft dough. (If your dough is too dry, add the remaining water, 1 tbsp at a time till it forms a soft dough)
4. Knead for about 5 mins, until dough is pliable.
5. Cover with a plastic wrap and leave to rest for 30 mins.
6. Scale dough into 10 pieces (approx 65-67gm each) and form into balls.
7. In a deep bowl, pour in about 1/2 cup of oil/ghee. Put in the dough balls, making sure you coat each ball thoroughly*. (Make sure balls are completely soaked in oil/ghee, if not, top up with more oil/ghee.)
8. Cover with a cling wrap and set aside for at least 6 hours or overnite.*

Shaping the Roti Canai:
1. Place a dough ball on your greased worktop.
2. Using the heels of your palms, push dough outwards gently till it flattens into a very thin (almost translucent) layer.
3. Smear some oil/ghee onto the surface. Fold top & bottom half towards the centre (trapping as much air as you can). You should now have a very soft & ‘bubbly’ strip of dough.
4. Coil it inwards into a ball.
5. Leave aside to rest for about 5 minutes.
6. Again, greasing your palms slightly, flatten the balls gently, moving from the centre outwards in a clockwise direction till you have reached the size & thickness you want. (better to press it thinner as it will shrink slightly and therefore becomes thicker. I prefer to let it rest for another 5 minutes before frying, but you can omit this step.)
7. Pan fry on a non-stick pan till cooked.
8. If you want the layers to be more flaky, place the hot roti canai on the table and sharply 'clap' the pancake along the circumfrence between your palms.

Note:
1. I will use 2 tbsp of condensed milk the next round as I find it too sweet for a roti canai.
2. If you do not want to soak the balls entirely in oil, you can use lesser oil but you would have to turn it around every now and then to make sure it is well coated.
3. As the dough contains eggs & milk, it is better to keep the balls in the fridge while soaking. Leave it to come to room temperature (30-45mins) before using.