Roti Canai with Dhal

Ingredients

• 500g plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp condensed milk
• 1 egg
• 280ml warm water
• 120g ghee or margarine, softened, plus extra for cooking
• 250g yellow split lentils (toor or chana dal)
• 1 litre water, for the dhal
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2cm piece ginger, grated
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 potato, diced small
• 1 carrot, diced small
• 2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 10 curry leaves
• 2 dried red chillies
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp salt, extra

Before you cook

• Rinse the lentils and soak them in cold water for 1 hour.
• Whisk the salt, condensed milk and egg into the warm water until dissolved.
• Tip the flour into a large bowl and pour in the liquid, mixing until a shaggy dough forms.
• Knead the dough on the worktop for 12 minutes until it is smooth, soft and slightly tacky.
• Divide the dough into 8 balls, coat each one generously in softened ghee, and set them in a covered container.
• Refrigerate the dough balls for at least 4 hours, and preferably overnight.

Steps

1. Drain the soaked lentils and put them in a saucepan with the litre of water and the turmeric.
2. Boil the lentils for 25 minutes until they collapse into a loose puree, topping up with water if they dry out.
3. Heat the oil in a second pan and fry the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and dried chillies for 30 seconds until they crackle.
4. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and fry for 6 minutes until soft and golden.
5. Stir in the curry powder and cook for 1 minute.
6. Add the tomatoes, potato and carrot and cook for 5 minutes.
7. Pour the cooked lentils into the pan, add the extra salt, and simmer for 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the dhal is thick but spoonable, then keep it warm.
8. Take the dough balls out and let them come to room temperature for 20 minutes.
9. Oil your worktop generously rather than flouring it.
10. Flatten one ball with your palm, then push and stretch it outwards from the centre until it is thin enough to see your hand through.
11. Fold the sheet into a long strip by bringing both long edges toward the middle.
12. Coil the strip into a spiral like a snail shell and tuck the end underneath.
13. Repeat the stretching and coiling with the remaining dough balls, then rest the coils for 10 minutes.
14. Press one coil flat with your palm into a rough disc about 18cm across.
15. Heat a flat griddle over medium-high heat and brush it with ghee.
16. Cook the roti for 90 seconds until blistered and brown underneath, then flip and cook the other side for 90 seconds.
17. Take the roti off the heat and clap it between your palms two or three times to shatter the layers apart.
18. Cook the rest the same way and serve them hot with bowls of the dhal.