Chapati is an unleavened flatbread originating from the Indian subcontinent. Chapatis are made of atta, a type of whole-wheat flour, mixed into dough with water. It is cooked on an iron griddle known as a tava, then puffed up over direct heat. Another version, in East African cuisine, is instead fried. Chapati is a form of roti, and the two are sometimes conflated. It is common in South Asia—even in areas where rice is the typical staple—as well as in most East African countries. It is also eaten by the South Asian diaspora.
Evidence of foods resembling chapati dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization, and chapati is recorded in Sanskrit and Mughal-era texts. During the British era, chapatis were consumed by Anglo-Indians as well as native Indians in other parts of the empire. They were introduced to East Africa by trade and immigration, including by Indian indentured railway workers. In the 21st century, it is common for households to purchase chapati rather than make it.
Chapati is eaten as the central component of a meal, with torn pieces used to pick up accompanying dishes such as dal or stew. Chapati may also be used for wraps, such as the Ugandan street foods rolex and kikomando. The main ingredient of chapati, wheat flour, results in its nutrition, flavour, and soft texture. Versions vary in size and may use various kinds of flour, including maize, amaranth, rice, or millet. Chapati is served hot, and it stales quickly. It is often homemade, while individually packed versions are sold as convenience food. Similar Indian breads include paratha and puri.
Terminology The word chapati entered English from the Hindi (). It is derived from the Sanskrit word (), a derivative of Sanskrit (, 'flat'). This describes the way dough is shaped by slapping it between the hands. It is also spelled chapatti or chapathi. In British India, the spellings chewpatty and chowpatty were used. The word has been used in English since the early 19th century.
Chapati is also called roti. Roti is a broad term for bread in the Indian subcontinent, but the term primarily refers to chapati in some regions, including in Bengal. In East Africa, roti and chapati are identical. The term phulka, meaning 'puffed', is also used, referring to a chapati that is puffed up over a flame. In some cases, a phulka may be thinner. In the Maldives, chapati is known as (or roshi), except in the dialects of Fuvahmulah and Seenu Atoll, where it is known as .
Preparation Ingredients Chapatis are made of atta, a common type of whole wheat flour that is ground using a chakki (a stone mill). The flour is mixed with water, typically 60 to 80 percent the weight of the flour, to form a smooth, soft dough. Optionally, it may have small amounts of salt—about 0.5 to 2 percent, according to taste. Oil is also optional, with about 5 millilitres per 100 grams of flour; it is kneaded into the dough after the other ingredients. The dough does not contain yeast.
The atta used in chapati is typically milled to high extraction—about 70 to 100 percent extraction, commonly 90 percent in rural kitchens and 80 percent in industrial settings. It is often sifted to remove the coarsest grains. The byproduct of sifting, known as resultant atta, may also be used for chapati. In some villages, including many in Rajasthan, the flour is milled on a quern-stone. The flour typically uses the species common wheat, which results in a soft, pliable texture. Durum wheat is added in some parts of India. Wheat varieties' ability to produce good chapati is a large consideration when farming wheat or developing new varieties. Although wheat is typically sold without distinguishing between varieties, Indian consumers prefer wheat that produces better chapati, and varieties such as Sharbati wheat are priced higher due to such qualities.
Kneading and shaping
The dough is kneaded by hand for 10 to 15 minutes, reaching a firm consistency and developing gluten, which gives it a viscoelastic texture that enables it to be rolled out. The dough may be kneaded mechanically, using a planetary mixer or a horizontal bread mixer.
It is left to rest for 30 to 120 minutes, though mechanically mixed dough may be rested for only 15 to 20 minutes. Resting enables gluten formation, and the dough becomes softer and more relaxed. If excess dough is prepared, it may then be refrigerated for one day.
Portions of the dough, weighing , are formed into balls that are rolled into a circle about across and 2 to 3 millimetres thick. This is typically done by dusting the dough with flour and rolling it out using a long, wooden rolling pin against a wooden board. Oil may be used during rolling. The force applied to the rolling pin causes the dough to slowly rotate as it expands, and additional flour may be added. Rolling to an even thickness is necessary for uniform cooking and puffing. If chapati is too thin, it may become too dry, and if it is too thick, it may be undercooked.
Mechanical shaping processes are faster and more consistent than using a rolling pin. The chapati press consists of two iron plates on a hinge, between which dough is placed; a lever connected to the lower plate is folded over the upper plate to apply pressure. These are used in both professional and home kitchens and can produce over 100 chapatis per hour. Another pressing device places the dough on a pedal-operated plate that pushes it onto a top plate; this can produce over 200 chapatis per hour. Dough sheeting machines using rollers are common in high-volume kitchens. Equipment used to make tortillas has been used for chapati in some regions. Dough that is pressed has suboptimal qualities as the application of force is different from that of a rolling pin.
Cooking
The rolled-out dough is thrown on a hot, dry tava—a type of iron griddle—and cooked on both sides. It cooks at for 1 to 2 minutes—about 45 seconds on one side and 90 seconds on the other, being flipped once bubbles start to form. This rapid cooking on a hot surface is similar to the method used for Arab breads.
A chapati puffs up as moisture in the dough changes into steam. Sometimes, it is only partially cooked on the skillet, and then cooked directly over a flame or hot coals for a few seconds to puff up. It is also possible to puff up the roti directly on the tava, applying pressure with a dry cloth, or in an oven at about .
The inflation causes chapati to be soft and pliable. In the absence of leavening, the formation of steam is responsible for the separation of crust and crumb. The crust comprises almost the entire chapati, while the crumb contains starch that is highly deformed and gelatinised. Conduction is the main mode of heat transfer, forming a hard surface through starch gelatinisation.
Some machines both shape and bake chapati dough. A wide range of equipment is designed for chapati due to its popularity. The roti maker is similar to a chapati press but with a heating element that cooks the dough, which inflates and lifts the upper plate. The Rotimatic is an appliance that automatically produces chapatis from jars of ingredients, sold for household use. On a commercial level, semi-automated or fully automated machines are used; the latter produces 500 to 2,000 chapatis per hour. Some machines perform continuous sheeting and baking; these may produce hundreds of chapatis per hour. Equipment includes dough mixers, balling machines, and sheeting machines, using either rollers or presses. The dough is puffed up using a chapati puffer, which consists of steel plates with an iron rack. The finished product is cooled and packed in plastic. Mass-produced chapatis include ready-to-eat versions (which are fully baked) and ready-to-cook versions (which may consist of frozen, partially baked dough).
Classification and variations
Chapati is classified as a single-layer, unleavened, unfermented flatbread. Like other forms of roti, it is dry roasted. Related flatbreads from South Asia also use atta but differ based on their cooking technique. These include paratha, which has layers of laminated dough; puri, which is deep fried; tandoori roti, which is baked in a tandoor; roomali roti, which is cooked on the bottom side of the tava; thepla, which contains vegetables and spices; and khakhra, which is low in moisture so that it lasts longer.
The chapati in East African cuisine is fried rather than baked over a flame, resulting in a soft interior and crispy, browned exterior. It is more similar to Indian paratha than chapati, though it is thinner than paratha and uses less oil. In Kenya, it is cooked on a charcoal stove, using oil, butter, or lard. A type of skillet called is designed for chapati, enabling flipping by hand. In Zanzibari cuisine, chapati may be made of wheat or millet. Millet chapati is more difficult to prepare due to the lack of gluten; it is thicker than wheat chapati, shaped by slapping with the hands rather than rolling. Chapati in Swahili cuisine may be made of atta or a white flour known as unga.
India has many versions of chapati. The size varies by region. Chapatis made in rural areas are thicker than those in urban areas. The Gaddi people of Himachal Pradesh have a type of chapati called is large enough that one is an entire serving. In Rajasthan, pods of the sangri tree are added to wheat chapati.
Additional flours may be added to chapati in places where wheat is less available. A common version, known as , uses Bengal gram chickpeas for 20 to 30 percent of the flour. Cornmeal chapatis are common in parts of North India in the winter, and a version in Punjabi cuisine uses corn and mustard greens. Amaranth chapati is eaten in the Himalayas; amaranth lacks the gluten necessary for chapati but can be combined with wheat. In rice-growing regions of Pakistan, rice flour, which also lacks gluten, is combined with other flours to prepare chapati. In the cuisine of Kerala, rice flour is used to make a thin chapati called , which is served with coconut milk. The Tangkhul people of Manipur consume a chapati of rice flour, sugar syrup, and ground sesame. Rice flour is also used for commercially produced gluten-free chapati, with hydrocolloids added for texture. Millets may be blended with other flours to produce chapatis in India; these include finger millet, pearl millet, kodo millet, and sorghum; the latter is used for a crunchy, dry chapati. In Gujarati cuisine, a rotli is a chapati that is very thin and made of millet. Sweet potato may be added to wheat chapati in Kenya.
Serving
Chapatis are served while hot and fresh. They are often topped with butter or ghee for flavor and softness. They may be stacked in a container until consumption. According to a 2020 survey in Delhi, the median portion size of chapati is 70 grams, averaging 2 chapatis for women and 3 chapatis for men. According to a 2013 study in the United Kingdom, the mean portion size is 90 g for adults, 64 g for school-aged children, and 44 g for preschool children. Because it quickly becomes stale, chapati is typically eaten while fresh. In India, stale chapati may also used as cattle feed, or it may be mashed to make baby food.
Chapati may be served for any meal. Like other Indian flatbreads, it is served as the central component of a typical meal; it is eaten by using a hand to tear the bread and pick up the accompanying food, or it may be dipped into soup. Chapati is the main source of carbohydrates in a meal with other, non-starchy dishes. It is commonly paired with curries, vegetable dishes (such as sabzi), stews, or chutneys. In Indian and Sri Lankan cuisine, it is commonly eaten with dal, a legume-based dish, an example of grains paired with legumes that provide protein. In Pakistani cuisine, it may be paired with dishes such as halwa for breakfast. In East African cuisine, chapati is eaten with mashes or stews.