The Sausage Dog

I love Roti Jala!

Roti Jala is a very distant cousin to Roti Canai. Roti Canai is made with a dough, and the reason why it is so delicious is because it has multiple layers, with ghee liberally applied within the layers. It sort of resembles a croissant in terms of the layers, not the preparation.

In comparison, Roti Jala is made with a runny batter, and resembles an egg net. It’s like eating a little cloud of happiness.

I’ll be honest with you, Roti Jala actually does not taste of much. The reason why I love it so much is because it is absolutely amazing when it comes to mopping up all those delicious dregs of curry. It’s not meant to be the star of the meal, it’s meant to complement whatever main dish you’ve put on the table. Preferably something gravy-like.

This recipe is really easy. Make sure you use a non-stick fry pan (not the Kmart ones) when making your Roti Jala, and just a very tiny bit of oil to get you started off.

There is a special batter mold device used to make Roti Jala, it is like a measuring cup with 3 nozzles that point towards your pan. This mold helps to make the lovely net effect. Unfortunately, I was unable to find this mold in any of the Asian grocery stores in Canberra (yes, I went to A LOT of them). So, I decided to MacGyver it by buying a sauce squeeze bottle from Top Bargain. It worked out pretty well, I think the only criticism I have for my Roti Jala is that perhaps the netty-ness could have been thinner.

Good luck!

Makes about 25-30 Roti Jala

Prep-time: 5 – 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15 – 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cup low fat milk

1/2 cup water

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 tablespoon oil, Ghee or butter (to grease the pan)

Tools:

Sauce Squeeze Bottle (you can get this from Top Bargain/Dollar Store for AUD$2.50)

Instructions:

1. Sieve the flour and set aside.
2. In a big bowl, mix all the ingredients well together (except the oil) and strain the batter.
3. Add in 1/2 tablespoon of oil and set aside.
4. Heat up a pan with medium heat and grease it with some butter or ghee.
5. Pour some batter into the squeeze bottle and transfer the squeeze bottle to the pan.
6. As the batter flows through the hole of the squeeze bottle, make circular rounds around the pan to form the netty patterns.
7. After the top is set and done or when the bottom turns light brown, transfer the Roti Jala out and fold it into triangle shape.
8. Arrange a few Roti Jala on a serving plate and add some curry chicken/beef/lamb/prawns/vegetable on the side and serve immediately.