Easy Tasty Dhal Bhari Roti / Lentil Filled Roti (Fiji Indian Style)

Easy Tasty Dhal Bhari Roti / Lentil Filled Roti (Fiji Indian Style)

Ingredients:

Lentil Filling:
• 1 Cup Chick Pea Lentil ( or yellow split pea)
• 2 tbsp olive oil (or any oil of choice)
• 2 ½ cups water
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• Roughly chopped garlic cloves, ginger and chilli
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp fennel seeds
• Some curry leaves

Roti Dough:
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 cup wholemeal flour
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 ¼ cup tap water
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• Extra flour for dusting
• Soft butter for brushing roti (you can also use ghee or oil)
• Pastry brush, rolling pin and rolling board

Method:
Roti Dough:
1)Take your plain flour in a bigger dish, add wholemeal flour , salt and baking powder and give it a quick mix.
2)Add oil and mix well to combine.
3)Now add water little by little and make a soft dough.
4)To make the dough smooth, take a little bit of oil in your palm and rub it all over the dough kneading it as you go.
5)Make the dough into a log and divide it into two. Take each log and divide it into three portions.
6)Take each portion and make it into a round ball and flatten it slightly and lightly coat it with the dry flour .Repeat this till you have finished coating all the flattened dough balls.
7)Take a clean tea towel and cover the dough balls and let it rest while we cook the lentils.

Lentil Filling:
1)Soak lentils for 3 hours and rinse it well.
2)To cook the lentils, put a pan on medium heat and add lentils, turmeric, salt and water.
3)Bring it to a boil and when it starts to boil, put a lid on, lower the heat and cook it for 15 – 20 minutes or until the lentils are just cooked .To see if the lentils are done, take some lentil in a spoon and squeeze between your finger and thumb and it should fall apart .We do not want to make it mushy.
3)Once the lentils are done, drain all the water from the lentils and put it in a dish.
4)To cook the lentils for the second time, take the pan, rinse it again and put it on low heat and heat about 2 tablespoons of oil. Turn your pan around to coat the bottom of the pan with oil. You can use ghee if you like.
5)When the oil gets hot , add chopped garlic, ginger and chilli and cook it for 30 seconds.
6) After 30 seconds, add cumin seeds ,fennel seeds and curry leaves , give a mix and cook for further 30 seconds.
7)Now add lentils, mix it well and cook it for two minutes.
8)Turn the heat off, take it out in a dish and cool it down completely.
9)Now take a food processor or a blender and blend it.
10)Take it out in a dish and divide it into 6 even size balls.
11)To fill the roti dough with the lentils, take the flattened roti dough one at a time, put it on the rolling board and flattened it slightly so it is big enough to cover a lentil ball. Cover the rest of the dough to stop it from drying.
12)Take a lentil ball and put it in the middle of the flattened roti dough, bring the outer edges up towards the centre to cover the lentil ball completely. Turn the dough on the top slightly in a circular motion and push it down. Now make it into a round ball again, coat it with the dry flour and flatten it slightly.
13) Repeat this with the remaining dough.
14)To roll the roti, take one lentil filled dough at a time, and lightly roll it up. You can always use extra flour for dusting the roti while rolling. Cover the rest of the dough with a tea towel .
15)To cook the dhal bhari roti, take a tawa (gridle) or a non-stick fry pan and put it on medium heat.
16)When the tawa gets hot, put the roti on and cook it for 30 seconds. Turn the roti and cook it for one minute . Turn the roti again , take a soft tea towel and press the edges to make sure it cooks evenly .Now brush the top of the roti with butter, turn the roti over and let the butter side cook for 30 seconds. Now brush the top side with butter , turn it over, cook it for 20 seconds and take it out in a plate lined with paper towel.
16) Wipe the tawa clean and repeat this process till you have finished cooking all your dhal bhari roti.
17)Enjoy.