Sri Lankan Paratha bread

Method Print recipe

1. Mix the flour, sugar and salt together and then add about 300ml of cold water.
2. Knead the dough until it’s soft and add a tablespoon of oil. Allow this to rest for at least 2 hours, or even overnight if you have time. The longer the better!
3. Drizzle some oil on the work surface and then roll the dough into well-oiled balls about the size of an apple.
4. Rest these for 20 minutes and then roll them out into thick flatbread pieces (with about an 11cm width).
5. Rest them again for a further 15 minutes and then roll the dough as thin as possible. Fold the dough into a long pleated strip. Starting at the centre, form the strip into a spiral and roll out gently into a flatbread shape.
6. Heat a frying pan and add some of the cumin seeds and garlic to this, before cooking each parotta through, until it is slightly charred.