Jamaican Roti by Roxy Chow Down

Jamaican Roti Recipe 

Say goodbye to bland store-bought roti, and hello to hot, fresh roti that you can easily make at home. This Jamaican Roti Recipe makes a fun and delicious side dish for all your favourite curry dishes. With roti on your plate, there’s no need for utensils. It’s the perfect spoon to scoop up all your juicy curry goodness. With roti, no meat, veggies, or gravy goes to waste!  Although pre-packaged roti is available in stores, it’s much better to ‘go fresh’ and save money by making your own. With my homemade Jamaican-Style roti recipe, you can make your next curry meal excitingly different. And guess what? I’ve put a flavourful twist on this recipe by adding coconut milk. Please try it and then come back to comment on how it worked for you.
Roti Craving

Roti is a flatbread that’s a popular side dish for curries in India and anywhere in the world that has a large Indian population.
With the increase in popularity of Indian cuisine worldwide, roti cravings are on the rise and with it, the demand for easy homemade roti recipes.

What is Jamaican Roti?

Jamaican Roti is a cross between roti and naan.

Roti is a soft, thin, flaky flatbread cooked on a flat cast-iron pot called a Tawa. The main ingredients are wholewheat flour, salt and butter with no leavening agent added. Naan, on the other hand, is a thick flatbread baked in a tandoor oven. The main ingredients when making naan are white flour, salt and a leavening agent.
The Jamaican roti recipe uses white flour instead of whole-wheat flour and uses baking powder as a leavening agent. It is then pan-fried. The end product is a firm flatbread that’s more similar to naan than roti.

Even though roti varies across countries, they all use simple ingredients, cook quickly, and tastes amazing with curry dishes.

What goes best with Jamaican Roti?

Enjoy your homemade Jamaican roti with some spicy and nice curry chicken or curry goat. Then wash it all down with some refreshing Pineapple Ginger Juice!

Jamaican Roti with Curry Goat by Roxy Chow Down

Jamaican-Style Roti Recipe

This deliciously flavourful homemade 'Jamaican-Style' Roti recipe, makes the perfect side dish for all your favourite curry dishes!
4.82 from 11 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Dough Resting Time 1 hour
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine African, American, canadian, Caribbean, Indian, International, Jamaican, tropical
Servings 6 rotis

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tbsp butter or vegetable oil melted
  • 1/2 tsp salt

You will need:

  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour additional flour is needed to flour your surfaces and may be needed to smooth your dough
  • cooking oil or oil spray please use no more than 1 tsp per roti
  • cling wrap
  • large flat frying pan
  • rolling pin
  • large cutting board or countertop
  • spatula
  • paper towel

Instructions
 

  • Combine water, coconut milk and butter/oil in a microwave-safe container and heat for about 40 seconds or until the butter melts, then set aside for 20 minutes to cool.
  • In a large bowl, add flour and salt then use a large fork or whisk to thoroughly to combine all ingredients.
  • Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add half of the liquid. Use a large spoon to combine the wet and dry ingredients.
  • Add remaining liquid and use the spoon to fold in.
  • When the liquid has been absorbed, use your hands to knead the dough into a soft smooth ball. If the dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour and knead it until smooth.
  • Cover the bowl of dough with a damp dish towel, or wrap the dough in cling wrap.
  • Let dough rest at room temperature for about 1 hour.
  • Lightly flour a large clean surface or a cutting board.
  • Divide the dough into six parts and roll each into a ball. Set them aside in one corner of the cutting board.
  • Take one ball of dough and lightly flour it, then place it in the middle of the floured cutting board.
  • Start to roll out the roti by placing the rolling pin in the center of the ball and pressing down. Then roll out the dough evenly towards the ends, turning your dough over each time it sticks, until the dough is rolled out into a ¼ inch-thick circular shape. (please note: If the dough is rolled out too thin, it will get crispy when cooked.)
  • Heat a large, wide frying pan for 1 minute.
  • Add ½ - 1 teaspoon cooking oil or oil spray, and tilt the pan from side to side to spread it evenly across the surface of the pan to form a thin layer.
  • Place the rolled-out dough in the center of the pan, then set the heat between medium and medium-low.
  • Let the dough cook for 1 minute until small bubbles form on the top.
  • Use a spatula or tongs to shift the dough around in the pot for 10 seconds then flip it over.
  • Please note: The pot will begin to smoke, but don't worry - that is normal. Reduce the heat a little and use an extractor if possible.
  • After a minute, or when multiple bubbles form on the surface of the roti, flip it over again.
  • Flip the roti a final time after another minute. The total cooking time for each roti is approximately 3 minutes, flipping it every minute.
  • Remove the roti from the pan and set aside onto a plate.
  • Add another 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of cooking oil or oil spray to the pan, and let it heat for 30 seconds before adding another rolled out dough to the frying pan.
  • Repeat the process until all the rotis are cooked.
  • Serve the hot rotis with the curry dish of your choice, then bless up and enjoy it!
  • When you've tried my roti recipe, please remember to come back to post your review & 5-STAR rating, to help support my page. Thanks in advance!
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    21 thoughts on “Jamaican Roti Recipe”

    1. Stephanie Currie

      4 stars
      This was an amazing recipe to make roti without the designated roti pan. Only thing is that salt was mentioned in the recipe but not the amount in the ingredient list. also, My rotis came out kind of hard so im thinking i either fried each side too long or i made the dough too thick. I wish it came out softer. but an all around great recipe.

      1. Roxy Chow Down

        Hi Stephanie! Thanks so much for your review and for pointing out that the salt was missing. That was an oversight and the recipe has been updated 👍. In regards to how your roti turned out, it may be due to a number of reasons. Some important tips to get your Jamaican-Style Roti softer are to – (1) allow the dough to rise on the countertop at room temperature {approx. 1 hr.}, (2) do not roll out the roti too thin, and (3) keep the pot at medium heat while cooking. Something else you could try the next time you make it is to lightly coat the surface of the pot with butter instead of oil and to cook it on medium-low heat. Hopefully, you’ll get a softer texture next time!👏

      2. Lol trust me, newly married Indian women have been trying for centuries to get the roti right. It takes awhile

        Every Indian or desi person understand theres nothing quite like a fresh hot roti with that home style aloo or chicken curry

        Interesting to learn that non Indians like it so much in the Caribbean. Indian food is the most flavourful and delicious, but also the most difficult to get right

      1. Yeaaa!! That’s awesome Shaine 👏💕Happy you enjoyed your Roti. Thanks for taking the time to leave this review to let me know how they turned out.

    2. 4 stars
      Love this recipe, quick and easy. The trick to getting the roti skin nice and soft is while you have it the pan brush the roti with melted butter with oil on both sides, each side takes approximately 2-3 minutes to cook. I use an actual tawa . I prefer to roll it out thinner because I don’t like thick or hard roti, you should be able to wrap the roti, if not your just eating naan bread!

      1. Hi Neali, thanks for checking us out. Yes, you may use regular cow’s milk as a substitute for coconut milk. Happy Cooking!

    3. Michele Scott-Akanbi

      5 stars
      I have made roti several times before and buss up shot as well (love it but it takes too long). When I saw your recipe I thought lovely that sounds interesting as I am a coconut milk fan. However mine where not as soft as I had expected. Next time I wont roll it out so thinly as I like it thin and will leave it to rise on the work surface. Thanks for a new version of roti, I usually make the Trini variants.

      1. Hi Michelle, I’m glad you really enjoyed this recipe, I love coconut milk too. I’m sorry your roti was not as soft as you expected but you are right, you’ll get a softer roti if it’s not rolled out too thinly. Having a light layer of oil in your pan and cooking it at a medium-low temperature also helps. I’ve gone ahead and updated the recipe to include these tips. Please let me know how it works out for you next time. Happy cooking and bless up!

    4. Ivanka Di Felice

      5 stars
      We LOVED this recipe! Other recipes called for up to 1 cup of oil! This one was fantastic! I used butter and jjust a regular frying pan on medium heat and mine turned out great. Thanks for sharing! Greatly appreciated!!!!

      1. Hiii Ivanka! Congrats on a job well done and thank you for your lovely review and 5-Star rating. It brings me so much joy when I get feedback like this. You’ve truly made my day! I hope you try some of my other recipes and enjoy them as much as this one 🙂 Bless up!!

    5. Ivanka Di Felice

      5 stars
      This is Ivanka again. I have to tell you I am sharing your recipe with everyone! It is so fantastic! The last time I made it I used 1 cup of white flour, 1/2 cup of wholewheat and 1/2 cup of chickpea flour. It was so good! And until I can get back to Toronto to get some real roti this is the best and easiest recipe. Thanks again for sharing!

      1. Hello Ivanka,
        You’re a gem! You’re soo sweet and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming back and leaving another review 🙂 (BIG HUGS!!) I LOVE your modifications and will give your chickpea version a try. It sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing with your loved ones and I’m sure they feel the love each time they try these Rotis!! Safe travel back to Toronto and bless up every time.
        Lots of love,
        Roxy

    6. Hi, thank you so much for sharing this recipe. i have been wanting to make a roti for the longest time and decide to try it today. it turn out great. just the recipe i need knowing what i had in my kitchen. i had it with Teriyaki fish. so i actually did a teriyaki fish wrap. i like experimenting in the kitchen.

    7. 5 stars
      First time using your recipe and they came out so good! I decided to use only 1/2 oil which made they turn out softer.
      Thanks for the recipe!

    8. 5 stars
      This was my first time making Roti, and your recipe caught my eyes, I made it and it was soooo good. Thank you for posting this recipe. I will make the Orange chicken next.

    9. Trying this one today sounds delish, need.somethind different to my plain nanns for my curry I love making anything like these breads , can’t wait for the outcome . Thanks

    10. 5 stars
      Delicious and easy, thank you. I added 2 tsp of baking powder because it was in “what is roti” paragraph. Your recipes I’ve used often thank you.

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