Ingredients
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2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
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1 TSP Salt
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1 Cup Water
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1/2 Cup OnionsFinely Chopped
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1 Spoon GingerGrated
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3 Cloves GarlicGrated
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1 TSP Green ChiliesFinely Chopped
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2 TBSP Oil
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1/2 TSP Black Mustard
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1/2 TSP Cumin
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1/2 TSP Crushed ChiliOptional
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1 Cup Fresh VegetablesCubed
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1 Cup Leftover Vegetables, Chicken or EggsOptional
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1/2 TSP Turmeric
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1 TSP Coriander Powder
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1 TBSP Fresh CilantroChopped, to garnish
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4 Wedges Lime/LemonTo Garnish
Directions
Kuskura, an afternoon snack or sometimes a breakfast item was not on my list of shooting. But recent incidence in Sri Lanka reminded me of the street food Kottu Roti I enjoyed on my last trip there in 2015.
My mother, my sisters and cousins, all are/were experts in making Rotis, that are also called Chapati, Fulka, etc. It is made in Indian households almost daily. My mother did it every day on a wood burning stove. Believe me it was a big chore for her but I never heard complaining.
She always made several extra as it was very common to have drop by visitors. All visitors stopping by around lunch or dinner time did not leave without joining family for the meal. We had no refrigerator or freezer. Hence these need to be consumed very quickly, no later than the next day. Sometimes my mother will eat the day old one first even though she went through rigor of making fresh ones for all of us. It is not story of my mother, but true for most housholds when I was growing up.
To repurpose leftover rotis, or sometimes to attend growing children’s mid-day hunger, she used to make Kuskura. While I am presenting it in an exotic manner, she used her hands to crumble up the rotis.
Indori Kuskura has a lot in common with Sri Lankan street food Kottu Roti In Sri Lanka streets, I enjoyed it as street food in Colombo. They stretch freshly kneaded all-purpose flour, medium cook them and mixed them up on open platform griddles in various stir-fry shows in front of you. It is delightful to eat food cooked in front of you.
Hope a speedy recovery of Sri Lanka from this incident. I would definitely return there as this island is very pretty with friendly people and great food.
This dish is very flexible and forgiving. Most vegetables will work for stir-fry just fine. If you think of spliced roti as a form of pasta, or flat noodle, fusion chefs can come up with hundreds of ways to make it. In Sri Lanka, they minced chicken, eggs or other types of meat in the dish depending upon customer’s preference.
Steps
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1
Done
10 min
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Make Rotis or buy Tortillas/NaanMix Flour, salt and 1/2 cup of water, Knead. Add 1/3 more water, knead, add remaining water, knead. Rest for 10 min. Make round balls, roll with a rolling pin. Cook on a pan on medium heat turning once. Subsequently puff them on straight on a burner. This step can be skipped by buying whole wheat tortillas, naan bread from a grocery store. |
|
2
Done
10 min
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Chop Rotis and VegetablesRoll and cut Rotis/Tortillas. Chop all other vegetables in sizes specified in the ingredient list. |
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3
Done
10 min
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Tempering - SauteHeat oil in a pan, once few mustard seeds pop, add mustard seed, cumin, sizzle the tempering. Add ginger garlic, fry. Add chilis, onions, cook until transparent. Add rest of the fresh vegetables, add salt, cover and cook on medium-low until tender. Add cut-up rotis. Optionally at this stage, add chopped up leftover vegetables or deboned chicken or boiled and diced eggs. Add turmeric, Coriander powder, stir, cover, cook for 2 min on medium. Garnish with Cilantro, Coconut flakes and or lemon/lime wedges. |
