It was only when I started dating my husband that I learned the true significance of Roht.
My granny would often keep a piece for me when she received Prasad and my husband who was my boyfriend at the time would always bring me a Prasad parcel.
His family makes Roht for their Katha Prayers, and my mom-in-law also makes it for Hanuman Jayanti and during Navaratri.
I will never forget the first time I stayed over to help for the prayer. My mom-in-law did everything by herself. She first started learning about the Katha prayer when she got married. She had her mom-in-law and my father-in-law’s aunties around to help her. And as the years went by, she had help from a family friend.
Now, she relies on herself, and for the last 2 years, she has included my sister-in-law Denesha and myself. As I said, I will never forget the first time we stayed over to help. She got up around 3 am, maybe even 2 am because this was the first year she did everything on her own.
She started making the Roht and didn’t allow Denesha or myself to get involved. She was super focused and put so much effort and pride into making the Roht. I recall her then rolling out the dough. This was all so new to me, and then afterwards she started frying the Roht in small batches.
Denesha and I offered to help, and she was quite certain she had it under control. I think she knows that the process of learning how to make Roht takes time and patience. And you only get better at making Roht as time goes by.
While she turned her back, returning to roll out the Roht, I quickly took a shot at turning the Roht. Denesha was next to me, and we both just stood by the stove learning. Luckily, from watching how she carefully turns the Roht, I was able to turn it successfully. Denesha then gave it a try, and she also was successful in turning the Roht. My mom-in-law suddenly felt at ease having us turn the Roht as she rolled out and even went on to making a second batch.
I guess you can say a new family tradition has started, and it is such a beautiful prayer to observe and do as a family.
This is my mom-in-law’s recipe.
I’ll also share a video tutorial link showing you how to make the Roht.
Below this recipe, I’ll provide another recipe for a smaller quantity in case you just want to make enough for a small prayer.
INGREDIENTS
Makes 30 (Depending On Size)
- 6 Cups flour
- 2 x 3/4 Cups of white sugar (about 300g)
- 1 Cup Butter Ghee (Ghee should be soft and thickish at room temperature, taken directly from the container)
- 1 and 1/2 Cups room temperature milk (adjust as needed for the roti dough, may require an extra 1/4 cup depending on humidity)
- 1 Tablespoon ground elaichi (cardamom)
- 2 Tablespoons almond powder
- Enough ghee for frying in your preferred size kadai.
METHOD
- Start off by adding the sifted flour to a clean, deep dish. Mix the sugar in using your hands until both ingredients are well combined.
- Add the ground elachi powder and almond powder, and combine these ingredients into the flour using your hands.
- Gradually pour in the ghee, mixing it into the flour to create breadcrumbs. Make sure to scoop out all of the ghee from the measuring cup and thoroughly combine it into the flour using your fingertips to create fine breadcrumbs.
- Pour in the milk a little at a time and start forming the dough. You may need to add a little extra milk or a little less depending on the humidity in your kitchen. As you pour the milk and mix the dough, you will notice it starting to form; it will be slightly dry and sticky.
- Using both your hands, start to bring the dough together. Kneading roht dough typically takes a bit longer than kneading dough for roti due to the addition of ingredients like ghee and sugar. It’s essential to knead it thoroughly to ensure all the ingredients are well incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic. Knead for at least 7-10 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth.
- Much like making roti, take a small amount of the dough and form it into a disc. Use your palm and fingers to flatten the disc. Place the disc on a floured surface and roll until thin, about 1 cm thin. You can place the discs on a floured tray.
- Heat up ghee in a kadai. The temperature needs to be low to medium. Once the ghee is heated, gently slide in the roht discs. You will notice the roht may sink to the bottom, but it will eventually float up. Each side will take a couple of minutes to fry. Gently flip the roht using a stainless steel skimmer slotted spoon and a medium-sized dishing stainless spoon. Repeat this process until the roht turns a golden brown colour.
- When removing the roht from the ghee, use the skimmer slotted spoon, then press down using the back of the spoon to release excess ghee. This will also give the roht that indented shape.
- Place the roht in a lined bowl and stack them up on top of each other once cooked.
I know the above seems lengthy, but I wanted to share my experience of watching and learning from my mom-in-law. Here are a few helpful tips
TIPS
- If the dough is too sticky, sprinkle a little more flour. You can also work on a floured surface to ensure the disc does not break.
- Add a little milk as needed; a little less or more milk may be needed depending on the humidity in your kitchen.
- Kneading is crucial. Knead for a good amount of time until the dough comes together.
- Fry the Roht on low to medium heat. Don’t rush the cooking process as you will be left with Roht that is not fully cooked.
- As you are frying, you will notice the ghee starts to deplete. Add in a little ghee at a time to keep the temperature right and to avoid having to wait for the ghee to heat up. Approximately a tablespoon at a time.
- Store the roht in an airtight container to ensure it lasts and remains crispy.
- Lastly, have patience. I have learned that making roht takes time, and practice is essential. There is a lot of dedication and time that goes into perfecting these tasty discs, so make notes as you learn and have a lot of patience.
Here is the video link so you can watch a step-by-step guide: https://youtu.be/pMP_EOCxTrk
If you want to make a smaller batch for Prasad for a prayer, then use the below ingredients and quantities.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 Cups flour
- 3/4 Cup of white sugar
- 1/2 Cup ghee (Ghee should be soft and thickish at room temperature, taken directly from the container)
- 3/4 Cup room temperature milk (adjust as needed for the roti dough, may require a little less or more depending on humidity)
- 1/2 Tablespoon ground elaichi (cardamom)
- 1 Tablespoon almond powder
- Enough ghee for frying in your preferred size kadai.
Follow the above method.