In my home country, roti is not a special once in a while treat. Many eat roti every day either for breakfast or at lunch and dinner. Plus there are many types of roti each prepared alongside it's particular set of curries or stews.
Our Sada Roti, is the one favored for breakfast or dinner in place of bread. It is similar to pita bread but fluffier and softer. This roti recipe is for a green version of sada roti, made with dasheen (taro) or spinach leaves.
This is surprisingly delicious, the green color might make you doubt that, but it really is quite yummy. We have dasheen "bush" growing in the backyard so it takes little effort to pick the leaves and prepare the puree. I also use spinach leaves once I can get them at a decent price. They both work really well, I always get good reviews and my critic ain't easily swayed...😏
As a bonus, with the addition of tapioca starch in the recipe the roti is more pliable and can be used as a wrap (traditional sada roti is not "bendable" like a wrap)!
Serve the roti with your favorite side (or 2), add a little chutney and enjoy. This is great way to eat your veggies!
Gluten free, vegan dasheen (taro) leaf or spinach roti wrap recipe
Ingredients
1½ cup Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix*
½ cup tapioca starch**
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp sugar (optional but helps with the taste)
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vinegar
1 – 1¼ cup water
1 cup dasheen (taro) leaves cut into thin strips***
tapioca flour for dusting (any other finely ground GF flour or starch will work)
oil for shaping dough
*This is a Bobs Red Mill product. With all of the different flour mixes I tested (to date), this yields the best result when making gluten free roti
**Tapicoa starch makes the dough a bit more elastic which means that the texture of the finished product is good for a wrap. The tapioca starch can be omitted and replaced by the bread mix
***You can use the equivalent amount of spinach leaves
Directions
Add ¾ cup of the water, the vinegar and the dasheen (or spinach) leaves into a blender or food processor. Blend until the leaves are completely pureed. Set aside
Combine the bread mix, tapioca starch, baking powder, yeast and sugar in a bowl
Add the oil and the puree. Knead or mix into the dough until it holds together and is fairly smooth. Add more water, a little at a time until the dough is somewhat sticky and not stiff. If you are kneading by hand working with wet or oiled hands help
Rest the dough for about 15 minutes. You can skip this step and continue with the recipe. More rest can give you a softer roti or wrap. However, the softer it gets the more difficult the dough is to work with
Lightly flour your work surface, I use a silpat mat. With wet hands pinch off pieces of dough to form 4-6 balls. It may be best to work with smaller pieces until you get accustomed to working with gluten free dough
Knead and roll the dough lightly around on the floured surface to form a smooth ball. Use a light touch and as little flour as possible
Add a little oil to the palm of your hands and rub over the ball of dough. Set aside on a greased surface or bowl. Repeat the process with the remaining pieces of dough. Cover the rounds with a warm tea cloth and leave to rest for at least ½ hour
Once the dough has rested, heat a tawa to moderate
Keeping the remaining pieces covered, on a lightly floured surface gently roll out one of the dough balls to about ½ inch thick. Turn the dough occasionally and add a little flour at a time to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface or tearing
Place the roti on the tawa to cook. Small bubbles will appear and the edges of the roti will set. Once the edges are set and the roti has pulled away from the tawa, flip and cook the other side. If you are familiar with making traditional sada type roti, you can try swelling the roti directly over the flame of a gas range (I discovered that my electric stove works for this as well). This will also add a bit of char to the roti but is completely optional
Once the roti has finished cooking, stack on a plate and cover with a warm kitchen towel. I would normally place a folded kitchen towel on the plate before stacking the roti. That prevents the roti from sweating on the plate as it cools. Additionally separate each roti with a piece of parchment paper so that they do not stick together
The roti is best served warm. To store wrap and freeze immediately as it's cooled. Reheat and serve at once.