Cucumber rave rotti - fusion of dosa and rotti

To begin with, let me clarify that 'rotti' is not the same as 'roti' (notice the emphasis on 't') and while I have seen a lot of rotti varieties in Karnataka and Maharastrian cooking, I am not aware of this genre in other regions of India. I will be glad to be surprised on this if any of you can enlighten me. So, rotti in Kannada refers to a dough (mostly with a flour) embellished with vegetables and patted on a tawa/griddle while 'roti' is the basic version of Indian leavened bread made with wheat flour. While the traditional rotti also called 'talippittu/Thalipeth' is made with rice flour there are rottis made with rava/sooji, jower flour, ragi flour etc. Each has its distinct taste. Look for my Avarekalu akki rotti here.

I like rave rotti for its mild taste, I do not use onions or other items typically used with akki rotti but let the subtle hint of cucumbers play heroine in this warm rotti. If I feel like indulging in the onion flavor, I make the rotti slightly differently, will post that another time. This rave rotti is a cross between dosa and rotti, it is soft like the dosa but patted like the rotti.

Rave rotti is from coastal Karnataka but honestly I will not claim this as the authentic recipe since I have tweaked it to suit my  palate. The concept is similar that it uses rava and cucumbers but in Mangalore homes where I first ate this rotti, lemon cucumbers are used instead of the regular green ones because of their enhanced flavor. You can use whichever one you prefer.

You will notice I use the aluminium foil/sheet to pat the rotti. When I first set up my own kitchen, I used struggle with a single pan, holding it under the tap water to cool off I have set many a smoke alarms to go off. Then one of my smart friends pointed out that we could use the foil to prepare the rotti off heat and transfer over, I am indebted to her for ever :-).

Rave rotti needs about an hour of wait time before you can pat the batter into rottis and recommended to be eaten hot off the griddle. They tend to become chewy as they cool off but DD seems to love that version more than the 'hot off the griddle', I am used to the strange eating preferences of my daughter :-). So plan ahead a little and enjoy the mild taste of these cucumber rottis.

What do you need to make cucumber rave rotti? 
Makes 4-3 inch radius rottis
2 cups chiroti rave/rava - this is the super fine sooji
2 packed cups grated cucumbers
1 heaped Tblsp grated coconut (fresh or frozen)
1 green chili (optional)
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 Tsp salt (adjust to taste)
1 Tsp oil to cook the rotti

How do you make cucumber rave rotti? 

• Wash, peel and grate the cucumbers. You can use them whole if they are tender, discard seeds if they are not. 
• Take a wide bowl, add all the ingredients and mix it in. No water is necessary as cucumbers give out lot of water. 

• Cover & let the dough rest for an hour minimum.
• Spread an aluminium foil/sheet on a flat surface, drizzle a couple of drops of oil and spread it all over. 
• Pinch off a tennis ball size dough and placing it in the center of the foil, start patting it into a circular shape. Dip your fingers in water to make it easy. 
• The dough is stretchable and you can make it as thin or thick as you like. I like this to be really thin so it turns out soft. 

• Heat a flat griddle and turn the foil over on the griddle, let it cook for a minute before gently peeling off the foil. The foil is reusable for other rottis you will make. 

• Let the rotti cook for a couple of minutes (the cooking time is dependent on the thickness), once you see a few brown spots, flip it over and continue to cook for another 2 minutes until the rotti cooks evenly on both sides. 

• Take it into a plate, put a drop of ghee on top and enjoy with any spicy chutney or  chutney pudi. We had it with ginger tambuli yesterday. 

Notes:

• The rested dough should be slightly sticky but easy to spread into shape. If the cucumbers leave a lot of water, add another Tblsp of rava and knead it in well to get the right consistency.
• Do not grate cucumbers fine, this releases lot more water into the dough. Also it is nice to feel the thin cucumber grates in the mouth - so keep them big.
• I recommend using the aluminium foil (or banana leaves if you can get some) to pat the rotti.
• I use my non-stick griddle and do not need any more oil to cook the rotti. 
• Green chili is optional but go with the fresh ground black pepper to compliment the mildness of cucumbers.