Roti John is a delicious street food popular in several Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Brunei.

Since we are doing the Baking World Tour in alphabetical order Brunei was first in line. But no matter where it is originally from the fact remains that this thing is totally awesome, and everyone should try.

A super soft and fluffy hot dog bun toasted in butter and filled with a curried beef omelette, fresh spring onions, cheese, shredded cucumber, mayonnaise, and hot sauce. This kind of reminds me of Vietnamese banh mi, but the difference is that the egg is fused with the bun in roti john. They are both great and I would suggest you try them both.

If you do not feel so adventurous and perhaps do not want to fill your buns with funky ingredients go ahead and simply use the buns to make perfect hot dogs with. Because the buns all by themselves are a beautiful thing. And they are so easy to make.

This recipe makes 4 roti. If you would like to make more simply multiply the amount of ingredients.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the dough –

250g (8.8oz) strong white bread flour

5g (0.17oz) salt

3g (0.1oz) instant dry yeast or 3.6g (0.12oz) active dry yeast or 9g (0.3oz) fresh yeast

20g (0.7oz) soft butter

20g (0.7oz) sugar

1 egg (50g), cold *

90g (3.2oz) cold milk *

*To learn more about dough temperature control click here.

1 egg yolk mixed with 1 teaspoon of milk for glazing

For the curried beef –

200g (7oz) ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

Salt & pepper to season

40g (1.4oz) curry paste. I used spicy red curry paste, but you can certainly use any curry paste you prefer.

For the omelette –

4 eggs

Chopped spring onions

Salt & pepper to season

To assemble the roti –

Grated cheese

Shredded cucumber

Mayonnaise

Chilli sauce

Spring onions

Method

1. Cook the beef. On medium-high heat cook the onions and garlic in a little bit of oil stirring occasionally for around 5 minutes or until the garlic starts browning. Add the salt and pepper, and the curry paste. Mix well. Add the ground beef, break it up into smaller pieces and keep cooking the mix just until the meat has cooked through. Place in a bowl to cool down to room temperature, then refrigerate until later.
2. Make the dough. In a large bowl combine the milk, egg, yeast, salt, sugar, and butter. Mix well to dissolve any large salt and sugar crystals, and to hydrate the yeast. Add the flour and mix to a dough.
3. Tip the dough out on your table and knead for around 5 minutes. *Desired dough temperature 25C (77F). If your dough is warmer, then it will ferment more rapidly. If it is cooler, then it will take longer. Adjust proofing time accordingly.
4. Cover and ferment for 2 hours or until almost doubled in size.
5. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and pre-shape into blunt cylinders.
6. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
7. Final shape. Lay a piece of dough smooth side down on the table horizontally. Flatten it, then roll it into a tight long roll.
8. Place the rolls on a non-stick paper lined baking tray. Cover and leave for the final proof for around 1 – 1.5 hours. *During this time preheat your oven to 160C (320F) fan on.
9. Brush the buns with the egg yolk and milk glaze.
10. Bake for around 25 minutes. You can turn the tray around halfway through the bake to get an even crust.
11. Leave the buns to cool down for at least 30 minutes.
12. Slice the buns in half and spread butter on the inside.
13. Mix the eggs with salt & pepper and the spring onions. Add the curried beef and mix again.
14. Toast the buns butter side down in a pan on medium-high heat until golden.
15. Pour a little bit of oil in the pan and ¼ of the egg mix. Cook for a minute before pressing the bun into the egg. Keep cooking for another 2 minutes or until the egg has fully cooked. Flip it over and sprinkle in some grated cheese.
16. Assemble the roti. Top it with plenty of shredded cucumber, mayonnaise, hot sauce, and more spring onions.

Enjoy. This was one of my favourite recipes so far. Let me know if you tried it. And check out some more Baking World Tour goodies!

Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.

Your oven may be different too, so your baking time may vary.

Dhalpuri roti are split pea stuffed flatbreads popular in various Caribbean nations. They originated from Indian immigrants and became a local staple.

This is another great recipe for the Baking World Tour. Barbados was the first one in my list, so that is why I made it for them. There might be variations between the roti on different islands, but the concept is the same. Unleavened flatbreads stuffed with ground split peas and then pan fried. They are commonly used as wraps for curried chicken. If you would like the curried chicken recipe, them check out my brioche curry bun video.

This recipe makes 6 large wraps. To make more simply multiply the amount of ingredients.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the dough –

250g (8.8oz) strong white bread flour

5g (0.17oz) salt

5g (0.17oz) baking powder

20g (0.7oz) vegetable or coconut oil

140g (4.9oz) water

For the dhal –

160g (5.6oz) dry split peas

2g (0.07oz) turmeric

2g (0.07oz) cumin

Pinch of chili flakes

3 bay leaves

1 whole onion

4 cloves garlic, chopped

Fresh coriander to taste

Salt & pepper

Method

1. Soak the split peas in water for 24 hours. You can also use tinned ones, but home cooked will always be best.
2. Drain the peas and pour them into a pot. Add the turmeric, cumin, pinch of chili, bay leaves and onion. Season with salt, cover with water. Bring up to a boil and cook for around 30 minutes or until soft.
3. Drain the peas. Discard the onion and bay leaves. Add the garlic, coriander, salt, and pepper. A food processor would be perfect to grind this up, but I only have a stick blender, which worked ok. Try to get the mix nice and smooth. If there are whole peas left, then they may tear the dough when rolling later.
4. Leave the filling to cool down completely.
5. Make the dough. In a bowl combine the water, salt, baking powder, and oil. Mix well to dissolve any large salt crystals. Add the flour and mix to a dough.
6. Knead for 6 minutes.
7. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and shape into balls. Place them on a plate or a tray.
8. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. You can leave them in the fridge for longer if you want.
9. Flatten the dough balls and fill them with the ground dhal. I had too much filling and there was some left over. The recipe above is adjusted to be the right amount. So, use up all the filling.
10. Seal the dough up. Refrigerate for another 30 minutes. The resting helps with easing the shaping process. A cold dough is far easier to work with and during the time it is sitting it is also developing gluten making the dough stretchier.
11. Roll the dough out to around 25cm (10in).
12. Cook in a well-oiled pan on medium-high heat for around 5 – 6 minutes in total. Flip the roti every 30 seconds.
13. As soon as it comes out the pan cover it with foil or clingfilm. You want to keep them moist and pliable.

Enjoy with your favourite fillings.

Simple roti is an immensely popular bread all around Asia.

There are many variations. They can be sweet or savoury. You can eat them for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Being unleavened makes it extremely easy to make as there is no need to wait for it to puff up. In the first part of the video, I demonstrate how to make the roti, in the second part I will show you how to make a delicious Malaysian chicken curry to go along with the roti.

The roti can be filled with various fillings like herbs, vegetables and spices. I kept them plain with just egg for this recipe as I served them alongside the curry which is extremely flavourful and does not require any more spices. In fact it is quite nice to eat such a curry with a simple plain roti on the side.

If you are going to make the roti as well as the curry, then make the dough, place it in the fridge to rest and whilst it is resting make the curry. When the curry is ready finish the roti and have yourself a nice meal ?

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

Roti:

150g (3.5oz) strong white bread flour

3g (0.1oz) salt

3g (0.1oz) sugar

1 whole egg, approximately 50g (1.75oz)

45g (1.6oz) milk *you want a total weight of 95g (3.35oz) between the milk and egg. First weigh the egg and then add enough milk to make up the difference.

4 whole eggs for frying

Salt & pepper to season

Oil

Curry:

For the curry powder –

5g (0.2oz) ground turmeric

1g (0.03oz) ground cloves

2g (0.07oz) ground black pepper

5g (0.2oz) ground cumin

10g (0.4oz) ground coriander

5g (0.2oz) cinnamon

2g (0.07oz) ground star anise

Chilli powder to your taste *Mix all these ingredients to make the curry powder. Set aside.

For the curry paste –

160g (5.6oz) peeled & diced shallots

40g (1.4oz) peeled garlic

40g (1.4oz) peeled ginger

100g (3.5oz) cashew nuts

20g (0.7oz) soy sauce

20g (0.7oz) oil

2 teaspoons of the curry powder from above *Blend all these ingredients in a food processor to make the curry paste.

For the chicken –

600g (1.3lb) chicken drumsticks

20g (0.7oz) soy sauce

The rest of the curry powder *Mix well to marinade the chicken. This can be done a day ahead of time for more flavour, but a quick marinade works perfectly well too.

To cook the curry –

20g (0.7oz) oil

2 lime leaves, sliced

2 small branches worth of curry leaves, picked

3g (0.1oz) salt

400g (14oz) diced, peeled potatoes

150g (5.3oz) coconut milk to finish

Coriander leaves to serve

Method

To make the roti:

1. In a bowl combine the egg, milk, salt, sugar and mix well. Add the flour and mix to a dough.
2. Knead for 5 minutes.
3. Divide in 4 equal pieces and shape into balls. Place on a greased plate. Brush with oil all over, cover with cling film and place in the fridge to rest for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. *Now is the time to make the curry if you decide to do so.
4. Using oil stretch the dough out on your table until it becomes translucent.
5. Lay the dough in your pre heated (medium – high heat) pan and pour over one of the eggs. Season with salt & pepper. Fold it up into a parcel. Flip every 30 seconds. Cook until golden brown all over.

Enjoy whilst fresh!

To make the curry:

1. In a pan heat up the oil and cook the curry paste on medium heat for around 5 minutes or until thickened and nicely fragrant. Stir it with a metal spoon because it might tend to stick to the pan.
2. Add the lime leaves, curry leaves, salt, potatoes, and chicken drumsticks.
3. Add enough water to almost cover the chicken. Bring up to a simmer.
4. Cook for around 1 hour or until the chicken comes off the bone with no effort. Stir the curry occasionally with a metal spoon as it may start sticking to the bottom of the pan a little bit.
5. Add the coconut milk and adjust the seasoning if need be. Serve the curry garnished with fresh coriander leaves.

Unleavened flatbread is some of the earliest kind of bread humans made.

These butter rotis are layered and flaky. Like a savoury puff pastry. Cooked in a pan they are simple to make. The delicious buttery flavour and the texture make them a perfect accompaniment to your favourite curry. This recipe makes 4 rotis. A good amount for 2 hungry mouths. If you want to make more, then double or triple the amount of ingredients.

Watch the video down below to see detailed instructions.

Ingredients

150g (5.3oz) white flour

1 egg

50g (1.75oz) milk

3g (0.1oz) salt

3g (0.1oz) sugar Oil for handling the dough and for frying.

Soft butter for layering and more for frying. The amount of butter is up to you. You can add less or more. You can also use oil to layer the roti.

Method

1. Add the milk, egg, salt, and sugar to a bowl and mix to dissolve any salt and sugar crystals.
2. Add the flour and mix until no dry flour left.
3. Knead the dough for around 5 – 7 minutes.
4. Divide into 4 equal pieces. Shape into balls, cover and rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
5. Oil your worktop and stretch the dough pieces out as thinly as possible.
6. Brush with butter all over, fold, roll, tuck in the end piece and flatten. (See video!)
7. Cover and rest in the fridge for another 30 minutes at least.
8. Oil your worktop and roll the rotis out thin.
9. In a hot pan add some oil and a knob of butter. Fry the rotis, flipping them every 20 – 30 seconds. Add more butter if needed. Cook them until they are puffed up and nicely golden brown all over.
10. Cover to keep them pliable, but they are best eaten fresh from the pan.

Enjoy with your favourite curry.