Jowar Roti / Sorghum Flour Flatbread

We started on a 21 day cleanse as described in Kathy Freston's book Quantum Wellness. There are primarily five things that are a strict no-no in this diet:  Alchohol, Animal Products, Caffeine, Gluten and Sugar. Oh my what do we eat then? Well a lot of vegetables and fruits and pulses and legumes. Being Indians and vegetarians for most part no meat part is fine. The part that is tough is no GLUTEN. We eat roti's or chapati's or phulkas made with whole wheat flour practically with every meal. So how do we manage without Atta (whole wheat flour)? Our mothers and grandmothers used to use a variety of whole grain flours like Jowar, Bajra, White Rice Flour, Red or Wild Rice Flour and make roti's or what we Sindhi's call "Mani" of these. So taking a walk down the memory lane and remembering the way it was done in good old days when the kitchen and cooking were for mothers under the watchful eyes of my grandmother, here's my version of Jowar Roti or Juvar ji Mani straight from my blog to your homes ...

Juvar Ji Mani / Jowar Roti / Sorghum Flour Flatbread

Ingredients
1 Cup Jowar Flour / Sorghum Flour + some for dusting
1 Cup Hot Water (near boiling)
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Crushed Black Pepper * Optional
Ghee / Oil / Butter

Implements
1 Ziplock bag two sides cut to make a rectangle
Tava / Griddle

Method
1. In a bowl, mix flour, salt and pepper. To this add one cup of hot water, set aside for 8-10 minutes till it is cool enough to handle.
2. Knead the dough, unlike chapati flour this dough is less sticky since it does not have gluten and hence does not require heavy kneading. Add more water if the dough is very hard. When you tear of a ball you should be able to pat it without cracking. If it cracks add a little more water - a teaspoon at a time

3. Now on the ziplock bag apply a very little ghee, sprinkle some dry flour. Tear off a small portion and roll it into a round.

4. Now get ready to shape it into a round with your palm and fingers as shown below

5. Once you have a uniformly thin roti to your desired thickness, gently lift the ziplock bag a remove the roti onto your other hand or directly on the hot griddle taking care not to burn the plastic.

6. Cook on both sides, apply ghee and serve hot with any of your favourite vegetables.

Enjoy this gluten free, dairy free, whole grain delight with some hot pickle, some slices of raw onion and garlic chutney.