Ragi Rotti | Keppai Rotti | Ragi Adai | Finger Millet Roti

Super healthy and delicious Ragi Rotti recipe with detailed step by step pictures. Keppai Rotti video recipe, Ragi Rotti video recipe, easy ragi adai recipe – perfect breakfast or dinner recipe! Make this simple & easy finger millet roti – handmade goodness!

Ragi Rotti is a healthy and delicious hand-patted flat bread made with finger millet flour spiced with onions & tomatoes. Keppai or Kezhvaragu is finger millet in Tamil and rotti is the flat bread, usually rolled directly on a hot pan and cooked to a soft textured center & crisp on the outside. At home, keppai rotti is a favorite especially when there is fresh murungai keerai/moringa leaves. It works great with moringa leaves and the ragi murungai keerai adai turns out excellent, not to mention what kind of super food that it is! This version of ragi rotti is very similar except that it is spicier and has much more flavor packed, despite not having to use many ingredients.

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• Ingredients
• Step by Step Instructions
• Recipe Notes
• Top Tip
• Substitutions & Variations
• Storage & Serving Suggestions
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In this keppai rotti or kezhvaragu rotti recipe, we use only onions and tomatoes spiced with our favorite seasoning of homemade sambar powder. We will use the moisture from the cooked onion tomato masala to knead the dough and bring it all together using hot water. The dough should be looser than a regular chapati dough, as it should be hand-patted and not rolled. I prefer to use parchment paper and transfer the rotti to the pan easily. Check out all the tips & variations in the recipe below.

Ingredients

Ragi Flour, both home-made & store-bought can be used and it is the main ingredient for making this finger millet roti. The flour should be fresh for best results.

Whole Wheat Flour is used to make the rotti dough more pliable and easier to hand pat. It can be reduced or skipped altogether but this ratio of 2:1 for ragi to wheat flour works the best.

Onions & Tomatoes are cooked along with Curry Leaves to reduce the moisture content before being added to the dough.

Sambar Powder is used to flavor the keppai rotti and although it can be replaced or added with green chillies, it lends a very unique flavor to the finger millet roti.

For full list of ingredients and exact measurements, check the recipe below.

Step by Step Instructions

In a heavy pan heat 2 teaspoon oil and add 1 large onion finely chopped along with 12-15 fresh curry leaves finely chopped. Stir-fry on low flame until the onions are translucent.

Next add 1 large tomato finely chopped.

Cook on low flame for 3-4 minutes until the tomatoes start to turn mushy.

Add 2.5 teaspoon Sambar Powder and salt as needed for the rotti dough.

Cook for 3-4 minutes until the mixture has no moisture and remove from heat.

In a mixing bowl add 2 cups ragi flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour.

Next add the prepared onion tomato masala.

Now add ¼ cup finely chopped coriander leaves.

Using the moisture from leaves and masala, mix the flours into it.

Next add about 1 ¼ cups of hot water in batches of ½ cup, mixing and kneading the dough. Adjust the amount of water needed, based on your judgement.

The dough should be soft, slightly loose than chapati dough and should be pliable.

Roll a medium sized ball of dough and place it on a parchment sheet.

Gently pat the dough into an even sized circle, that is evenly thick. If the dough is sticky, wet your fingers with water or oil as needed.

Meanwhile heat a cast iron pan on low flame. On hot, gently flip the ragi rotti onto the hot pan.

Pat and press it gently to release the parchment paper and in one swift motion, remove the paper.

Cook the rotti on low flame for 2-3 minutes. Apply a few drops of oil.

Gently flip it over and cook for another 2-3 minutes on low flame. Apply oil on the other side too.

As both the sides of the ragi rotti are cooked, remove from heat. Repeat this with rest of the dough.

Serve ragi adai hot with coconut chutney or thakkali thokku or idli podi as breakfast or dinner!

Recipe Notes

• Hot water should be used for making the ragi rotti dough in order to easily bind it together. The amount of water could vary depending on the texture of the flours used. Always add the water in batches and adjust as needed.
• In the place of sambar powder, you can also add finely chopped green chillies although the sambar powder makes it taste good!

Top Tip

Ragi flour by itself is gluten-free so it becomes very difficult to handle it or hand-pat it so we add some whole wheat flour to make the dough pliable. This way the rotti turns out thinner and tastier.

While making the ragi rotti dough, use the moisture from the onion tomato masala to bring the dough together. You can add as much masala as you need – it adds to the flavor of the rotti. But before adding extra water, make sure the dry ingredients have absorbed the moisture from vegetables.

When you pat the dough on parchment paper, push it from the center towards the edges to get the correct circular shape and even thickness. If the dough is of right texture, it should be very easy to pat it thin.

You can also use a greased aluminum foil to pat the dough.

When the rotti is transferred to the hot pan, spend a few seconds pressing it onto the pan before releasing the paper or foil. The dough retracts when it comes in contact with the hot pan and hence can get thick around the edges. So patting it gently before removing the parchment paper helps!

You should not cook the ragi rotti on high flame or for longer duration. It should be soft and cooked with lots of golden spots on both sides.

Substitutions & Variations

It is optional to use whole wheat flour along with ragi flour for making this ragi adai. You can also vary the quantity of whole wheat flour but if the dough needs to be pliable, you need to add atleast ½ cup of wheat flour for 2 cups of ragi flour.

Sambar powder adds a unique spiciness and flavor to the finger millet roti, however you can replace it with some turmeric powder and red chilli powder. Alternatively, you can skip it altogether and use finely chopped green chillies instead.

Grated fresh coconut can also be added to the dough for extra taste and flavor.

Apart from onions and tomatoes, other vegetables like grated carrots, finely chopped beans, cabbage can also be added to the rotti dough.

Additionally finely chopped moringa leaves or murungai keerai can also be added to the pan when cooking the onions & tomatoes for making some delicious ragi murungai keerai adai.

Storage & Serving Suggestions

Ragi Rotti is best served hot along with coconut chutney, idli podi or thakkali thokku. It doesn’t require any side dish per se and can be eaten just as it is. It keeps soft when hot and can turn a bit chewy on cooling down, so keeping it wrapped in a cloth in hot pack or casserole helps retains the softness. The dough can be kept refrigerated in an airtight container for 1-2 days however the rottis are best consumed the same day they are made.

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