So, how do you make the right choice? What should you be looking out for? This post will help you with just that… If you’re not within close proximity to a store with chapatti flour available, you can order online - there are several South Asian online stores at the tip of a Google search which ship our products like chapatti flour. I’ve been making roti for over ten years now, and I’ve been watching my Mum making it for over double that time. We’ve been through A LOT of different brands of chapatti flour. One thing I’m adamant about is the quality of your chapatti flour makes a huge, HUGE difference to how easy it is to knead and roll out your dough, and how good your roti cooks. A high quality chapatti flour will knead into a tender, pliable and smooth dough. It’ll be stretchy, easy to handle and soft to roll out. When cooked, your roti should be pliable, shouldn’t turn stiff, and again, soft. My favourite brands, in no particular order, are:
Pilsbury Chakki Atta Aashirvaad Chakki Atta Champion Medium Atta East End Premium Gold Chapatti Flour Shama Chakki Gold Atta
What about Elephant Atta?
Am I fan of Elephant Atta, the most popular chapatti flour in the UK? Sadly, I’m NOT a fan of Elephant Atta in any capacity - in fact, it’s been the worst offender out all the budget flours I’ve tried. The dough is unbearably rubbery to knead and roll out, and the rotis are never pliable or of a good quality. AVOID if you can. White chapatti flour will feel similar in texture to white flour. It’s smooth, light and the lightest in colour of the three. It also has the lowest fibre content. Medium chapatti flour sits at the mid-level between white and wholemeal. It’s smooth but without the heaviness, and of a medium-brown colour. It also served as a mid-point in terms of fibre content. Wholemeal chapatti flour is the healthiest, highest fibre flour of these three. It’s also the darkest in colour, densest and heaviest. Think of how brown bread is denser and heavier than white bread - it’s the same concept here, too. Which chapatti flour you’ll prefer will depend on your own preference. I personally use medium chapatti flour as a happy middle ground 😄 Admittedly, most chapatti flour in the market outside of Pakistan will be Chakki, so this may be a non-issue for you. ‘Gold’ simply indicates a higher quality and you may find ‘Gold’ chapatti flour will cost more than non-gold chapatti flours. Similarly, ‘Premium’ also indicates a higher quality. Ultimately, these buzzwords are not regulated in any way, unlike Chakki vs non-Chakki, and white/medium/wholegrain, so they should be taken with a grain of salt. Pin for later! ⬆️⬇️⬇️⬇️
