Ragi or finger millet flour is a gluten-free grain of Indian origin. It is a great replacement for wheat unlike other flours like jowar or bajra which are more tricky to make. Ragi rotis / chapathis are the softest I have made even compared to wholewheat. If you use emmer wheat that has more of the fibre, you will enjoy ragi comparitively. I have used all kinds of wheats in my experiments. It’s perfectly soft for lunchbox too even after it’s cool. Ragi is the best ! 

Ingredients

1 cup ragi flour 

1 cup water 

1 pinch of salt ( optional )

Extra ragi flour for rolling 

Method

- Boil 1 cup water with a pinch of salt

- Add the 1 cup ragi flour and mix roughly. The water will seem less, but don’t add more water. Switch off the stove and let it sit for 10 mins

- Take enough dough and knead it well on a plate which is coated with water so that the dough does not stick

- Make balls and roll. This method will ensure it does not break or split.

- Take a heated iron or clay tawa and cook this on both sides without using any oil. This does not need water too.

- Don’t wait till the chapathi gets dark black spots. That’s not necessary as it was also partially cooked in hot water.

- These are softer than wheat / jowar / bajra chapathis or rotis even after cooling and is a perfect replacement for wheat.

Don’t hesitate to use ragi as a replacement for wheat daily. There are misconceptions that this causes heat in the body. Please read about that here