Chef Dolly’s Buss-Up Shut Roti (Trinidad)
Recipe courtesy Dolly and League of Kitchens
A flatbread named as such because the resulting ragged pieces of bread look like “busted up shirts.” This is achieved by breaking the dough apart into flaky soft pieces with flat wooden paddles while on the tawa, or flat grill. It’s well worth the time involved to have fresh bread to scoop up all the flavorful curries and stews found on the Trinidadian table.
2 1/2 pounds all-purpose bleached flour (about 8 1/2 cups), plus more for dusting
4 ounces baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons rapid rise highly active yeast
2 teaspoons fine salt
3 cups warm water
2 tablespoons plus 3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup shortening
1 stick salted butter
Mix the flour, baking powder, yeast, and salt in a large metal bowl. Make a well in the center. Pour in the warm water a little at a time, mixing and kneading in the bowl, until a shaggy dough forms (you may not use all the water, or you may need a little more, use only what is needed to form a shaggy dough). If the dough is still a bit sticky, sprinkle in a little more flour. Continue to knead in the bowl, picking up the stray flour and dough in the bowl, until you have a fairly smooth ball of dough that you can push a finger into and the indent pushes back. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil and punch into the dough until it forms a ridge when pinched. Rest the dough in the bowl, uncovered, for 1 hour.
Combine the shortening and butter in a bowl and microwave until almost melted, about 1 minute; it’s ok if there are still clumps of shortening. Stir in the remaining oil.
Break the dough into six 6 1/4-ounce pieces and gently roll into balls. If there is any dough left over, divide evenly among the balls. Dust your hands lightly with flour if necessary to prevent sticking. Press a ball out to a 10-inch round. Generously brush the butter mixture onto the dough. Sprinkle with a little flour. Make a tear at the top of the round to about halfway down the circle. Then roll into a cone, using your left hand to keep the center tight and your right hand to tightly roll the outside, switching at the midpoint. Tuck the last flap into the end of the cone, and then the rest of the ends into the cone. Put the bottom on the counter, cradle the cone with one hand, and with the first 2 fingers of your other hand, twist and poke the top of the cone into itself, with a little butter mixture on your fingers. Put in a rectangular baking dish, and repeat with the remaining balls. Rest the balls uncovered for 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
Take a piece of dough about the size of a golf ball. Select a corn husk that isn’t ripped. Hold a corn husk it in the palm of your hand with the pointed side up. Put the dough in the middle and spread evenly to the edges and bottom, roughly the shape of your palm. If the dough doesn’t reach the edges, you can rip off the sides of the husk. Then place a strip of cheese, jalapeño, onion, and tomato down the middle. Bring one side over to the middle, then the other side, enclosing the filling. Bend the unfilled part of the husk over the filled part. Tear the less than perfect husks into thin strips. Tie with a strip of husk to secure (can also just leave as is). Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Line a large bowl with a kitchen towel and then a double layer of paper towels. Pat out each ball, flour the top, roll out a few times, flip, flour the other side, and continue rolling until it’s a 10-inch round. Pat out flat a bit more if needed to fit the skillet, and then place in the hot skillet. Brush the butter mixture on top with a paper towel or pastry brush. Flatten the dough with a flat wooden spatula and then flip, butter the other side, and then flip again, continuing back and forth, pressing with the spatula, about 2 minutes total. Then, using two flat wooden spatulas, break up the dough with the sides of the spatulas in a motion as if using a hedge shears. Turn one quarter and bust up again. Remove to the bowl with towels. Repeat with the remaining balls. You may need to adjust the heat as you go so the roti don’t get too browned.