Frozen Kothu Rotti

Kothu rotti, spelt kottu roti in much of Sri Lanka and kothu parotta in Tamil Nadu, is chopped flatbread stir-fried on a flat griddle with egg, onion, leeks, carrot, cabbage, green chilli and curry. On the street the cook chops it with two steel blades in a fast rhythm you can hear down the road. The bread is usually godamba roti or veechu roti, and the frozen version comes already cut into strips, so the slowest part is done.

For a pan at home, heat oil in a wok or wide frying pan, fry onion, garlic, curry leaves and green chilli, then add shredded vegetables and scrambled egg. Add the frozen rotti straight from the bag with chicken, mutton or vegetable curry and its gravy, and chop and turn it with a flat spatula until the strips soak up the sauce. A spoon of Jaffna curry powder or a little chilli paste lifts it, and a tin from Sri Lankan curries works when there is no leftover curry. Cheese kothu, with grated cheese stirred in at the end, is a modern favourite.

There is no need to thaw kothu rotti, as the strips loosen in the heat. Keep the bag closed at -18°C and do not refreeze it once it has defrosted. For whole breads to eat alongside a curry, see porotta and veechu roti, and for the rest of the freezer flatbreads go to frozen parathas and breads.