Earlier this month, we chanced upon a version of roti we savoured by itself. Chopped onions were kneaded into the dough and red chilli powder was sprinkled on top; baked in a tandoor, it was nothing fancy but so full of contrasting flavours that it got us thinking of the many, many Indian breads. 

From flat ones such as palak roti to koraishutir kochuri (the Bengali green peas stuffed puri), and of course the stuffed parathas in savoury and slightly sweet variations such as kulcha, chicken orotti, meen pathiri (thin rice flatbread with fish filling) and puran polis and khajoor ni ghari (fried flatbread with date filling)—the traditions are as endless as our kneads, and shapeshift every 100 kilometres.

Girda

A Kashmiri favourite is the girda, which is much thicker than everyday rotis, and is loaded with sesame seeds and a generous dollop of desi ghee. This makes it moist and  it can be had with practically any subzi or meat dish. “Girda holds cultural significance in Kashmiri cuisine and is an integral part of the region’s culinary heritage. It is served with traditional Kashmiri dishes such as rogan josh, dum aloo or in the multi-course wazwan,” Singh tells us. It is made of whole wheat, and we tried it with a meat curry, but the accompanying vegetarian photojournalist felt it would be perfect when dipped in chai. Ek noon 
chai, ho jaye?