Pathiri

Name: Pathiri
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Kerala)
Ingredients: 2 cups (240 g) rice flour (fine-ground, raw — pathiri podi); 1¾ cups (420 ml) boiling water; ½ tsp (3 g) salt; 1 tsp (5 ml) coconut oil; 1½ cups (360 ml) thick coconut milk; 2 tbsp (24 g) sugar; ¼ tsp (0.5 g) cardamom powder; Pinch of salt; The dough must be worked while very hot — cool dough cracks when rolled and produces stiff pathiri.; Roll as thin as possible; thick pathiri is rubbery and undercooked in the centre.; Keep the stack covered with a damp cloth at all times — pathiri dries and stiffens in minutes.; Pathiri is also excellent with egg masala or fish curry in place of thenga paal.

🍗 Non-veg📊 Medium

Thin, soft, unleavened rice flour flatbreads from the Malabar Muslim (Moplah) community of northern Kerala — the rice equivalent of a roti, made entirely from rice flour, boiled water, and salt. Pathiri is paper-thin, pearly white, and has a delicate, slightly chewy texture. It is served with spiced coconut milk (thenga paal), fish curry, or chicken curry for breakfast in Kozhikode, Malappuram, and Kannur households.

⏱️15 minPrep

🔥20 minCook

🕒35 minTotal

🍽️4Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Pathiri

Place rice flour and salt in a large bowl.
Pour boiling water gradually while mixing with a wooden spoon — work quickly while hot.
Add coconut oil.
Knead for 2–3 minutes into a smooth, soft dough.
Cover with a damp cloth to prevent drying.
Divide dough into 12 equal balls (about 35 g each).
Roll each on a lightly dusted board with a thin rolling pin into a perfectly round disc, 15–18 cm in diameter and as thin as possible (about 2 mm).
Work swiftly as the dough dries quickly.
Heat a flat tawa or griddle over medium-high heat until hot.
Cook each pathiri for 1 minute per side — it should develop small golden spots but remain mostly white and soft.
Do not press or flatten while cooking.
Stack cooked pathiri with a damp cloth between each to keep them pliable.
Warm coconut milk over low heat.
Add sugar, cardamom, salt.
Stir until dissolved.
Do not boil.

📖 Cultural notes

|---|---|---|---|---| | 350 kcal | 4 g | 56 g | 12 g | 1 g | Pathiri is the iconic breakfast bread of the Malabar Muslims (Moplahs) and is virtually unknown outside northern Kerala. It represents a distinct culinary tradition shaped by centuries of Arab trade contacts along the Malabar Coast, where rice-based flatbreads became central to Islamic community food culture. In Kozhikode, pathiri with chicken curry is as essential as biryani — and the knowledge of how to roll it paper-thin is a skill passed from mother to daughter. The Malabar region is recognised as having a unique and distinct cuisine within Kerala. ---

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