In Malaysia, Roti Jala is usually rolled up or folded and eaten with curries (you can check out my post on Roti Jala).  However, a few years ago, I read about a home cook in Singapore who made these “lace crepes” (or “net bread”) stuffed with minced (ground) meat, which sounded really delicious, and gave me the idea to try it this way.

I love keema, which is a popular minced meat dish in the Indian subcontinent.  It’s sort of like a dry curry, with onions, tomatoes, peas or potatoes, and lots of spices.  I cook lamb keema quite regularly because it’s not only delicious, but it’s easy to make too.  So naturally, when I decided to make stuffed roti jala, keema just seemed like a good choice of filling.  I didn’t have any lamb this time, so I used chicken, but you could also use beef.

I used a traditional brass funnel from Malaysia to make the roti jala.  Chances are, you won’t have one of these, but that’s not a problem.  You can just use a squeeze bottle!

Just as I expected, these were amazingly good!  They’re slightly spicy and so flavourful!  If you’re feeding a hungry bunch, you may want to double the recipe because these won’t last long!

Did you make this recipe?

Share your comments below.  Don’t forget to take a photo, tag it @divinelydelish on Instagram and hashtag it #divinelydelish 🙂

(Keema recipe adapted from hamariweb.com)

KEEMA-FILLED ROTI JALA (Makes about 12)

Keema Ingredients:

330g minced lamb, chicken or beef
1 medium tomato, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
1 teaspoon ginger, finely minced
1 teaspoon garlic, finely minced
4 black peppercorns
4 cloves
1 black cardamom
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
2/3 teaspoon coriander powder
2/3 teaspoon turmeric powder
2/3 teaspoon chilli powder
2/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 teaspoon garam masala powder
1/3 cup green peas
4 tablespoons ghee

Roti Jala Ingredients:

150g all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 egg, beaten
150 ml coconut milk
150 ml water
60 ml additional water, or more (if using Roti Jala funnel)
oil to grease pan

Instructions:

Keema:

1. Heat ghee over medium heat and fry onions until soft.

2. Add ginger, garlic, peppercorns, cloves, cardamom and cumin seeds. Fry until fragrant.

3. Stir in tomatoes, coriander, turmeric and chilli powders. Cook on medium heat until water has almost evaporated.

4. Add in meat and salt. Break up the meat into small pieces and fry until cooked.

5. Mix in green peas.

6. Lower the heat and cook, uncovered, until any remaining liquid has evaporated and the keema is quite dry.

7. Remove from heat and stir in garam masala. Set aside to cool.

Roti Jala:

1. Sift flour, turmeric and salt into a large bowl.

2. Make a well in the centre, add beaten eggs, coconut milk and 150 ml of water (this consistency is fine if using a squeeze bottle for making the Roti Jala; if using a Roti Jala funnel, add in an additional 60 ml of water, since a runnier consistency will be needed for the batter to flow through).

3. Using a whisk, mix well to get rid of any large lumps, then strain to get a smooth batter.

4. Cover bowl and set aside for 30 minutes.

5. Heat a non-stick pan over medium-low heat (I used temperature dial 3 on an electric stove top) and brush pan with a little oil.

6. Pour enough batter to fill about 1/3 of the funnel, and quickly move it around in circles over the pan*. You want to use just enough batter to create a lattice pattern. Cook for one to one and a half minutes, or until batter has set, then remove to a plate. There’s no need to cook the other side.

*If the batter is too thick to flow out of the funnel in a continuous stream, stir in additional water, half a teaspoon at a time, until the right consistency is reached.

7. Place about 2 tablespoons of filling on a roti, roll it up halfway, then fold both sides in, and finish rolling it up.