Surinamese puntjes
Pointed, yeast-raised Surinamese rolls with a light crumb and a thin crust, shaped with a pressed seam and baked with a semolina coating.
Surinamese dhalpuri roti (Tante Farida's method)
Dhalpuri · Indo-Surinamese roti
Soft Surinamese dhalpuri filled with seasoned yellow split peas, rolled into thin rounds and cooked on a tawa or skillet.
A Surinamese filled roti
Roti is part of Hindustani foodways in Suriname. The Surinaams Museum records that migrants from northern India brought roti and other foods with them. A Paramaribo food guide describes a local version that is softer and larger than chapati and usually carries ground yellow split peas inside the dough.
This recipe follows Tante Farida's measured home method for Surinamese dhalpuri. Dhalpuri is one roti form; plain roti and layered paratha-style breads are distinct preparations. The atlas lead uses the broader Indo-Surinamese name, while this page documents one specific filled and chemically leavened method.
Sources for this section
History
The Surinaams Museum records that Hindustani migrants brought roti and other foods to Suriname. A Paramaribo food guide describes the local form as larger and softer than chapati and commonly filled with ground yellow split peas. This page follows one measured home method; it is not a universal formula.
Ingredients
Yield 8 roti · Scaling: source batch only
Wheat flour
500 g
for doughWarm water
300 mL
for doughOil
30 mL2 tbsp as recorded
for doughSalt
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
for doughBaking powder
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
Yellow split peas
200 g
for filling; rinse, cook until fully tender, drain and steam-dryGround cumin
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
for fillingGround coriander
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
for fillingGround turmeric
2.5 mL½ tsp as recorded
for fillingBlack pepper
2.5 mL½ tsp as recorded
for fillingGarlic
1 cloves
peeled; for fillingMadame Jeanette pepper (optional)
1
small; to tasteSalt
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
for fillingOil
59 mL4 tbsp as recorded
for brushing during cookingWheat flour (optional)
Amount not stated
as needed; lightly dust the work surfaceMethod
Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw flour and dough
Uncooked flour can carry germs; do not taste raw dough.
Hazard sourceCook each roti through before eating, do not taste raw dough, and wash hands, bowls, utensils and counters after handling flour or dough.
Control sourceThe source gives visual pan cues rather than a measured cooking temperature; cook each roti through before serving.
- Rinse the yellow split peas. Put them in a saucepan, cover with plenty of water and cook until fully tender. Drain thoroughly and let them steam dry so the filling will not be wet.
- Grind the cooked peas with the cumin, coriander, turmeric, black pepper, garlic, Madame Jeanette if using, and filling salt until fine. Keep the filling fairly dry.
- Mix the flour, dough salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Add the warm water gradually, then 2 tablespoons of oil. Knead for 8–10 minutes, until soft, smooth and supple.
- Cover the dough with a clean cloth and leave it to rest for 30 minutes. Divide into 8 equal portions, shape each into a smooth ball and keep covered.
- Flatten one ball and make a hollow in its centre. Add a portion of pea filling, draw the dough up around it and pinch the seam closed. Turn seam-side down and let it rest for a few minutes. Repeat.
- Lightly flour the work surface. Roll each filled ball gently from the centre outward into a thin round. Use light pressure so the filling does not break through.
- Heat a broad skillet or tawa over medium-high heat. Put one roti on the dry pan and cook for 1–2 minutes, until small bubbles appear. Turn it, brush the cooked side lightly with oil, turn again, and brush the other side.
- Continue cooking briefly, turning as needed, until both sides are cooked through and lightly coloured. Place each roti under a clean cloth to keep it soft. Serve warm.
Conditions
Yield8 roti
Active time65 min
Places
Suriname
Traditional preparation · Country evidenceA source-specific Surinamese dhalpuri home method. Sources associate roti with Hindustani foodways; this does not claim a single origin or universal formula.
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Sources
SURecepten; Tante FaridaMethod · Ingredients
Surinaamse roti vellen maken (dhalpuri)Measured recipe for eight roti with wheat flour, warm water, oil, salt and baking powder and a seasoned yellow split-pea filling.
Specifies fully tender peas, dough kneading and 30-minute rest, shaping, filling, rolling and tawa or skillet cooking cues.
Cited in: A Surinamese filled roti
Surinaams MuseumHistory · Geography
HindostanenRecords arrival of the first 399 contract labourers from northern India on 5 June 1873 and notes Hindustani migrants brought roti and other foods to Suriname.
Cited in: A Surinamese filled roti
Switi Tours ParamariboContext · Geography
Roti: the best-known dish in SurinameDescribes Surinamese Hindustani roti as a local form, larger and softer than chapati and usually filled with ground yellow split peas.
Cited in: A Surinamese filled roti
Centers for Disease Control and PreventionSafety
Raw Flour and DoughRaw flour can carry germs; do not eat raw dough, follow cooking directions and wash hands and food-contact surfaces after handling flour or dough.