roti canai

[ roh-tee chuh-nahy ]

noun

1. a layered, unleavened flatbread similar to paratha, popular in Malaysia, Singapore, and other Southeast Asian countries.

Word History and Origins

Origin of roti canai¹

First recorded in 1970–75; roti ( def ) + Malay canai “to roll (dough) thin”

Example Sentences

Slices of roasted duck and scallions, bundled in the Indian-inspired flatbread roti canai and striped with hoisin and oyster sauce, bring to mind good Peking duck rolls.

From Washington Post

Recommended Dishes Roti canai; fish head curry; char kway teow; mee goreng; nasi lemak; Sarawak pepper chicken soup; kaya roti; three-layer tea.

From New York Times

Here was beef braised seemingly forever in coconut milk, beautifully slumped with all its knots undone, making a virtue of indolence; fish and shrimp paste spread inside crinkly rectangles of tofu skin and slipped into a bowl of curry laksa, the soup’s surface flecked with melted fat; and fish heads mobbed by okra and eggplant in a curry so luxurious, I couldn’t stop dragging strips of roti canai through it and watching them turn to gold.

From New York Times

That roti canai alone: The dough is stretched by hand until tissue-thin, and then flipped, folded twice over and gently twirled into a circle.

From New York Times

To start, the shell is made from roti canai, a Malaysian flatbread that’s denser and flakier than a traditional tortilla.

From Washington Post