Buss up shut paratha roti- A Trinidad version – Super Soft, Messy and Tasty . Pair it with Channa Curry and Aloo or Trinidad chicken roti.
First, a little linguistics lesson, Buss up shut refers to tattered and torn up shirt. Now that is out of the way let’s talk about this amazing tender flat bread.
So after making chicken roti, I knew I just had to give Buss up shut paratha roti a go (taste similar to this East African Chapati here) but is quite tender and somewhat buttery. I also knew that I wanted it to be practical and should be easy to make.
So I goggled any and everything on Buss up shut paratha roti and even watched you tube videos to make it come out just right, this is it guys! Quite easy and not scary at all.
Paratha is synonymous with Buss up Shut a layered, tender and buttery flatbread which is shattered or beaten to pieces, while still on the griddle or immediately after it is cooked to resemble a torn shirt. This can be achieved in various ways. The Guyanese use their hands (clap roti), or an enclosed container to beat the heck out of it. While in Trinidad it is done using two spatulas while it is still hot and just about to be taken off the tawa (a round flat griddle used in Indian cooking). Though an import of the Indians it is quite different with the Indian roti and has now become part of the Trinidad Culinary heritage.
The goal while making this is achieve a slightly crisp exterior, with small patches of light browning
There are two vital parts in making paratha, folding the dough with shortening/butter and letting it rest for not less than 2 hours and up to 4 hours.
These vital processes do not only render the dough tender but to give it layers. So don’t skip out on this step- speaking from experience.
Paratha is often enjoyed with almost any meal. However, it is mostly eaten with curries and stews. For an ultimate meal serve with this Curry Channa and Aloo
Enjoy!
Buss Up Shut Paratha Roti - a Trinidad version that is Super Soft, Messy and Tasty. Pair it with Channa Curry and Aloo or Trinidad Chicken Roti.
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ghee butter or oil
- 1 1/4 cup warm water or slightly more
- 1/3 cup shortening /butter
- ¼ cup oil/ghee / melted butter for basting /oiling paratha
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In a large bowl mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- Then make a well then add oil, followed by warm water, knead dough for about 30 seconds to 1 minute to form soft and sticky dough.
- Divide dough into 6 equal pieces. Set aside and let it rest for 15- 30 minutes
- The resting of the dough helps to relax the gluten and make it not only easier to work with but also produces tender paratha.
- Place each one piece on a heavily floured board and roll out dough into a circle. They do not have to be perfect circles.
- Using your fingers or knife rub shortening/ butter (about a tablespoon) on the surface of the dough, lightly sprinkle with flour.
- Using a knife make an opening from the center of the dough roll dough clockwise to form a cone.
- Pleat the ends into bottom of cone and push cone tip inwards. Place in an oil pan and cover with damp clothe.
- Repeat this process for other 5 pieces of dough. Oil each piece to prevent dough from drying out.
- Let it rest for about 2 hours or more covered.
- When ready to cook, heat up griddle, crepe pan or tawah to medium heat.
- Gently flatten out each cone and roll out. Begin rolling out the dough from the center working outwards.
- Rotate the dough out each time you roll it. This helps to make a perfect circle, about 10 inch circles, make sure they are thin at the edges.
- Gently place dough on the griddle (I used crepe pan to make paratha- a skillet will work as well).
- Heavily oil the other side of the dough making sure you oil the edges too.
- Cook until tiny bubbles / air pockets appear on the top of the roti, then flip dough.
- Making the torn up shirts can be achieved in several ways
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Crush paratha with two spatulas while still on the griddle
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Place paratha in a large bowl with a lid and shake the heck out of it
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Place in a clean cloth cover and shake it up.
- Serve warm.
I loved this recipe!! Intimidated initially to make something like this but thank you for making it incredibly easy to follow. So delicious and laid out perfectly. Huge hit with my family!!
Fantastic!! I am so glad this was a hit with your family, Alex! Thanks for stopping by!
Oh my! What an AMAZING recipe! I’m a Singaporean living in Montreal and this tasted EXACTLY like the paratha we get back home, made typically by Singaporeans who migrated from South India generations ago. I cannot thank you enough. My kids think I’m some sort of kitchen goddess now. *wink wink* I used a local garlic butter and it was out of this world! The kids loved that it was called “buss up shut”. So cool! Thanks again!
*wink wink* right back at you 🙂 ! And it does have a cool name. I am so thrilled you loved this recipe and that it got you to reminisce about home. Thank you so much for sharing, Angie!
Hi, I’ve run out of all purpose flour. Can I use self raising flour instead and leave off the baking powder ingredient?
Yes you may. Cut back on the salt as well.
4.95 stars!
5 stars if the total cooking/ prep time would be updated to reflect the 2+ additional hours needed to allow the dough to rest.
My second time making this and it was so yummy I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to nibble each one fresh off the tawa.
I also tried your Channa & Aloo Curry recipe using ingredients I had on hand (subbed lots of cayenne for scotch bonnet& habanero peppers, didn’t have green onion so I used extra onion, no allspice so triple the nutmeg, and lots of roasted garlic) & together, oh.my.goodness. So delicious to scoop up the curry with the buss up shut. Yum!
I WISH I could share pics.
I had to immediately video call two Trini friends in NYC so they could marvel at my beautiful creation. Since I’m sheltering on place with plenty of free time and the ingredients are simple & cheap, I’ll be making this every other day or so.
One tip: have extra flour at the ready to deal with sticky dough. Lots of sticky dough.
Thank you for the recipes!
YAY! So happy to hear it worked out well for you. Thanks for taking time out to share your thoughts with us. Stay safe !
I would like to do this for entertaining, could you make before hand and then reheat?
These don’t keep well .It’s best made the day of the event.
Yes they will keep fairly well if using them a day or two after. Keep refrigerated in an air tight container. When you are ready to use
1. take two strips of kitchen paper.
2. Wet the paper
3.wring so that the paper is damp and not wet
4. Wrap paper around the Roti
5. Heat in microwave (roughly 40 seconds but maybe less/ slight more depending on how powerful the microwave is.
Trust me this will give you a fluffy beautiful Roti
I’m making this as we speak but running out of time. It’s buttered and floured and made into the little buns and now I have to go to work for 12 hrs. Will it be okay or should I get my husband to do the rest? HELP!
Sorry I missed this one. You would have to have your husband finish it off.
Absolutely delicious. Love this with with your Trinidad Chicken Roti recipe. Stunning!
Amazing recipe! Thanks for sharing!! I grew up in Jamaica with this kind as well as dhal roti, brings back fond memories 🙂
Memories are such a great tie to food. That makes me very happy to know that, Naomi!
Tried this today and wow… PERFECTION! I used butter and coconut oil. The rotis were flaky, butteryand just pure deliciousness! Thanks for a great recipe.
You’re welcome. Glad you like it. And thank you for stopping by.
I’ve never tried to make Dhalpuri from Trinidad and Tobago though. I find the process of making that roti to be intimidating. By chance would you be exploring that roti as well? I would love for the assist!
I’m from Trinidad and Tobago and I grew up making buss up shut. I love how you broke it down into steps with pictures, I love your site and I thank you for showcasing our culture. I’m so proud and happy to see this. Thank you!
Thank you for the feedback. Happy Monday!
This recipe was spot on.
Awesome 🙂 !
The recipe for 5 out of 5. Fantastically simple and tasty dish. Now I often cook it for myself and my family.
Can milk be substituted for water? Does milk not make finished product softer?
I did not see baking powder in the ingredient list, did I just miss it?
No you didn’t . Recipe updated. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Just made this for dinner with some curry chicken. Best roti recipe I’ve tried. The texture is perfect!
Woohooo! Thank you for the wonderful feedback, Rebekah.
Hi
I tried this for the first time the other and they came out really great and tasty …Thanks or a great recipe
Glad it turned out great for you, Anthony! And thanks for taking the time to share your feedback. Have a great day!
I need shortening, oil, butter and ghee? Or either
That’s 1 tbsp ghee butter OR oil, 1/3 cup shortening OR butter and ¼ cup either oil, ghee, melted butter for basting/oiling the paratha
So I finally made it and I was so MAD…that the dough kept sticking to the rolling pin. People…flour…is your friend. Lightly dust the side you are rolling if it keeps sticking. Then oil that sucker. I used a paintbrush. What came out once I figured it out is this light airy thing…that melts. I made the chicken roti with sweet potato instead of white ones and added carrots, also mashed sweet potato and chickpeas to make the sauce thicker…LAWD. Good Stuff Immi. You never let anyone tell you any different. You are a blessing and you make me look like Ramsey. Do you have a book I can buy?
Made this for dinner today with shrimp curry. I followed the recipe and the results were excellent roti. So nice and soft. I let the roti sit for about two hours before I started to cook them. Best roti ever!
Glad it turned out great for you, Pamela! Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback. 🙂
Hello- this looks delicious! I’m hoping to make it for my daughter lunch tomorrow, but wondered if I could leave out the dough for the whole night rather than the 2 hours indicated, and cook in the morning. What do you think?
Hi, Maritza! Yes, you could leave the dough for the whole night in the fridge and use it in the morning itself.
Awesome recipe. Mine was a great success. I used a garlic butter spread instead of butter and it was delicious. Thanks.
Hmmmm.. garlic butter makes it tastes even better! Might have to try it out sometime. Thanks for the feedback Shashu!
Absolutely delicious. Love this with with your Trinidad Chicken Roti recipe. Stunning!
Commented b4, but recently made again using 100% spelt flour, olive oil, and coconut shortening (to keep it vegan) vs the AP flour, oil, and ghee i used b4. Still tasted great. The spelt flour gave it a more hearty consistency but still kept it light and tasty
This is how we make it. A popular South Indian food and parts of Sri Lanka. We call it parrota. It’s way different than the North Indian version. Have to try making this.
I loooveeeee Roti!!! I have to try this .. tempting.. preparations seems tedious but well worth it. I might try over the weekend.
Beautiful pics!!
Yes, it is . So tasty!!!
Imma,
What are some good brands for pots/ pans and dutch oven? I need to invest tin some quality cook ware and bakeware. Kindly, tell. I plan to reorganize my kitchen. Thank you.
Hello , where do you get the pan to cook it and where would you get the ghee from ? Thank you very much
Hi Nuray,
Any fry pan would work for this recipe . I used a crepe pan , which I purchased from Amazon.
Ghee is available at most Indian Markets.
Loving this website and thank you for the recipe! 🙂 – @myguide2health (IG and YouTube).
Excellent recipe and easy-to-follow directions. My husband asks for this allllll of the time. Thanks
Thanks C.P! So glad to hear this.
You didn’t add baking powder? Did you forget to add that ingredient ?
I just did ! But it looks like it’s no updating – it’s 2 teaspoons baking powder. Will work on updating it Thanks for letting me know Miranda.
So does this recipe need baking powder? Because mine are almost finished resting and ready to bake without baking powder.
It doesn’t need it .
Thank you so much for this recipe! It turned out fantastic with our Kaala Chana last night.
Please ma’am. Trying to get my diabetics some low carb options! If you have any ideas of getting the Roti just as flaky, I would appreciate it!
Hi Stacey! Do you mean you need another butter option for the paratha ?
Dear Imma,
I think your site is amazing and well written. Keep up the good work. I am learning, not only about Caribbean recipes (I am from Trinidad) but from other countries as well..thank you for the pics as well….great job!
Hi Stella! You are too kind. Thank you so much for taking the the time to let me know.
Thanks for sharing.
Came out great, my Trini husband was quite impressed, especially after he told me while making it that people have to practice for years to get it right….. HA!! Next time I will use butter instead of ghee in between the layers, the ghee flavour was a little pungent for me. Also, a small suggestion to add the waiting time of hours to the recipe prep timeline. It was ok for us to eat at 10pm but might not be ideal for others 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
My gosh this flatbread looks incredible. What I love about it especially is how soft and buttery it looks!
Thanks Thalia.
I’m from Trinidad, it’s always nice to see our food being made elsewhere. That is one good-looking buss up shut and your technique looks just the same too! Now for me to actually make it myself!
Aww Thanks Ariel! You know it’s not as hectic as it seems. And it’s quite tasty.
Well done Imma! Paratha is no easy feat but you’ve done a spectacular job! You’re welcome at this Trinidadian’s home anytime. You bring the buss up shut and I’ll cook the curry 🙂
Thank you so much Krystal. Just let me know when ad I’ll be right over. We are going to have a BLAST!!!
I’ve always wanted to make Roti but I’ve never been game. I think you’ve convinced me to give it a try. It looks amazing.
Thanks Cristie! Roti is not that daunting.
As someone from the Caribbean who is fussy (LOL) about the roti(s) of the region, you have outdone yourself here!
Aww thank you so much Cynthia! Glad you approve.
wow again something so delicious ! many greetings from Poland
Thanks Kami! Good to hear from you again!
Look how beautifully flaky that is! We must be in sync, I just made flat bread the other day for my butter chicken! Yours looks better though, love the flakiness. 🙂
Nagi, yours look absolutely Delicious and the butter chicken-YUM!