Chhilka Roti: Raw Rice and Chana Dal, Soaked Overnight and Cooked Thin
Only raw rice, chana dal, water, salt and a little oil. Grind the batter fine, spread it thin, and take each roti off the tawa once golden spots appear on both sides.
The evening before, raw rice and chana dal go into a bowl of water together. The next day they are drained, ground to a fine paste, seasoned with salt, and spread 2 tablespoons at a time across a hot, lightly oiled tawa. A lid goes on, the roti is flipped, and a few moments later it comes off thin and freckled with gold.
This is chhilka roti as Sushmita Pandit describes it in her 2013 recipe post, "Chawal ki roti (chilka roti) (Rice pan chapati)." She names Jharkhand as her native place and presents the roti as a dish from home, one she also makes for special occasions. She serves it with curry and writes that it goes especially well with chana dal chutney.
There is no fermentation, no flour and no spice in the batter. That simplicity is what sets it apart from its neighbors on the wider table of Indian food: dosa batter is made from rice and urad dal and left to ferment, and cheela is a quick batter of besan with vegetables. Chhilka roti is its own dish, built from soaked grain and split chickpeas ground fresh.
The amounts and method below follow Sushmita Pandit's recipe. This recipe has not been kitchen-tested by Sekai Gohan. She lists the batch as 8 medium roti, with 2 minutes of preparation for grinding. Those figures are hers and have not been verified; the grinding time does not include soaking, and with 2 tablespoons of batter per roti the full quantity of grain may not come out to exactly eight. This article does not promise a set number of roti.
The name appears as Chhilka, Chilka and Chilkha roti, and SHĀLIKŪṬA also records it as Papri and Chikha roti. These are treated here as variations of the same name. The origin of the word has not been confirmed.
Ingredients
Choosing the Rice and Dal
Arwa chawal simply means raw, uncooked rice. The batter depends on soaking and grinding whole grains, so cooked rice and rice flour are not part of this recipe.
Chana dal is split Bengal gram. Look for packs labeled chana dal or Bengal gram dal. Besan (chickpea flour) and urad dal belong to other dishes, cheela and dosa respectively, and are not substitutes here. Do not swap in other beans or flours.
Use enough water to cover the grain while it soaks, and only a little when grinding and thinning. Add salt to taste and use a little oil to grease the tawa.
Equipment
- Bowl for soaking
- Sieve or colander
- Mixer, blender or wet grinder
- Nonstick tawa or frying pan
- Lid that fits the tawa or pan
- Tablespoon
- Spoon or brush for oil and for spreading the batter
- Spatula for flipping
What to Watch For
The recipe is short, so most of the judgment sits in three places: how fine the paste is, how much water goes in, and the golden spots at the end.
| What you notice | What to check | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The paste feels coarse | Whether the grain is ground fine | Keep grinding, adding only a little water |
| The batter won't spread thin | Whether the thin-roti water went in | Add a little more water and mix, a little at a time |
| The batter runs across the pan | Too much water added at once | Next time, add the thinning water in smaller amounts |
| The roti sticks | Pan, heat and oil | Use a nonstick tawa or pan, heat it over medium-high and grease it lightly, with a little more oil as needed |
The finish cue is golden spots on both sides. A few tiny flecks on the surface are natural for a ground rice-and-dal batter.
Other Ways Cooks Make It
Sushmita Pandit gives two choices within her own recipe. The soak can be at least 5 hours instead of overnight, and the extra water at the end is only for thin roti; this article follows the overnight soak and the thin version.
Other cooks write the dish differently, and their amounts are not mixed into the recipe above:
- I camp in my kitchen (Priya Srinivasan): measures in cups, with 1 cup raw rice, 1/2 cup chana dal and about 1/2 to 3/4 cup water, and prefers a slightly thin batter. The post pairs the roti with chana dal chutney and bilati chutney.
- Archana's Kitchen (Nithya Anantham): uses 1 1/2 cups rice and 3/4 cup chana dal, grinds a smooth paste kept thicker than dosa batter, and cooks about 2 minutes on one side and 1 to 2 minutes on the other.
- SHĀLIKŪṬA (Jyoti Shukla): a papri recipe with 250 g rice, a handful of beans chosen from several options, salt, cumin, green chili and mustard oil, soaked for 1 to 2 hours.
These show how much the roti varies by cook. If you want the plain version this article describes, stay with raw rice, chana dal, water, salt and oil.
A Home Roti Across Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
Sushmita Pandit writes about chhilka roti as a dish from her native Jharkhand and mentions making it for special occasions. SHĀLIKŪṬA, a heritage-rice project, describes papri, chikha and chilkha roti as a traditional rice dish found in homes across Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, and frames it as everyday food: thin and soft, eaten with vegetables, dal, meat, chutney or pickles. I camp in my kitchen also lists papri and chilka roti among Jharkhand's rice dishes.
Taken together, the sources suggest a roti that appears both on ordinary days and on occasions, with the balance shifting by region and household. Neither picture is the only one.
SHĀLIKŪṬA also separates chilkha from dosa. Both start from ground rice and a pulse, but dosa batter uses urad dal and is fermented, while chilkha batter is thin and unfermented. Cheela is different again: a batter of besan mixed with vegetables.
Serving
Sushmita Pandit eats chhilka roti with curry and singles out chana dal chutney as an especially good match. The chutney is a separate dish served alongside, not part of the roti batter.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many roti does this make?
Sushmita Pandit lists 8 medium roti. That number has not been verified, and with 2 tablespoons of batter per roti the full batch may give a different count. Treat the yield as open, and cook until the batter is used up.
Does the batter need to ferment or rest?
No. The rice and chana dal are soaked, drained and ground, then cooked once salt and any thinning water are mixed in. That lack of fermentation is one of the clearest differences from dosa.
Can I soak for less than overnight?
Sushmita Pandit's recipe gives at least 5 hours or overnight. This article follows the overnight soak.
Can I use rice flour or cooked rice instead of raw rice?
Not in this recipe. It starts from raw rice (Arwa chawal) soaked with chana dal and ground fresh, and the materials behind this article do not support swapping in rice flour, cooked rice or other pulses.
Why are there no exact amounts for water, salt and oil?
Sushmita Pandit does not give them. Use water as needed for soaking, a little for grinding and a little more for thin roti; salt to taste; and a little oil to grease the tawa.
Is chhilka roti the same as cheela?
No. Cheela is a quick batter of besan with vegetables. Chhilka roti is made from soaked raw rice and chana dal ground into a batter, with no vegetables or spices.
Sources
- Sushmita Pandit, "Chawal ki roti(chilka roti)(Rice pan chapati)," Wah "Sush" kitchen, 2 May 2013. The recipe this article follows: the author's Jharkhand native place, the ingredients (300 g raw rice, 200 g chana dal, water, salt, oil), soaking for at least 5 hours or overnight, grinding, the thin-roti option, cooking on a nonstick tawa covered for 30 seconds and then 20 seconds, serving with curry and chana dal chutney, and the author's stated yield and times. https://wahsushkitchen.blogspot.com/2013/05/chawal-ki-rotichilka-rotirice-pan.html
- Priya Srinivasan, "Chilkha Roti with Chana dal Chutney and Bilati Chutney from Jharkhand," I camp in my kitchen, 12 April 2014, updated 26 December 2024. A separate recipe for the rice-and-chana-dal roti and the listing of papri and chilka roti among Jharkhand's rice dishes; its amounts are not used in this recipe. https://www.icampinmykitchen.com/chilkha-roti-with-chana-dal-chutney-and/
- Nithya Anantham, "Chilka Roti Recipe (Jharkhand Style Rice and Lentil Roti)," Archana's Kitchen, 11 October 2019. A separate Jharkhand-style recipe using rice and chana dal, with a thicker batter and different cooking times; its amounts are not used in this recipe. https://www.archanaskitchen.com/recipe/chilka-roti-recipe-jharkhand-style-rice-and-lentil-roti
- Jyoti Shukla, "Papri (Chilka Roti)," SHĀLIKŪṬA, 21 June 2025. The names papri, chikha and chilkha roti, the dish's presence across Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh as everyday home food, serving with vegetables, dal, meat, chutney and pickles, and the distinction from fermented dosa batter. https://shalikuta.org/papri-chilka-roti/
