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1
Combine the flour, beaten egg, a pinch of salt, a tablespoon of ghee, and the cold water in a large bowl, mixing to a smooth, cohesive dough — the cold water slows gluten development at this stage, keeping the dough workable rather than tight and springy. Divide into eight equal portions, each roughly the size of a golf ball, coat each ball lightly in ghee, arrange on a tray, cover, and refrigerate overnight, so the long rest allows the gluten to relax completely and the ghee forms a skin that prevents the balls from drying out and crusting. The dough is ready when it feels noticeably slack and extensible — a finger pressed in meets almost no resistance.
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2
Bring the dough to room temperature for 30 minutes before cooking, so the ghee in the dough softens and the gluten stays pliable rather than snapping back when stretched. Set a flat iron griddle over high heat until a drop of water evaporates immediately on contact. This is where the dish lives or dies: the griddle must be very hot so that the roti browns in under 60 seconds per side — a medium-heat griddle produces a pale, soft result with none of the defining crispness — and keep it at that heat throughout.
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3
Lightly oil the work surface with ghee, then take one dough ball and begin stretching from the centre, pulling and rotating rapidly outward — not from the edges — so the sheet thins evenly rather than tearing at the thinner perimeter first. Work with speed, because a roti stretched quickly allows the aligned gluten to extend without tearing; stretched slowly, it tears. Continue until the dough forms a paper-thin, near-translucent sheet roughly 50–60 cm in diameter; any small holes are acceptable.
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4
Brush the surface of the stretched sheet generously with ghee so that each fold stays distinct during cooking and the layers peel apart rather than fusing into a single dense slab. Fold into a square: bring the top third down, the bottom third up, then fold left and right to produce a neat, layered square parcel. The folded parcel should feel distinctly laminated, not compressed.
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5
Add a small spoonful of ghee to the hot griddle and lay the folded roti on it, cooking until the underside is deep golden and the edges show visible crisping — under 60 seconds — so the layers set and crisp before the interior has time to toughen. Flip and cook the second side to the same colour. The finished roti is golden and rigid at the edges, the layers audibly crisp when pressed, while the interior remains soft; remove it immediately.
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6
Transfer to a board and clap the roti firmly between both palms two or three times, so the impact shatters the set layers open and exposes the flaky interior structure that would otherwise stay compressed and unreadable on the plate. Serve at once alongside warm gaeng kari or, for the sweet breakfast version, with sweetened condensed milk.