Skip to Content

POL ROTI(Sri Lankan coconut roti)

Pol roti, also known as coconut roti is a Sri Lankan roti recipe(a type of rustic flatbread) that is made with flour, grated fresh coconut with diced green chillies and onions for extra texture.

This Sri Lankan roti is made with flour and coconut which also means it is a vegan, vegetarian roti recipe.

You’ll come across Sri Lankan roti as a street food/ tea-time snack at stationary carts or roadside restaurants.

They are served with a spicy lunumiris sandwiched between two roti and extra curries on the side as an option, making it a very easy breakfast on the go.

At home, the ease of mixing the dough coconut and flour roti makes it an easy option for breakfast and dinner. 

And guess what?

It’s a stovetop flatbread.

Sri Lankan Coconut roti served with lunumiris, dhal and served on a black tray

Kids– love it with palm sugar treacle or honey.

My youngest loves to dab pieces of roti with butter and Sugar just like I did at her age and still do.

Sri Lankan Coconut roti(pol roti, flatbread). with a child's hand reaching for the roti.
  • Fresh scraped or grated coconut is always the best option. freshly scraped coconut can also be found in the frozen section as they preserve well when frozen.
  • If you are unable to find fresh coconut then opt for dessicated coconut as a last resort. I’ve used it and would recommend it if you are unable to find scraped coconut in any form.
  • I’ve added chopped green chillies and onion but you can make the coconut roti without them as well. make sure to chop the onion and green chillies very fine as they are easy to mix in with the flour,
  • Salt seasoning should be on point, start with 1 teaspoon and add more as you need cautiously.
  • Once you make the roti, spread them over a flat surface and avoid covering them as soon as they are made, this just builds up moisture which will affect the texture of the roti.
  • How to shape the coconut roti(pol roti).
    • I know a few ladies in my family who never need a flat surface to shape the dough into perfect circles.
    • They make it look easy as they shape and mould the dough into perfect disks. Except for me of course,

If you want a perfectly shaped round disk then simply use a lid of any container or pan to cut out the circles.

  • Can I make the pol roti(coconut roti)dough ahead of time?
    • Yes, make the dough as shown in the recipe instructions, make the required amount of dough balls, brush some oil over them, cover with cling film and refrigerate.
    • To cook them, remove them from the fridge, let them reach room temperature and then roll out the dough balls into disks and cook.
Sri Lankan Coconut roti(pol roti), roti sandwiched between dhal curry.
  • A large bowl to knead the dough.
  • Flat surface or board to shape the roti.
  • A flat frying pan or tawa to make the roti.

Tuna filling stuffed Sri Lankan coconut roti.

How to make Sri Lankan paratha

Egg roti paratha.

Soft Rotis/tortillas.

Stove-top naan bread.

Once you’ve made them store them in an airtight container and refrigerate. use within 3 days.

Do not freeze them raw.

Instead, semi-cook them over the stovetop for 3 minutes on both sides and freeze them in an airtight container.

Use within a week. But these are so easy to make I would recommend making them fresh unless, of course, you are short of time during the week.

Remove from the freezer, let it reach room temperature and gradually reheat them over a stovetop, over very low heat or use the microwave to reheat them.

Great for breakfast, and dinner, I’ve never had a time where they went to waste as there’s always someone at home who eats them even with a good slathering of jam and butter.

Another option of using leftovers will be to make a pol roti kottu following my bread kottu recipe.

The ingredients mentioned below use standard measuring cups and spoons.

Serving Size- Makes 9 small rotis that are 5 inches in diameter.

2 cups of flour

1 tsp of salt or as needed

1 cup grated Coconut

1-2 Onion sliced
1-2 Green chillies finely sliced (optional)

1 teaspoon of red chilli flecks(optional)

1/2 cup of water

oil as needed

Sift flour(2 cups) with salt.

Add the grated coconut(1 cup), onions(1-2 medium) and finely sliced green chillies(1-2) or red chilli flecks(1 tsp).

One thing to keep in mind is the taste and texture of the coconut roti will change depending on how much scraped coconut to flour you add.

The more scraped coconut you add(maybe 1/2 cup more)the milkier and softer the pol roti turns out.

At the same time too much scraped coconut and you will find it difficult to flatten them so make sure you balance the ratio of flour and scraped coconut to make the coconut roti. 

mixing ingredients for the coconut roti.

Incorporate the ingredients into the flour thoroughly while mixing, and season with salt if necessary.

forming the coconut rotti dough.

Gradually add water to form a sticky dough.

Stage 1

stage 1 of forming the dough.

Stage 2

stage 2 of forming the dough for pol roti.

Continue kneading and form a soft dough that leaves the side of the bowl. this should take less than 5 minutes.

If you add too much water the dough will still be sticky even after kneading for a few minutes.

forming the correct dough consistency.

If this should happen sprinkle flour over the dough and knead until you get the dough that is smooth and doesn’t stick to the edges of the bowl or in your hands.

Apply oil to your hands and transfer the oil to the dough.

Separate the dough into 8-10 balls.

making the small dough balls.

On a lightly oiled surface, shape the dough into circles.

Yes, yes, I know my roti shape is a bit wonky, as I mentioned, me and perfectly round shapes never happen.

Let’s proceed, shall we?

making the shapes for the coconut roti.

Too much oil on the surface of the roti while you shape them and you might not be able to remove it from the flat surface and onto the Tawa(flat pan) without breaking it in two.

If this should happen dust a bit of flour to ease the removal of the roti.

Form roti that are not too thin as well or else they will break.

For an efficient way to form the roti while cooking them, on your second roti, place a flat skillet or pan over medium heat.

Lightly oil the pan and place the roti to cook.

While keeping an eye on the skillet you can form the other Rotties.

Cook one side of the roti, for 2-3 minutes and flip over to cook the other side.

Once all the roti has been cooked, serve with your favourite curry.

meal idea for pol roti. served with dhal curry, coconut roti, chilli paste and tuna curry.

JOIN ME ON ISLANDSMILE YOUTUBE CHANNEL

visit the SEAFOOD BLOG

Sri Lankan Coconut roti(pol roti, flatbread). A rustic flatbread made up of flour, grated coconut with diced green chillies and Onions for extra texture. vegan, vegetarian, Sri Lankan breakfast-islandsmile.org

Sri lankan pol roti(coconut roti, flatbread).

Yield: 9
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Sri Lankan Coconut roti(pol roti, flatbread).

A rustic flatbread made up of flour, grated coconut with diced green chillies and Onions for extra texture.vegan, vegetarian, Sri Lankan breakfast.

Ingredients

  • Ingredients mentioned below use standard measuring cups and spoons.
  • Serving size- Makes 9 small rotis that are 5 inches in diameter.
  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1 tsp of salt or as per needed
  • 1 cup grated coconut
  • 1-2 onion sliced
  • 1-2 green chillies finely sliced (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon of red chilli flecks(optional)
  • 1/2 cup of water
  • oil as needed

Instructions

  1. HOW TO MAKE THE ROTI DOUGH.
  2. Sift flour(2 cups) with salt.
  3. Add the grated coconut(1 cup), onions(1-2 medium) and finely sliced green chillies(1-2) or red chilli flecks(1 tsp).
  4. One thing to keep in mind is the taste and texture of the coconut roti will change depending on how much scraped coconut to flour you add.
  5. The more scraped coconut you add(maybe 1/2 cup more)the milkier and softer the pol roti turns out.
  6. At the same time too much scraped coconut and you will find it difficult to flatten them so make sure you balance the ratio of flour and scraped coconut to make the coconut roti. 
  7. Incorporate the ingredients into the flour thoroughly while mixing, and season with salt if necessary.
  8. Gradually add water to form a sticky dough.
  9. Continue kneading and form a soft dough that leaves the side of the bowl. this should take less than 5 minutes.
  10. If you add too much water the dough will still be sticky even after kneading for a few minutes, if this should happen sprinkle flour over the dough and knead until you get the dough that is smooth and doesn’t stick to the edges of the bowl or in your hands.

    Apply Oil to your hands and transfer the oil to the dough.

    On a lightly oiled surface, shape the dough into circles.
  11. Too much oil on the surface of the roti while you shape them and you might not be able to remove it from the flat surface and onto the Tawa(flat pan) without breaking it in two.

  12. If this should happen dust a bit of flour to ease the removal of the roti.
  13. Form roti that is not too thin as well or else they will break.
    Lightly oil the pan and place roti to cook.
  14. While keeping an eye on the skillet you can form the other pol roti.
  15. Cook one side of the roti, for 2-3 minutes and flip over to cook the other side.
  16. Once all the roti has been cooked, serve with your favourite curry.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 213Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 334mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 5g

Nutritional information on islandsmile is provided as a courtesy. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on the site. these figures should only be considered as estimates.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

Each recipe on this blog has been written with great care and love to the best of my ability with you in mind.
It’s free and on the blog, for you to try anytime.

All I ask is that you do not save it on any apps, recipe boxes or online groups which will affect me as a food blogger and the growth of this blog.

I would appreciate it if you only share the link rather than the full recipe. 

All images and text on this website are protected by copyright.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Ash

Thursday 14th of April 2022

Thank you, very yummy =) Had also shared your recipe to some vegetarian/vegan FB groups

jehan

Thursday 14th of April 2022

Hi Ash, Thank you for trying out the recipe. glad it turned out well. sharing my recipes helps a lot so appreciate the sharing as well. If you can, please leave a rating on the recipe card to help the recipe stay popular. regards, J

Paige

Tuesday 10th of November 2020

hi... love your recipes!! thank you soo much..

jehan

Tuesday 10th of November 2020

Hi Paige, you are most welcome.

Marius

Monday 13th of May 2019

Hey, which kind of flour do you use?

jehan

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

Hi Maurius, you can use regular bread flour to make the pol roti.

chitra

Monday 10th of July 2017

I add a little bit of butter to the dough too.

jehan

Monday 10th of July 2017

butter works too, more the better!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Skip to Recipe