The roti john
is part of that marvelous group of sandwiches that requires the cook to scoop
out some of the crumb to make way for more filling. It is essentially an omelet
or scrambled egg sandwich, which is eaten in Singapore and Malaysia as a
breakfast item but also generally as a snack.
Ground meat, eggs, and onions are mixed
with chilies and curry powder, then smeared onto the halved roll before a deft
hand flips the whole thing upside-down into a frying pan, rendering the eggy
surface a gorgeous golden crust. The resulting roll halves (or lengths of
baguette) can be eaten as they are or sandwiched on top of one another. Guess
which method I favor…
Makes 2
INGREDIENTS
1 onion, finely chopped
Vegetable
oil, for frying
7oz (200g) ground lamb mince
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 fresh green
chilies, or to taste, sliced (seeded or not is up to you)
2 tsp curry powder
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
2 eggs, beaten
2 small soft, white sub-shaped rolls
(or, failing that, small lengths of baguette), split in half
Ketchup or hot chili sauce, to serve
Gently soften the onion in a little vegetable
oil in a frying pan, then add the lamb, garlic, chilies, and curry powder.
Cook, stirring, until the meat is browned and cooked through. Set the meat
mixture aside in a bowl, leaving the frying pan on the heat. Add salt and
pepper to the meat mixture, then stir in the eggs.
Press
some of the meaty egg mixture onto the cut side of each roll half, then quickly
flip each one, meat-side down, into the frying pan. Cook for a few minutes, until
the meaty egg mixture is caramelized. Invert onto plates and zigzag some
ketchup or hot chili sauce (or both) over the top. Serve at once.
