What is the Difference Between Tortilla and Chapati

The key difference between tortilla and chapati is that tortilla is a flatbread made up of corn flour and sometimes with wheat flour to be eaten with a filling, whereas chapati is a thin flat roti that is made up of whole wheat flour called atta and served with side curries and chutney.

Both tortillas and chapatis are staple foods of Mexican and Indian cuisines, respectively. Although both are made with flour, there are several differences between the two.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Tortilla  
3. What is Chapati
4. Tortilla vs Chapati in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Tortilla vs Chapati

What is Tortilla?

Tortilla is a circular-shaped thin flatbread that is made using corn flour. Traditionally, only corn flour is used to make tortillas. Nevertheless, at present, wheat flour is also used to make tortillas in some countries. The origin of tortilla runs to Mesoamerica as tortilla was originally made by Mesoamerican indigenous people.

Tortilla is typically eaten with a savory filling or a topping on it. There are different variations of tortillas around the world. Tortilla is best used in Spanish and Mexican cuisines. Tortillas are also used to make dishes like burritos, quesadillas, and tacos. This thin flatbread is used to wrap the filling in making these dishes.

What is Chapati?

Chapati is a flat roti made with wheat flour and water. The origin of chapati runs to Indian subcontinents. Chapati is the staple in countries like Nepal, Maldives, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. The dough of the chapati is made of wheat flour called atta, water, salt, and oil. Then it is flattened with a rolling pin known as parat.

Chapati is also well known among other parts of the world. There are some distinctions in chapatis among different Indian subcontinents based on the way of cooking. This distinction comes due to the texture of the dough as well as the different types of flour used for the cooking of chapati. Some regional variations of chapatis in India are panner chapati, radish chapati, aloo chapati, and vegetable stuffed chapati. Chapati is served with side curries, and aloo chapati is eaten with pickle and curd.

What is the Difference Between Tortilla and Chapati?

The key difference between tortilla and chapati is the ingredients. Although the basic ingredient used to make tortilla is corn flour, chapati is made using wheat flour, water, salt, and oil. However, in some countries, wheat flour is also used to make tortillas. The countries of origin of these two dishes are different from each other. Tortillas originated in Mesoamerica countries, whereas the origin of chapatis runs in Indian subcontinents.

Moreover, although tortillas are used as wrappings to make other dishes like burritos, quesadillas, tacos, chapatis are not used to make different food items. Tortillas are eaten with savory fillings or toppings, whereas chapatis are served with side curries, chutneys, and dhal. Besides, the cooking style of tortillas is also different from that of chapatis. Furthermore, there are different types of chapatis among the Indian subcontinents. Indian people use different side foods according to the type of chapatti. For example, aloo chapati is served with curd and pickle. Nevertheless, this mass disparity cannot be seen among the variations of tortillas.

Below is a summary of the difference between tortilla and chapati in tabular form for side by side comparison.

Summary – Tortilla vs Chapati

The key difference between tortilla and chapati is that tortilla is a flatbread made basically with cornflour and sometimes with wheat flour, whereas chapati is a roti that is made of wheat flour called atta. Although tortillas are eaten with a filling or a topping on them, chapatis are served with side curries and sometimes with chutneys and dhal.

Reference:

1. “Tortilla.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Dec. 2021.
2. “Chapati.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Dec. 2021.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Maiz-tortilla-food-mexican-mexico” (CC0) via Pixabay
2. “Chapati with egg roast” By Samphotography – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia