Malaysian flatbread (roti canai)

Combine bread flour, white sugar, a little salt, one beaten egg, melted butter and just enough water; mix by hand in a bowl until a shaggy dough pulls away from the sides.

Knead on the work surface until smooth and fairly elastic, 5 to 7 minutes; the dough should be firm and stiff but not dry, so add flour only if really needed.

Shape the dough into a uniform piece and divide into eight equal portions (six for bigger, ten for smaller).

Roll each into a smooth ball and coat in a little vegetable oil; wrap in plastic and refrigerate overnight (a few hours will probably still work).

Set a ball on a lightly oiled work surface, press it down, rub with melted butter, cover and let warm up 5 or 10 minutes.

Flatten by hand, butter the top and stretch from the centre out until see-through; a few small tears are fine.

Brush with more melted butter, fold two sides to the centre, then the other two, to form a square.

Cover with plastic and rest another 5 minutes, then flatten once more.

Cook over medium heat in a generous amount of melted clarified butter about 3 to 4 minutes per side (or flip back and forth) until browned, blistered, flaky and crisp outside and cooked through inside; lower the heat if the outside browns before the inside cooks.

Off the heat, scrunch the flatbread with the hands to fluff the layers and release the steam.