Roti-Mataba: Bangkok Breakfast

My favorite breakfast spot in Bangkok is Roti-Mataba in the Banglampu area. It's a small store selling Muslim dishes such as stuffed rotis called mataba

Matabas can be filled with egg, banana, fish, beef, or chicken and are served with a sweet chili vinegar dip and cucumber salad.



I always have lemon tea and 2 matabas filled with massaman curried chicken, and sit and watch the owners make the rotis on the flattop by the front door.



Mataba-Roti is located on the corner of Phra Athit and Phra Sumen across from the park by the Chao Phraya river.


The roti itself is a bit tricky to make but i found a pretty good recipe by Kasma Loha-unchit here Roti Recipe . Here is my recipe for massaman curry chicken to go with the roti, or jasmine rice if you prefer:

• 4 chicken legs in parts
• 250gr diced potato
• 100gr diced green beans
• 2 tbsp massaman curry paste
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 sliced shallots
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp tamarind paste
• 2 tbsp palm sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp cardamom seeds
• 1 tsp salt

lots of chopped cashews and green onions for garnish

1. place the can of coconut milk, curry paste, cinnamon and cardamom in a pot and simmer until the liquid evaporates and the spices fry in the coconut oil
2. add chicken, shallots and garlic into the pot and saute. add potatos and green beans
3. add fish sauce, tamarind, palm sugar, salt, and 250ml water and simmer about 30 min
4. add more water if getting too dry, but sauce should be thick and oily looking
5. add more sugar, salt and fish sauce to taste
6. sprinkle with cashews and chopped green onions and serve