Naan

[MissingWillow]

I love Indian food so much!  Even though naan is getting more and more easy to find at the grocery store, I always make my own.  It's so fragrant and soft and yummy.  This recipe is adapted from one by Madhur Jaffrey. 



Here are the ingredients:
2/3 cup warm milk (110 degrees)
2 tsp. sugar
1 package dry yeast
3 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbsp. canola oil
2/3 cup plain yogurt
1 beaten egg



Start by combining the warm milk, yeast and 1 tsp. of the sugar.  Set aside for a few minutes until it becomes frothy then add to the remaining ingredients and mix together.  Knead it for 10 minutes and put in a lightly oiled bowl.  Cover and let sit to rise for an hour.


Here's what it looks like after rising.  At this point, you should preheat your oven to 500 degrees F.


Turn it out onto a floured surface and cut it into as many naans as you like.  This recipe makes 6 large or 12 small breads.


Roll them to about 1/4 inch thick.


Place them on an ungreased cookie sheet.  They go into your 500 degree oven for just 3 minutes. 



Look closely, you'll see they have puffed up a bit.  Switch your oven from bake to broil.  Once your broiler is hot, put your cookie sheet back in the oven on the highest rack for just 30 seconds to brown.  Watch them carefully!


Perfect!

[kaz814]

OH YUM!!!  Looks delicious!

[Calabaza]

Mmm! Looks and sounds scrumptious!

[thisbirdsabsurd]

Oh that's pretty cool!  And even though I've sworn off bread I might have to give this a try one of these days! ( I LOVE naan!!!)

[Aislynn]

Ooh, yum!  And it sounds pretty easy.  Thanks for sharing!

[yoopidou]

They look delicious. I sometimes make naan bread but I have never tried them with yoghurt in the dough. I shall try it next time.
Since you have your own farm, you probably could make fabulous cheese naans.

[MissingWillow]

Thanks for the kind comments.    I'm going to have to look into cheese naans, yoopidou.  I am milking early this year and have goat cheese in the fridge. 

[yoopidou]

Fresh goat cheese? I would be in heaven!

[alwaysinmyroom]

As usual, you break down the recipes into nice easy to understand steps!

I can almost taste the deliciousness....

[Momof2!]

MMMM looks fantastic! I am an Indian food newbie; had it for the first time recently. I am in love with it. I think when I plan my first Indian meal, I will have to make this! Thank you

[MissingWillow]

Thanks you guys!  FYI, I forgot to mention I use a stand mixer to do my kneading but it can easily be done by hand. 

[Momof2!]

I wonder if I could make the dough in my bread machine on the dough setting, then roll it out and bake it. That's how I do all the other breads and rolls I make.

[MissingWillow]

I've never had a bread machine but that must work, right??   Please post back here if you try it so other folks can learn.   

[txweekendchef]

Wow, that looks good! I am going to have to show my wife. She had to go to India for a month last year for work and really liked the food.

[MissingWillow]

India?  How exciting!  I hope she brought home some recipe inspiration to share.   

[txweekendchef]

My wife said it is was really good with garlic and onions in India.

[p.kok]

I hosted an Indian dinner party yesterday and also made naan, but it wasn't that good. The recipe I used didn't have any egg in it an maybe that's why they weren't soft enough. I pined this recipe and will try it out very soon . I've gotten quite obsessed with Indian flavours recently:)

[mrsflibble]

home made naan is heaven!!!! <3

[dulcet]

Wait...what!? 
You only bake it for three minutes?  Does that work?  Isn't it still doughy inside? 
You've just blown my mind!

[MissingWillow]

Yep.  3 minutes at 500 degrees and 30 seconds under the broiler.    

[Trekky]

Oh that looks delicious! I love Madhur Jaffrey recipes, although I have never tried making any naan breads.  My fear is that it will be amazing, and then I won't stop eating them! 

[MissingWillow]

She's one of my favorite cookbook authors!

[LMAshton]

MissingWillow, I've only dry-fried my naan on my cast iron griddle on the stove. I think next time I'll try baking them. The recipe I use is very similar to yours, but I use wild yeast (aka sourdough starter that isn't sour) instead of commercial yeast.

They look delicious. I sometimes make naan bread but I have never tried them with yoghurt in the dough. I shall try it next time.
Since you have your own farm, you probably could make fabulous cheese naans.

The yoghurt in the naan makes the naan really soft.

I wonder if I could make the dough in my bread machine on the dough setting, then roll it out and bake it. That's how I do all the other breads and rolls I make.

It absolutely would work.


I don't have a mixer or a bread machine. I also don't knead my dough much. I use a low-knead method that goes like this...

Mix the dough. You're not looking for smooth, but rather a shaggy mess. Let it sit for 20-30 minutes to allow the flour to absorb the liquid. This is called autolyse. Then knead the dough for ten strokes and let sit for 15-30 minutes - repeat this step three or four times. Then the dough is ready for shaping.

I use the low-knead method because a. it works b. it's so much easier on my problem joints c. it doesn't require another piece of equipment that takes up room in my very small kitchen.

[JudokaLilly]

You mean I don't have to go to the overprice Indian Cuisine restaurant to get delicious naan!? thank you! I love the garlic naan they have at the restaurant by me, so I'm going to add chopped garlic to mine

[amandagu]

Looks good~