A traditional flat bread from India, naan breads are normally baked inside hot Tandoor ovens with charcoal or wood fire.
They cook on the inner walls of the oven at a very high heat of up to 900°F. The breads fill with air pockets and cook perfectly. Because most of us don’t have Tandoor ovens, our naan bread recipe has been altered to include a combination of yogurt and oil to give them that irresistible soft and fluffy texture.
Cook them right on the stove in a hot cast-iron skillet and watch them puff up into glorious breads.
Ingredients
For NAAN BREAD dough
1/4 cup warm water
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast, or instant (rapid rise)
3/4 cup warm milk
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt, or natural plain yogurt
1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus 2 tablespoons extra for cooking
4 cups plain flour plus extra for dusting (560g)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
For GARLIC BUTTER Spread
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
Instructions
For NAAN BREAD, combine together the water, sugar and yeast. Let sit for 5-10 minutes or until the mixture begins to bubble on top.
Add in the milk, yogurt, oil, flour baking powder and salt.
Mix until the dough comes together with your hands.
Place dough out onto lightly floured surface.
Use floured hands to knead the dough until smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes. Lightly grease the same mixing bowl with a small spray of cooking oil. Transfer dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
Let rest at room temperature for about an hour until doubled in size.
When ready to cook, divide the dough into 10 equal pieces.
Roll into balls, then use a rolling pin to roll each piece of dough into a large oval, about 6-inches long and 1/8-inch thick. Repeat with remaining dough.
Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Grease skillet all over with 1/2 teaspoon of the extra oil.
Place one piece of the naan on the oiled hot skillet and cook until bubbles form on top, about 1-2 minutes.
While cooking, brush the top with a little oil.
Flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until large golden spots appear on the bottom.
Remove from the skillet and wrap in a clean kitchen towel.
Repeat with the remaining naan (keep them wrapped in a towel while you work).
For GARLIC BUTTER spread
Combine melted butter and minced garlic together in a bowl.
Brush each naan with the garlic butter and top with the fresh chopped cilantro or parsley. Enjoy! VIEWMORE INDIANFOODS
