Naan Bread
Fluffy Leavened Bread
-
Heat
-
Serves
-
Prep 1 hr
-
Cook 5 mins
Traditionally cooked in a tandoor oven, naan are light and fluffy inside yet crisp outside, just simply ideal for mopping up delicious sauces!
Hari says
OK you lot! I have been quizzed about naan for as long as I can remember and my recipe has had a number of different iterations. With a family coming from the Punjab region in Northern India where wheat is the main staple, all breads (from naan, roti to parathas) form a huge part of the diet. Personally I would choose a bread over rice every day.
Traditionally the dough for naan is a leavened natually with a live yoghurt, which is what aerates it. The dough would be slapped on to the inside of a tandoori oven where it would bake and fall into the fire once cooked.
This cooking style is pretty difficult to replicate and when my mum first came to the UK she used all sorts of crazy things to get those precious little bubbles into the naan dough, from lemonade through to Original Andrews salts (yes the tummy salts) but I now have a formula which makes the naan light, airy and it will work in your kitchen. I can promise you, you will never buy naan again.
- Ingredients
- Method
- 1 tsp dried active yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 200g plain flour
- 1 tsp black onion seeds (you can also use handful of chopped coriander leaves)
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp plain yoghurt
- 2 tbsp milk
Method
- In a small bowl, mix the yeast and sugar with a tablespoon of warm water to activate.
- Leave for 5 minutes in a warm place until frothy. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl mix the flour, onion seeds, salt and baking powder. When the yeast is frothy add it to the flour with the oil and yoghurt.
- Knead the dough with slightly wet hands folding as you go. If it feels a little dry add some milk and continue to knead. Once it's nice and soft cover with cling film and leave it in a warm place to rise for at least 1 hour (but longer if possible).
- Turn the grill on to heat up and divide the dough into four balls and place on a floured surface. Roll each into a tear shape about 0.5cm / ¼ inch thick.
- Heat the tava or frying pan and place the naan onto it for a couple of seconds to brown on one side.
- Transfer to a baking tray (seared side down) and place under the hot grill for 2-5 minutes and watch the magic as they puff up.
- Smear with butter - yummy!
Served with
The only way you can eat naan is by tearing it with your hands and sharing it to mop up the luscious masala sauce of your dish. I sometimes like to have naan with bacon and a spiced omelette too.
Nutritional information
| Typical values* | per Serving |
|---|---|
| Calories | 304 |
| Fat (g) | 6.8 |
| of which saturates (g) | 1.2 |
| Carbohydrates (g) | 56 |
| of which sugars (g) | 3.8 |
| Fibre (g) | 2.1 |
| Protein (g) | 8.0 |
| Salt (mg) | 1.4 |
This goes well with
Share this
“ Thank you for printing this recipe for my delicious Naan Bread ”
Comments
Comments (31)
-
Iain
Hi Hari,
Made these last night and they were fabulous. Lovely flavour, soft and pillowy. Never buying naan again.
Thank you!-
Hari Ghotra
Amazing - did you take picture? if you did please can you load them to my app. Thanks Hari
-
-
Jason O'Connell
Hi Hari, could you use gram flour or rice flour to replace the plain flour?-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Jason No not for naan bread - you would end up with more of a batter then a dough. Thanks Hari
-
-
Susannah
Hi Hari, I'm making your lush naan bread recipe for 20 people, I'd like to make it in advance and freeze it. At what stage can I freeze it - dough stage or cooked stage? Thank you - I love your recipes ?-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Susannah Thanks so much for reaching out - I am so pleased to hear that you are enjoying the recipes. You can freeze at either stage really, I guess if you are cooking for a large group the easiest thing to do is to have as much done in advance so you could cook them. Let them cool then freeze, put parchment paper between them. When you reheat - defrost them, splash with a little water and heat in the oven. I hope that helps - make sure you take some pictures and share them with me. Thanks Hari
-
-
Tracey
I love these Naans Hari. They are so tasty and far better than shop bought. I have been making double batches each week and freezing the cooked naans. I will never buy shop bought again. Thank you so much.-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Tracey Thanks so much for your comments. Really great to hear that you are loving the naan and the recipe is working well for you!! Please do sare your pictures with me I would love to see them! Thanks so much Hari
-
-
Alex
Hi Hari
I've tried these 3-4 times. They worked absolutely perfectly once but all other times completely failed. The dough felt far too dry and wasn't coming together so I added more milk than you suggested just to get it to come together. In the end they didn't rise and tasted doughy and dry.
Any ideas what I'm doing wrong?
Thanks. Al-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Alex Sorry to hear that! I always find that it's down to the yeast. It is fine to add more milk if you are finding its not enough. Does the dough get light and airy when you leave it to rise? If not its the yeast. You can also try using eggs instead of yeast - add 2 eggs to the dough and then milk to bring it together. Let me know how you get on and I will see if I can help further. Thanks for getting in touch. Hari
-
-
Steve Jack
Ooops - just found your garlic naan recipe!!! Sorry x-
Hari Ghotra
Great - glad you found the garlic naan! Thanks for trying them!
-
-
Steve Jack
Love this recipe - the naans are fantastic - thank you so much for posting it. A quick question - hope that’s ok? I tried to convert to garlic naans but they were pretty poor - have you any hints or tips that might help?
Cheers
Steve -
Alex
Hi Hari, I'm planning my first go at these naan for a dinner party tonight, but I've forgotten the yoghurt. Will they work without it?
Thanks Alex
(also doing pudhina lamb, thari wallee chicken, bombay potatoes and lightly spiced seasonal vegetables! )-
Hari Ghotra
Hi So sorry Alex - did these work out for you?
-
-
Steve
Great website!
For the Naan, is it ok to freeze the dough once prepared and risen? I know its always best to cook fresh, but I'm doing some batch cooking to save time. I loved them when I made them first time.
Also, is it ok to throw in some ground almonds or coconut for a sweeter filling....If so, what stage could this be done?-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Steve Thanks for using the website and i glad you liked the naan. It's a tricky one it should be ok to freeze but I do then find sometimes the naan don't rise as well. But it should be ok. Here is a recipe for peshwari naan which has a sweet filling - I hope it helps. shttp://www.harighotra.co.uk/peshwari-naan-bread-recipe Thanks for your comments and let me know how the freezing works out. Thanks Hari
-
-
Cara Smith
Hi, yeah you can, I have no grill either so I just do the browning bit pre-heat the oven to the hottest temp and throw them in for the same time, puff up like a dream! Great recipe Hari!-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Cara thanks so much for leaving your comment - seeing your comments is a real help for others trying to cook these dishes - Naan are awesome! Thanks so much for using the website!
-
-
Charles
Thank you so much for setting up this amazing blog. It's so incredibly professional, I really appreciate the nutrition facts and everything! I've just found this but I really cannot wait to try your recipes, I've been browsing and they look wonderful already! Thank you so much for putting the effort into making this :)-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Charles thank you so much for taking the time to comment - so glad you are loving the site. Please do keep in touch and let me know which dishes you try. Thank you!
-
-
Ali Bourne
Best naan I have ever had, will never buy supermarket again, thankyou!-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Ali Amazing - So glad I have converted you from the shop bought stuff - so much nicer when yo make it at home! What are you going to try next? Thanks
-
-
Hari Ghotra
Hi Alison Yes you can, just pop them in the oven to warm up. Thanks Hari -
Alison
Can you make these in advance? -
Hari Ghotra
I love naan too - glad they came out well! -
linda
Made these today and they are really nice i will definitely be making these again -
Hari
Hi Anita, Yes you certainly can I would heat the oven to 200C. Let me know how you get on. -
Anita
can I make this in the oven instead of the grill and if so at what temperature? -
Hannah
These were the nicest naans I've ever had, great flavour and texture. My guests were so impressed I'd made my own, but honestly the preparation and cooking we're really easy. I will definitely be using this recipe again in the future.
Han van de Braak
reply