Naan

Votes: 1

Time: 3 hours.
Complexity: easily
Servings: 8

Nutritional value per serving:

Calories 751, total fat 63 G., saturated fats 8 G., proteins 8 G., carbohydrates 40 G., fiber 2 G., cholesterol 18 mg, sodium 248 mg, sugar 2 G.

The most delicious and perfect naan is crispy on the outside, lightly charred, soft on the inside, slightly chewy, and fluffy in places. Like pizza, it bakes very quickly at maximum temperature. This is why homemade naan often doesn't turn out as good as naan baked in a tandoor (a clay oven with wood or coal fires). So is it possible to bake good naan at home, or is it worth the effort? Yes! You can bake it on a pizza stone/steel, or in a heavy cast-iron skillet. The baking surface should be very hot, and the final touch is searing the naan over an open flame, such as a gas burner or stovetop.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

1 packet (7 g) active dry yeast (2 and 1/4 tsp)
1 teaspoon of sugar
3 cups high-gluten bread flour, plus extra for working with the dough
1 teaspoon coarse salt
0.5 cup plain whole milk yogurt
4 tbsp ghee or unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing and serving
1/4 cup warm milk
1 tbsp lemon juice, optional
Vegetable oil to grease the bowl
2 tablespoons black cumin seeds, optional

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

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Recipes with similar ingredients: yeast dough, bread flour, milk, yogurt, ghee, caraway, naan bread

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

In a small bowl, combine the yeast, sugar, and 1/4 cup warm water and mix well. Set aside until the mixture begins to foam, 3-5 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine 2.5 cups of flour with salt in a large bowl and mix well. Make a well in the center and add the yeast mixture, yogurt, melted butter or butter, warm milk, and lemon juice, if using. Mix well with your fingers until you have a coarse, sticky dough. Add more flour if the dough is too sticky, or a little water if it's too dry.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in a large, lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and place in a warm, draft-free place, such as a turned-off oven, until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours.
If using a pizza stone/steel, place it on the bottom rack of the oven an hour before baking and preheat the oven to 260°C-280°C. If using a cast iron skillet, heat the skillet on the stovetop over high heat for 5-7 minutes immediately before baking.
Place some melted butter in a small bowl. Add the remaining flour to another bowl.
Divide the dough into 8 balls. Dredge each ball in flour, flatten on a lightly floured work surface, and stretch or roll into an oval, thinner in the center and slightly thicker at the edges. Don't worry about making the naans perfect; I, for example, like to shape my naans into the shapes of different countries! Shake off any excess flour. Brush each dough sheet with ghee or butter and sprinkle with black cumin (add a little more than you'd like, as some will fall off during frying).
Transfer the stretched naan to a hot stone or griddle. Cook until bubbles form on top, 2-3 minutes. Remove the naan with tongs and toast over an open flame, turning, until a few brown charred spots appear on both sides. Brush generously with butter or ghee and serve hot. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Note

High gluten bread flourYou can use all-purpose flour, but I highly recommend using high-gluten bread flour, as it gives the flatbreads their characteristic chewy texture. You can also add a little fine whole-wheat flour (atta) to the dough. However, I wouldn't substitute more than a third of the flour called for in the recipe with other flours.

Ghee, butter or vegetable oilI prefer ghee; it's lactose-free and doesn't burn. You can substitute butter or even vegetable oil, such as avocado oil.

Lemon juiceYogurt is often not tart enough. In this case, I add 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice to make it taste more like traditional yogurt.

Black cumin (nigela)These seeds are also called nigella seeds. Although they're not actually onion seeds, they have a slight fried onion flavor. I'd recommend always having this spice on hand, but if you don't, you can use sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or leave them out. I sprinkle the seeds on the flatbreads more for aesthetics and a little crunch than for flavor.