Try fresh Indian naan, hot off the griddle and slathered with butter and garlic. This flatbread is quite the temptation. Naan only requires a few simple ingredients to create a soft, rich, and chewy bread, perfect for your next meal.
Indian Naan…hmm… not that difficult to make
Indian naan is reminiscent of a Mexican tortilla or chapati partly in technique and preparation but very different in texture and flavor. It’s a simple flatbread that can easily be made at home. Many online naan recipes contain ingredients that aren’t traditional to Indian cuisine like yeast, eggs, and baking powder. Granted, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with adding these components to the recipe. In fact, it’s my understanding that today you can find naan in India with these ingredients.
Back to the Basics of Indian Naan
In creating my own naan recipe, I chose to go back to the basics and focus more on traditional ingredients to Indian cuisine like using dairy in place of yeast and eggs. Leavening, like baking powder, is also not a traditional ingredient. Yeast, eggs, and leavening were introduced to India through trade, but they were not original to a traditional naan recipe. However, since naan recipes vary across India, ultimately, choose ingredients you like and go for it.
Why So Much Dairy?
The cow is such a revered animal in India. I’m not going into the religious beliefs of Hinduism, but I want to reinforce the idea of dairy in an Indian traditional naan recipe. Many of us know that cows are sacred to Hindus and are considered the “mother of all civilizations”. For Hindus, cows provide milk to nurture, dung for fertilizers, fuel, and disinfectants, and urine for religious and medicinal purposes. Thus, cows are everywhere in India! In fact, India is one of the highest milk consumers in the world per capita. So… dairy is in many Indian dishes including naan.
My Indian Naan Version
I have made very good naan recipes over the years that had yeast, eggs, and baking powder included. However, in learning about the history and cultural significance of ingredients traditional to India, I decided to create a recipe without the “modern” key bread elements. For my Indian Naan recipe, I focused on using dairy to include whole milk, full-fat yogurt, and butter (in place of ghee). These ingredients combined with time and science produce a soft and chewy flatbread.
Indian Naan Ingredients
For a simple Indian naan recipe, you’ll need bread flour, sugar, salt, whole milk, and plain yogurt. For an optional garlic-butter topping, you’ll also need garlic and butter.
A 4-Hour Head Start, huh?
Since this recipe doesn’t include yeast, the dough should be made the night before OR at least 4 hours before baking the dough. Without yeast, a minimum of 4 hours rest allows the gluten to develop and the yogurt to ferment like yeast.
The Head Start: Mix the Ingredients the Night Before or Morning of Baking Day
Combine the Dry Ingredients
In a large bowl, add 360 grams (3 cups) of bread flour. I like to use bread flour in this recipe because the higher gluten content produces a chewier bread. Then, add 2 teaspoons (12 g) of granulated sugar, and 1 teaspoon (6 g) of salt. Give the ingredients a quick whisk to combine.
TIP: If using cup measurements, fluff flour in the container, scoop it into the cup, and level it off with knife for accurate measurements.
Add the Dairy
Pour in 171 milliliters (½ cup + 3 tablespoons) of whole milk. The fat in whole milk softens and tenderizes the bread. Add 161 grams (½ cup + 3 tablespoons) of full-fat yogurt. Mix until a dough forms. The bacteria in the yogurt ferments like yeast by converting sugars and starches into carbon dioxide to create pockets making the dough rise. This also provides a soft texture to bread. Add more milk or flour as needed.
A Little Knead & Done
Lightly flour a work surface and knead dough just until all the ingredients are well combined. The dough should be a little sticky and dense but not dry.
Return dough to the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours, preferably overnight up to 3 days. This is the inactive magic!
Shaping, Rolling, & Baking Day (or Afternoon)
Traditional Indian Naan Baking
Traditionally, naan is cooked in a tandoor, a cylindrical clay or metal oven. This special oven heats up to 900˚F. Most home ovens, however, only reach 500˚F. However, a hot skillet over heat on the stove is an acceptable alternative in cooking naan at home.
Preheat Skillet & Divide the Dough
Heat a skillet on medium-high heat. While skillet heats up, divide the dough into 10 dough pieces and roll each into a ball. Eyeball the cuts or weigh each dough piece (~70 grams each). For a stronger garlic flavor, you can knead 2 teaspoons of minced garlic into the dough before dividing it. You could instead knead 1 teaspoon of garlic in half of the dough and leave the other half plain. If leaving the dough plain, you can save the garlic and butter to brush on after the naan have baked.
Shape & Roll the Dough
On a floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out or push out (with fingers) each dough round into ovals or circles. The thinner the dough the crispier it will be. For soft, chewy naans, roll each of them out to ¼-inch thick. Create an assembly line so that while one naan is cooking, you’re rolling out the next. An assembly line keeps you near the skillet (preventing burned naan) and uses your time wisely.
Indian Naan Skillet Baking
Once the skillet is hot (when sprinkles of water sizzle upon hitting the hot pan), place one naan in the dry skillet and cook for a minute or two. The first naan may take longer, just keep an eye on it. Brown spots should form on the underside and bubbles should form on top. Flip the naan when the underside browns. Cook it until brown spots form on the flip side.
TIP: Use a paper towel to wipe flour out of the skillet after 2-3 naan to prevent it from burning.
Keep the Indian Naan Warm
Stack naan on a foil-lined plate and cover the top naan with foil to keep all of them warm as you cook them. You can also store them in a 200˚F (93˚C) oven in the same manner until you’re ready to eat them.
Add Optional Toppings AFTER Baking
For optional flavoring topping, while the bread is still warm, brush on garlic butter. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a small bowl and stir in 2 teaspoons of minced garlic. Brush the garlic butter on both sides. This naan is easily foldable and tears with a little connective resistance as evidence of its chewiness. Then serve immediately and enjoy!
Indian Naan Close-Ups
Serving Suggestions
Enjoy naan with hummus or dips like eggplant (baba ghanouj). Serve it as a meal accompaniment or alone. It goes great with grain dishes, curries, lentils, and paneer or meat cooked in a sauce. You can even top the bread with veggies, meat, and cheeses to make a quick pizza.
Storing Indian Naan
Store unbuttered naan at room temperature in a seal bag or container for about 5 days or freeze for up to several months. If buttered, freeze in a sealed bag or container, then remove preferred number of naan 30 minutes before eating to thaw on the counter. You could heat the naan immediately out of the freezer for ~30 seconds and eat.
Indian Naan Final Thoughts
This is an easy, yeast-free recipe in using traditional Indian ingredients. The higher gluten bread flour produces a chewy texture. Yogurt creates the fermentation like yeast to create the air pockets. A high fat milk tenderizes the dough and creates richness. While there are a variety of different ingredients to use in making naan, this recipe sticks to Indian traditions using ingredients authentic to the older, more ancient times of India. There is reason some traditions are worth following and never age.
Indian Naan Baker’s Thoughts
Indian naan is another one of those traditional flatbreads that stand the test of time due to simple ingredients and relatively ease of preparation. This recipe requires time instead of quick acting ingredients. However, the time is inactive so that makes the process much easier. Planning ahead of time is imperative; however, there’s less to go wrong with a lack of yeast. I think the fat in the milk and yogurt cultures are important for a hearty, chewy texture. Rolling the dough into ovals and baking really don’t take that long if you have an assembly line. Overall, little effort with little time produces a flatbread worthy of space on a dinner table.
Indian Naan Taster’s Thoughts
The milk and yogurt create a rich tasting chewy bread. The bread is hearty enough to use as a vehicle to eat with dips like hummus. if you choose to knead minced garlic into the dough, it creates a significantly more garlic flavor than garlic and butter brushed on the naan. The garlic butter topping adds a lot of richness and is slightly less garlicky than with the garlic kneaded into the dough. His recommendation is to use the simple naan or the naan with garlic kneaded in as the accompaniment with dips. The garlic butter version has so much flavor and richness, it is best and enjoyed on its own.
Check out my YouTube video on making this bread. “Indian Naan: A Simple, More Traditional Recipe Without Yeast, Eggs, or Leavening.”
Indian Naan: A Simple Recipe Without Yeast, Eggs, or Leavening
Ingredients
- 360 g (3 cups) bread flour (plus more as needed) fluffed, scooped, and leveled off if using a measuring cup
- 2 tsp (12 g) granulated sugar superfine is preferred
- 1 tsp (6 g) salt
- 171 ml (½ cup + 3 tbsp) whole milk or water or mix of milk & water
- 161 g (½ cup + 3 tbsp) plain yogurt whole milk yogurt is preferred
Optional Mix-ins
- 2 tsp minced garlic
Optional Toppings
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 4 tbsp melted butter or ghee
- Nigella seeds for sprinkling on top of the cooked naan
- white &/or black sesame seeds for sprinkling on top of the cooked naan
- coriander seeds for sprinkling on top of the cooked naan
Instructions
Night before or morning of day you want to make the naan (at least 4 hours):
- In a large bowl, whisk or stir together flour, sugar, and salt. Stir in milk and yogurt until a dough forms. Lightly flour a work surface and knead dough just until all the ingredients are well combined. Add flour or milk/water as needed, but the dough should be firm & all ingredients mixed in. It will be dense but not dry.
- Return dough to the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours, preferably overnight up to 3 days.
Evening of or following day:
- Heat a skillet on medium-high heat. While skillet heats up, divide dough into 10 dough pieces and roll each into a ball. For a stronger garlic flavor, you can knead minced garlic into the dough before dividing it. You could knead half of the garlic into half the dough and leave the other half plain.TIP: Eyeball the cuts or weigh each dough piece (~70 grams each).
- On a floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out or push out (with fingers) each dough round into ovals or circles. The thinner the dough the crispier it will be. For soft, chewy naan, roll each out to ¼ inch thick.
- Once the skillet is hot (when sprinkles of water sizzle upon hitting the hot pan), place one naan in the dry skillet and cook for a minute or two. Brown spots should form on the underside and bubbles should form on top. Flip when the underside browns. Cook until brown spots form on the flip side and naan is cooked through.TIP: Use a paper towel to wipe flour out of the skillet after 2-3 naans to prevent it from burning.
- Stack naan on a foil-lined plate as they bake. Cover the top naan with foil to keep all of them warm as you cook them.TIP: You can store them in a 200˚F (93˚C) oven in the same manner until you’re ready to eat them.
- For optional flavoring topping, while the naan is still warm, melt butter in a small bowl and stir in minced garlic. Brush garlic butter on both sides of each naan. You can sprinkle on Nigella seeds, black or white sesame seeds, or coriander. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Interested in other flatbread recipes? Check these out!
Mexican Corn Tortillas w/DIY Tortilla Press
Classic Italian Focaccia Flatbread
Unleavened Bread Gluten & Gluten Free Versions
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please share it. Check out my YouTube Channel as well to see videos of kitchen tips, blog bakes, and dishes. Until next time, go bake the world!