When you live alone or are a family of two, heating a large oven just to make 2-4 Naans which cook in 5-7 minutes feels such a waste. This easy recipe solves that problem as it can be baked on a hot griddle pan/non-stick pan/ or an iron fry pan. A mix of semolina and flour makes them light and fluffy. Have them plain, or roll them out with caraway/ cumin or nigella seeds for a topping. Brush with ghee or butter, (vegan-coconut oil) and you are ready to serve. Ideal for students living in a room! Keep the dough to rise in a warm place. (In cold countries near a radiator/ warm the oven to its lowest temperature, switch off, wrap the bowl in a tea-towel and place in the oven)
Makes 6 Naans – Mixing & kneading 10 mins/ resting+ rising time in total 1hr 15 mins/ making and baking 15 mins.
| 1 cup lukewarm full-fat milk/ vegan: oat milk or coconut milk light. | |
| 2 tsp/ 7 g packet active dry yeast/ vegan dry yeast | |
| 2 tbsp oil | |
| 2 tbsp sugar | |
| ½ cup semolina (if possible use Semolina from Durum wheat/ Italian past Semolina) | |
| 2 cups plain flour + some for dusting and rolling | |
| ½ tsp salt |
| 1. | In a large bowl mix the milk with the yeast to dissolve it. |
| 2. | Add in oil, sugar, and semolina and mix lightly to make a smooth mixture. |
| 3. | Cover and rest in a warm place for 10 mins. Till it becomes frothy. |
| 4. | Now add the salt then mix in the flour by adding small quantities while you mix. |
| 5. | When all the flour is added, and the dough comes together, tip it over a lightly floured kitchen top and knead lightly to make a smooth ball. 5-7 mins. |
| 6. | You might have to dust a bit of flour while kneading. Like most bread dough, it is sticky and slowly gets smoother as you knead & the gluten builds up. |
| 7. | Oil the bowl you mixed the flour in, and the smooth ball of dough |
| 8. | Place the dough in the bowl, cover with a moist tea towel or a cling foil and keep it in a warm place to rise for 1 hour. |
| 9. | The flour will have tripled in size. |
| 10. | To make the Naans: |
| 11. | Punch down the dough lightly. Divide into 6 equal balls. Place balls on a lightly flour-dusted tray or the kitchen top. |
| 12. | Cover with a tea towel and let rest for 5 minutes. |
| 13. | Heat a thick based cast-iron or non-stick pan/ pancake pan, in the meantime on a low flame so that it heats up evenly. |
| 14. | Dust the kitchen top lightly. |
| 15. | Roll out a ball of dough to about 18 cm Ø or a long pear-shaped Naan. About 0.5/0.7 cm thick. |
| 16. | Do not press too hard while rolling to retain the air pockets in the dough. You can use your hands to stretch it out a bit after you rolled it. The dough does tend to shrink back. |
| 17. | If adding any seeds, sprinkle a few on top and roll. |
| 18. | Sprinkle a drop of water on the pan, if it sizzles and dries instantly, the pan is hot enough. Retain a constant medium-high temp. Place the unseeded (if using) side on the pan and bake the Naan for 1-2 mins. |
| 19. | The naan will puff up and get light, crisp golden spots at the base. |
| 20. | Flip over and bake the other side again for 1-2 mins. Brush the top with ghee or butter. |
| 21. | Remove and place it between two tea towels to keep it soft and warm till you make the other 5. |
| 22. | Serve warm with a curry or with kebabs. |