Indian Naan Bread Recipe

Yes!  Naan Bread!  From scratch!  I am quite proud to say that my family really enjoyed this.  Now, I will admit that I have never actually eaten Naan Bread although I've admired it in the stores on numerous occasions.  I could never find one that was safe for my family though, so would simply admire it, and walk away.

Until today.

Today I decided that I needed to try to make it.  And much to my surprise, it turned out great!

It was quite time consuming but the effort was well worth it.

This recipe was made to be free of eggs, dairy, soy and nuts.




INGREDIENTS

1 package of yeast (2 1/4 tsps if using from a jar)
1 cup warm water
3 Tbsp water (if you can use milk, feel free.  Or substitute with rice milk. All I had was coconut milk so water was my best option)
1 egg or replacer (I use half a tsp baking powder and 2 tbsp water for each egg called for)
2 tsp salt (come to think of it, I actually think I forgot the salt...oops!)
3.5 cups of flour (you could use whole wheat, I used all purpose)
1 tsp garlic salt (my garlic salt contains soy, so I omitted this all together)
1/4 cup butter, melted (I used Earth Balance Soy Free)

DIRECTIONS

In a large bowl, combine warm water and yeast and let sit for 10 minutes, until yeast is foamy.
After the 10 minutes, mix in additional water (or milk/substitute), egg (or replacer), and salt.  Gradually mix in flour (I ended up using only 3 cups and it was the right consistency, you may have to play around to find the amount that works for you).  Knead for 6-8  minutes on a floured surface until dough is smooth.


***I used my Kitchen Aid Stand mixer with the dough hook to make my dough***

In a well oiled bowl, let dough sit covered with a damp towel, for 60 minutes.  The dough should double in volume.

 


After the first rise, on a well floured surface, take dough out of the bowl (it will be VERY sticky, I floured my hands so the dough wouldn't stick).  Punch dough down and pull pieces off to form golf ball size balls of dough.  On a lightly greased pan, place dough-balls to rise again.  This recipe made 25 golf ball size pieces of dough.  Cover with a dry towel and let rise a second time, for another 60 minutes.

Towards the end of the second rise, preheat your grill (I used my George Foreman Indoor Grill) on the high setting, and melt your butter in a bowl.  Mix the garlic salt into the melted butter.

Uncover your dough (which again, should have almost doubled in size) and on a well floured surface, flatten each ball into a circle with a rolling pin.

Once the grill is preheated, lie each piece of flattened dough (I could do three at a time) onto the grill.  Brush the top with the garlic/butter mixture. If using an indoor grill, you can shut the lid while they're cooking.  Heat for approximatly 2-3 minutes, flip over, and brush again with garlic/butter mixture.  Shut the lid for another 2-3 minutes.

The Naan bread should be a nice golden brown color when cooked.

As the bread cooled, it became a wonderful combination of crunchy and chewy.  I had thought there would be no way that this bread would all be eaten in one day, but it was.  I've read that it can become quite chewy if left overnight, in which case any leftovers would be great to make mini pizza's or pita chips.

It took a few hours from start to finish to make these, so be prepared to have some time set aside if you do make them.

They were wonderful!