Butter Naan

By Panchami Tamhankar

Feeds about 4

Ingredients

Bread dough

• 4 cups of refined flour
• 1 tsp of baking powder
• 1/2 tsp of baking soda
• Salt to taste
• 2 tsps sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of milk
• 2 tbsp of yogurt

Cooking ingredients

• 4 tbsp of oil
• 5-6 tbsp of softened butter

Garlic Naan

• 25 cloves of garlic
• Fresh chopped coriander

Stuffed Naan

• Filling of choice (should be dry and cooked). This can include meats, potatoes, or even sweets.

Preparing the dough

1. Sieve the flour and place in a large mixing bowl
2. Whisk egg, milk, yogurt
3. Add the mixture to the flour
4. Add all the rest of the ingredients; baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt and oil
5. Knead the flour, adding water if required. The dough should be slightly sticky
6. Cover the dough in a dampen cloth and let it rest for 2 hours

Making the naan

Preheat oven to about 450º F Have on hand a small bowl of flour, rolling pin, marble board on which to roll, butter and any filling.
Whenever the bread or your hands feels sticky, apply a small amount of flour.

Take a small ball of dough in your hand. Dip into your dish of flour.

Note the bread dough is still wrapped in the wet cloth(left side of both images).

Place ball on marble board and roll out using very very little pressure. Ball should be about 4 inches in diameter

If you would like to stuff the bread, make your stuffing and allow to cool to room tempurature. Shown here is a mutton filling.
Cup your hand and place the dough on your palm. Place about 1.5 tbsp of filling into the center
Fold the edges in, sealing the filling in the dough

Place the dough back on the board with the seam on the bottom. Very gently roll out the dough, starting from the center. The only weight placed on the dough should come from the rolling pin itself. Do not lean on it, just gently roll it out. Turn the dough around, adding flour as needed. Flip the dough over, every so often.

If you have filled the dough, you should begin to see it as the dough stretches out and becomes more translucent. When you dough is about 6-7 inches wide in diameter, or the thickness that you would like (it will puff up a little while cooking), you may stretch out one end slightly, to achieve the oblong shape common for naan.

Spread softened butter on both sides of the bread.

For garlic naan, sprinkle chopped garlic and coriander on top.

Bake until the bread is as golden brown as you'd like.

Serve warm.

This recipe is made to produce a bread that will remain soft even as it cools. The dough is quite versatile and can be used in much the same was as pizza dough, so the skies are the limits. Panchami used something like a toaster oven, which kept the dough very close to the heat source. You may need to experiment with your oven to achieve optimal results. Her oven only allowed her to make a single serving at a time. If you plan to make a whole batch, keep the prepared naan moist until ready to cook by placing under a wet towel.

This meal was served with a yogurt dipping sauce and vegetable broth to help with digestion.