Indian Naan Bread

For those living in the UK it shouldn't be all that difficult to obtain decent naan bread. In Germany, however, it's close to impossible. More often than not the bread is dry and hard. Instead, I suggest you try making your own. As it turns out, this is not as difficult as you might think. The only challenge is the dough, which is extremely sticky and takes some getting used to. But once you've made your first batch, you'll never go back to the store-bought variety!

Ingredients (makes 4-6 naans):

220gr flour

12gr fresh yeast (alternatively 1 teaspoon of dried yeast)

3 tablespoons of yoghurt

1 tablespoon of melted butter

1 teaspoon of sugar

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
80ml warm water

Preparation:

1.  Dissolve the yeast in the water, adding a tablespoon of sugar (best done in a tall glass). Wait for about 10 minutes until the mixture starts frothing, then add the yoghurt and the olive oil, mixing well.

2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and some salt. Add the liquid ingredients and stir using a fork. Once the ingredients start coming together, use your hands to form a soft dough. This is the only really tricky part of this recipe: the dough is going to be extremely moist and sticky and it will seem as though you don't have enough flour, but trust me, it will work. Just keep a small bowl of flour on the side to dip your fingers into now and then. 

3. Once the ingredients are combined into a dough, immediately stop kneading. Cover the bowl with a warm, damp kitchen towel and place in a draft-free place to rest for a good 1 1/2 hours. By then the dough should have doubled in size, at least!

3. Once the dough has risen, simply "deflate" it and separate into 5 pieces (depending on how large you want your naan to be). On a baking tray (covered with baking paper) form longish shapes as seen in the picture below. Sprinkle with some coarse sea salt and brush with the melted butter before placing in the oven (250°C). The naan will be done in about 5 mins.

Rezept adaptiert von: Aarti Sequeira