Name: Naan
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Ingredients: 2 cups All Purpose flour or bread flour; 1 tsp Sugar; 1 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1/4 tsp soda; 1/2 cup yogurt (plain or Greek); 1/3 cup milk or water; 2 tbsp butter or oil; 3 garlic cloves (grated); 2 tbsp Cilantro (finely chopped); 3 tbsp Butter or ghee; Kalonji or black sesame seeds (optional)

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This is the best easiest Naan recipe; you will ever taste. It’s soft and has that tandoor-y flair.

It has right amount of chewiness and puffs up so beautifully. Did I mention its super easy to make with just few ingredients. This recipe relies on baking powder and yogurt and does not contain any yeast, so its ready in just 20-40 minutes. I decided to make Naan one of these days, when I had a craving. That’s how much easy this recipe is as long as you have all the ingredients.

I made it again to test it out one more time, and simply obsessed with it. I usually do not order naan at restaurant, most of times its layered paratha or something else. Homemade naan recipe never used yeast. Baking powder and yogurt are always used. Yeast was not easily available at home or even easy to source.

What makes this Naan recipe so good

Easy and quick to make with easily available ingredients.

Puffs up perfectly – this dough puffs up and forms those nice bubbles while cooking naan, giving it soft pillowy texture.

What is Naan?

Naan is a very famous Indian flatbread that leavened either with baking powder, or yeast; traditionally made a very hot tandoor oven (cylindrical shaped oven made with clay and cooked in charcoal heat)

In this recipe, we will achieve same results without a tandoor oven. We cook this naan at home on stovetop and with excellent results with charred look.

Naan can have variations too like garlic naan, spicy or called bullet naan with green chilies or jalapenos, or stuffed with dry fruits, layered with kalonji seeds etc.

You can also stuff the naan with cheese or potato mix, minced meat like keema etc. and create a stuffed naan with this basic naan dough.

Slather the cooked naan with ghee or garlic butter. Taste so good.

Best way to enjoy Naan is with homemade subjis and it makes best vessel to scoop up all that good sauce.

It is a misconception that traditional naan has yeast, it is not necessary. Homemade naan always is made with baking powder and yogurt. As I mentioned earlier, yeast was not easily available and people in India didn’t store yeast at home.

If we are talking about history of Naan, the origins are from Persia it was something that came to India probably during silk route. The word Nan’ refers to bread. It was cooked on hot stones or pebbles. Cooking in tandoor started in India.

How to make the best Naan

This recipe couldn’t be easier to make. The dough is easy to make by hands or using a stand mixer like kitchen aid with dough hook attachment. I always make it by hands.

All you must do is mix dry ingredients with yogurt and some water and the dough is ready. The dough must rest at least for 15-20 minutes for best results. It just gives gluten time to rest and relax.

Naan can be rolled into circles or oval shape. Best naan has no proper shape 😊so just go to town with shapes.

Lot of recipes will show you to add garlic and cilantro before cooking the naan, but I prefer a garlic cilantro butter situation and use it once naan is cooked.

All purpose flour or bread flour- Listen to me, I always made naan using all-purpose flour but recently I made with some bread flour, and it came out outstanding. So, if you can use half bread flour and half all-purpose flour, you will have extra ordinary results due to high protein level in bread flour.

But, if you want to use just all-purpose flour, it will still give you great results. Because I make naan occasionally, I am not using any whole wheat flour. You can by all means use it, but I did not test this recipe with whole wheat flour yet.

Sugar – very little amount of granulated sugar used. It won’t make it sweet in taste.

Salt – Salt is important in bread recipe, as it is technically a savory recipe but not a lot. Just enough for taste.

Baking Powder – Baking powder is the hero of this recipe 😊 It is what gives it the puffy pillowy texture and look, it is the leavener used instead of yeast.

Baking Soda – a very tiny amount is used

Yogurt – Please use unsweetened and plain yogurt regular or Greek both are fine.

Milk or water – you can easily use water and swap out the milk, I prefer milk sometimes.

Rest of ingredients are optional for flavor- Garlic butter or ghee, whatever you prefer. I prefer to grate garlic, as it gives better taste than chopped garlic.

Suggestions and Tips

Let the dough rest at least 15 minutes.

Do not roll out naan too thin, it will not puff up and turn out to be crispy. If it’s too thick, it will not fully cook. Keep that in mind.

All flours can be different, if you feel the dough is very dry, you can add tbsp’s of water at a time. Dough might not look perfectly smooth, its okay. Once rested it will be better.

Just be careful when you turn your tawa/griddle. If the naan falls off directly on flame, use tongs to cook it to char. Leave the griddle aside. When I slap the naan water side down, heat is medium. When I turn the griddle upside down along with naan, the heat should be high.

It is important to move griddle and let the naan get heat all around. Do not hold it in one position.

How to store leftovers

Naan can very well made in advance and stored in parchment paper or napkin, but ideally, I prefer to serve them immediately. It honestly does not take time.

The dough can also be prepared a day in advance and stored in the fridge.

Reheat the leftover naan on slow flame on stove top or in microwave.

Print Recipe

Naan

This is the best and easiest Naan recipe; you will ever taste. It’s soft and has that tandoor-y flair.

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: Garlic Naan, Naan

Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

Naan Dough

2 cups All Purpose flour or bread flour
1 tsp Sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp soda
1/2 cup yogurt plain or Greek
1/3 cup milk or water
2 tbsp butter or oil

Garlic Butter

3 garlic cloves grated
2 tbsp Cilantro finely chopped
3 tbsp Butter or ghee
Kalonji or black sesame seeds optional

Instructions

Naan

Mix dry ingredients in mixing bowl and give it a rough stir. Add plain yogurt, butter and milk or water whatever you are using. Now, start bringing everything together and form a dough. It will be sticky and rough, do not worry. As long as it is not dry or very crumbly.
Sometimes, flour can differ, and you may need little bit extra liquid to bind it all together. It is a medium soft dough, not very wet nor very stiff.
Let it rest for atleast 15-20 minutes or little bit longer if you have time. meanwhile make garlic butter.

Garlic Butter

Take grated garlic in a bowl, microwave it for 30 seconds and add butter, chopped cilantro to it.
Then divide dough into 6 pieces. Don’t worry if its not all same size.
Shape them into dough balls.
Preheat a griddle/tawa on medium heat.
Put a tiny amount of flour on a board and place one dough ball, start rolling. Naan can be round or oblong shaped. So, roll it in whichever shape you prefer, add cilantro, black sesame seeds etc. Lightly roll again so it sticks to the dough.
Take some water in a bowl, pick up the rolled naan, upside down. The topping side underneath, on the other plain side brush some water all over the naan.
Place the naan watered side on the griddle so that it sticks. Let it cook for 2-3 seconds or until you see slight bubbles.
Carefully, take the griddle and turn it upside down on the flame so that the naan will get the flame. Revolve it carefully all around to get naan cooking on all sides. You will see sometimes it will puff up also.
Once you get your desired char, and it looks cooked, place the griddle back to normal position. Remove the cooked naan in platter, brush some garlic butter.
Repeat these steps and make rest of the naan. I prefer to roll out each ball and then, just before placing them on griddle; I will run my rolling pin one more time and then cook each one of them. You can do whatever works for you.
Enjoy with any subjis you like.