I know I've talked about my ongoing experiments with naan and the tricks I've found, but I just realized I didn't have the recipe here. http://www.frugalupstate.com is a blog I like to read and for this week, I noticed the meal plan included an Indian dish with naan. The author mentions never making it before and I was curious if they planned to make the naan or get it pre-made. So I left my first comment there, asking that question. I was going to just point them to my blogpost that had the recipe when I couldn't find the post. Derr. So, here it is, in all its detailed glory!
Yield: 8 naan, enough for 3-4 people as a side
From start to finish including making the paneer masala and rice: 1.5 hours
For the last batch I've made I completely forgot the Greek yogurt. I was baffled as to why it was so dry and I could only knead in less than an extra cup of flour. I thought it had something to do with letting the liquid mixture sit for longer than I ever have, but it wasn't until a couple days later that I suddenly went "Oh! The yogurt!" The naan turned still thin, not quite as many bubbles, but much more greasy than usual. So next: experiment with varying amounts of Greek yogurt.
Yield: 8 naan, enough for 3-4 people as a side
From start to finish including making the paneer masala and rice: 1.5 hours
- In a small bowl, combine 2 TSP YEAST, 1 TSP SUGAR, and 1/2 CUP water. Stir to dissolve. Let sit for a few minutes or until it is frothy on top. I find frothy or not doesn't seem to make a difference.
- While waiting, combine 1 CUP FLOUR with 1/2 TSP SALT in a larger bowl.
- Stir in 1/4 CUP VEGETABLE OIL, 1/3 CUP PLAIN GREEK YOGURT, and 1 LARGE EGG into the yeast/sugar/water bowl.
- Put wet mixture into bowl of flour/salt. Stir until well combined. Continue adding half a cup of flour at a time until you can no longer stir with spoon (1 to 1.5 cups later).
- Dump ball of dough onto well floured counter top. Knead for about 3 minutes, adding flour as necessary to keep dough from sticking (I have a cup of flour on hand for this). Dough should be smooth and soft but not sticky.
- Loosely cover dough and let rest double in size (about 45 minutes). Tip: It's best to leave it on counter semi-squashed flat instead of putting it back in a bowl.
- After it rises, heat a large skillet over medium heat with a dollop of vegetable oil in it. (This is also a good time to start the rice if making some for the same meal. Paneer masala should be well started before you start hopping back and forth from dough balls to skillet, with just the need for a quick stir occasionally. Also paneer or its substitute goes in the very last for just a couple minutes, enough to be heated up.) Then, gently flatten and cut or tear the dough (doesn't seem to matter which) into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a small ball by stretching the dough back under itself until the top is smooth and round. *Don't ignore this step!* I found out it makes a world of a difference between just lumping into round balls and stretching the dough back.
- Take one ball and, using a rolling pin, roll it out. Tips: I usually put my hands on the pin itself instead of using the handles. Push down while slowly rolling one direction then the other. When it doesn't seem to want to get any thinner, push the pin diagonally from original position to stretch the width. It also doesn't hurt to hold it up and let gravity stretch it a bit. This all might seem like overkill but unless you want "naan cake" this is the best way to do it - gets you lots of bubbles (bubbles are good!) and is easy to rip chunks off with one hand for eating.
- Put the rolled out dough in the skillet one at a time, letting bubbles develop and the underside get golden brown (dark brown or black spots are fine, perhaps even better). Flip and cook other side. Tip: The sooner you put it on the skillet after you roll it out the more bubbles you get.
For the last batch I've made I completely forgot the Greek yogurt. I was baffled as to why it was so dry and I could only knead in less than an extra cup of flour. I thought it had something to do with letting the liquid mixture sit for longer than I ever have, but it wasn't until a couple days later that I suddenly went "Oh! The yogurt!" The naan turned still thin, not quite as many bubbles, but much more greasy than usual. So next: experiment with varying amounts of Greek yogurt.
1 comment:
Thanks so much for posting this! I can't wait to try.
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