Easy Homemade Naan Bread

‍

This soft and fluffy naan bread definitely deserves a spot at your dinner table! Naan bread is commonly used in Indian cuisines but it's actually quite easy to make at homemade on your stovetop using a hot skillet.

‍

While not traditional, we love eating naan bread with dips such as hummus and tzatziki or uisng it as our base for a good flatbread pizza.

‍

‍

What is Naan Bread?

‍

Naan, much like many popular foods throughout history, is constantly debated in regards to its origin. Almost everyone agrees that it originated somewhere between India and the Middle East. Traditionally, naan was cooked over hot stones but eventually an oven called a Tandori Oven was created and became the traditional method for cooking naan. The most important part of cooking naan is that it is cooked at a hot temperature, quickly, so that the outside is charred, while the inside is soft and fluffy. A Tandori Oven typically cooks at a temperature 900 F or hotter, but not many people have access to them at home. To achieve a similar texture as if you had used a tandori oven, you want to cook the bread at a high temperature (400 F or above), ideally on a hot stone/pan to ensure a crisp exterior.

‍

‍

The Difference Between Naan and Pita

‍

The biggest difference between naan and pita is that naan is typically made with either an egg or some yogurt, whereas pita is typically leaner with oils, such as olive oil, providing the fat for the bread. With the presence of the fat provided from eggs or yogurt, naan stays light, soft, and fluffy after being cooked. Naan is also made into more of an irregular/free-flowing oval shape that is not as uniform as pita. Naan also tends to have additional flavors and varieties added to it but pita is typically left neutrally-flavored because it is used as a vessel for other things such as dips or spreads.

‍

‍

Ingredients for Naan Bread

‍

Making Naan at home is so easy and only 7 ingredients! Here's what you'll need:

‍

• Flour: I use a mixture of all purpose flour and bread. The bread flour helps give it a sturdy structure while the all purpose flour keeps it light and fluffy.
• Wet Ingredients: Keeping it simple here with whole milk and honey!
• Flavoring: Wanting to keep this as a versatile recipe, the flavor here comes from the salt and the olive oil or melted butter. You could add garlic or other spices though!
• Leavener: I like to use yeast (active-dry yeast) for the leavener for this recipe. While some naan recipes may feature baking soda/powder, the flavor that is created through yeast and proofing is too good to skip.

‍

‍

The Best Way to Cook Naan at Home

‍

When you're cooking the naan keep in mind that the faster the bread bakes, the softer the inside will be. For this reason, it is important to use a pan/stone that holds a hot temperature and cook the bread quickly to ensure the bread remains nice and soft.

‍

We recommend using a skillet for this recipe!

‍

‍

You need this naan recipe and we can't wait to see what you pair it with. Cheers and eat well!