Naan Bread

Is a curry without a Naan Bread even a curry to us in the west, be it a plain naan, garlic and coriander, keema or Peshwari, though to me Peshwari is like eating cake with savoury and not my thing. Fluffy warm bread to dip in your sauce and mop up the gravy, yes I call the sauce with the curry gravy. Though traditionally made in the tandoor oven and even I don’t have one of those though the wood oven is an excellent substitute getting to very similar heats, the naan bread can be made at home and this is the recipe and method I use.

Ingredients

• (Makes 6-8)
• 1.5 tsp fast-action yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 150ml warm water
• 300g strong white bread flour, plus extra to dust
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 tbsp natural yoghurt
• 2 tbsp melted ghee or butter, plus extra to brush
• A little vegetable oil, to grease
• 1 tsp nigella (black onion), sesame or poppy seeds (optional)

Method

Put the yeast, sugar and two tablespoons of warm water in a bowl and stir well. Leave until it begins to froth.

Put the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Stir the yoghurt into the yeast mixture, then make a well in the middle of the flour and pour it in, plus the melted ghee. Mix, then gradually stir in the water to make a soft, sticky mixture that is just firm enough to call a dough, but not at all dry. Tip out on a lightly floured surface and knead for about five minutes until smooth and a little less sticky, then put in a large, lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover and leave in a draught-free place (the airing cupboard, or an unlit oven) until doubled in size: roughly 90–120 minutes.

Tip the dough back out on to the lightly floured surface and knock the air out, then divide into eight balls (or six if you have a particularly large frying pan). Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frying pan over a very high heat for five minutes and put the oven on low. Prepare the melted ghee and any seeds to garnish.

Flatten one of the balls and prod or roll it into a flat circle, slightly thicker around the edge. Pick it up by the top to stretch it slightly into a teardrop shape, then put it in the hot pan. When it starts to bubble, turn it over and cook until the other side is browned in patches. Turn it back over and cook until there are no doughy bits remaining.

Brush with melted ghee and sprinkle with seeds, if using, and put in the oven to keep warm while you make the other bread.