Preparation | Resting | Cooking | Start to finish |
---|---|---|---|
35 min. | 3 hours | 10 min. | 3 hours 45 min. |
1 | Mix 120 ml whole milk and 120 ml water, then add 10 g caster sugar and 5 g fine (or table) salt. | |
2 | Sieve 450 g flour into a food procesor bowl, add 1 Egg, 10 g yeast and pour in the milk and water mixture. Add 100 g leaven if you would like a stronger flavour. | |
3 | Start the food processor on slow speed and knead for 10 minutes until the dough is evenly mixed. | |
4 | Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover with a sheet of plastic and leave to rise in a warm place for about 2 hours, until the dough has doubled in volume. | |
5 | After this, divide the dough into pieces of about 100g and roll into balls (the dough will be rather sticky at this stage, so use plenty of flour). Dust the tops of the balls with flour, cover with a sheet of plastic and leave to rest for one hour. | |
6 | Preheat the oven to 240°C (460°F) and put a baking sheet in the bottom to heat up as well. Roll out the balls of dough using your hands (still using plenty of flour) to produce fairly thin discs. | |
7 | Place each disc on the burning-hot baking sheet and bake until the naan is well risen and browned on the top. Those fortunate enough to have a proper bread oven can cook their naan by the open fire method, like pizzas. | |
8 | Prepare all the naans this way. | |
9 | If you like, you can brush the top of the naans just after they come out of the oven with melted butter or, better still, with ghee, the Indian clarified butter with its distinctive taste. | |
10 | Possible variations: for naan with seeds, mix them into the dough at the end of kneading: a handful of sesame seeds, linseeds, poppy seeds, etc. | |
11 | Or you can even make cheese naans by folding the dough over onto a layer of soft cheese or cheese spread. |