Garlic Naan
Homemade garlic naan is so much easier than you think! Soft, slightly chewy, and flavored with garlic, make a big batch and freeze the rest for later.
When I posted the recipe for eggplant curry last week, I mentioned that I also made garlic naan. This was actually my first time making naan – I have no idea why it took me so long. I don’t make bread frequently, and every time I do, I question why I don’t do it more often. There’s something so incredibly cathartic about kneading dough by hand and (not-so) patiently waiting to see if your dough rises. I think I might try working my way through a variety of yeast breads this fall; I’m already daydreaming about chilly fall days with the kitchen door open, football on the TV, and the scent of fresh bread coming from the oven.
Back to reality… and upper-80s summer weather. This garlic naan was a peace offering to my husband, going alongside the vegan and gluten-free (two of his least favorite food descriptors) eggplant curry. The process is incredibly simple, though a bit time consuming if you don’t have a large workspace on your grill. Since I was stirring the curry simultaneously, I chose to make these on a grill pan on my stove, but the whole process would have gone much quicker if I used my outdoor grill. I used an assembly line-style process: roll out one piece of dough and add to grill pan. Roll out a second piece of dough and add that to the grill pan. Flip the first piece, roll out a third piece. Flip the second piece, remove the first piece, add the third piece to the grill, and so forth.
This recipe makes quite a lot (16 pieces based on the size I used), but it’s worth making the full batch, since they freeze well. I let the naan cool, wrap individual pieces in aluminum foil, and then store them in an air-tight bag. When you’re ready to use them, put them right in a 450F oven (straight from frozen) and cook for 6 or 7 minutes. All the deliciousness, with the work done ahead of time! What’s not to love?
Garlic Naan
Homemade garlic naan is so much easier than you think! Soft, slightly chewy, and flavored with garlic, make a big batch and freeze the rest for later.
Ingredients:
- 1 (0.25 ounce) package dry active yeast
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 4 – 4.5 cups bread flour
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/4 cup butter or ghee, melted
Directions:
- Dissolve yeast in warm water in a large bowl. Let this stand for ~10 minutes, or until frothy.
- Stir in sugar, milk, the egg, and salt. Add in the flour, one cup at a time, until a soft dough forms. Start with 4 cups ,and add the additional half cup if necessary while kneading.
- Knead the dough for ~8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. If the dough is really sticky during the kneading process, keep sprinkling the additional half cup of flour onto the dough.
- Oil another large bowl, and transfer the dough into this bowl. Cover the dough with a damp cloth. Set in a warm space and allow the dough to rise for 1 hour, until doubled in volume. If you don’t have a warm spot to use, place the dough into an oven which was preheated to 180F. Turn the oven off as you insert the dough, and let it sit with the door shut for the hour.
- Punch down the dough and knead in the garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough, roughly the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls and place on a large tray. Cover the dough with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size again, about 30 minutes.
- Preheat a grill or grill pan (or heavy-bottomed skillet) to high. Roll each ball of dough out into a thin circle and grill for 60 seconds, until puffy and lightly browned. Brush the uncooked side with the melted butter, and then flip and cook another 1 to 2 minutes, until the other side is browned.
A Bunsen Burner Bakery Original Protocol
YUM. I just made pizza dough for the first time last week and a straight up yeasty miracle that is bread this weekend. I'm now obsessed. Pinning for this fall when I KNOW I will want some spicy Indian food to warm me up — I *love* the freezer idea too.
Mmm…yummy! Bit of an odd question – how did you learn to take such great photos of your food? I try, but it just looks bleh. Did you take a course, read a book, or are you just natural awesome? 😀
Aw, thanks Alyssa! I've never done any classes or read a book (aside from the instruction manual for my first DSLR!), but I have invested a lot of time. I first started blogging recipes on my prior blog in 2009, so as you can probably imagine, there has been quite an improvement over that length of time! I think the biggest difference for me in elevating my food photo game was figuring out lighting. I often don't get home from lab until 8pm or later, so we might not be eating dinner until 9, which means there's no natural light outside, and my kitchen lighting is pretty abysmal when it comes to photography. I recently sucked it up and bought a little tabletop fluorescent light for studio photography, and it has made a world of difference. I know some food bloggers do tutorials and tips, so I bet you could find some good ones with a quick google search — I've enjoyed just learning the curves on my own though, so I don't have one to point you to that I can say "this really works!" I've skimmed a few, and they pretty much all tell you that you need to use a tripod (which I never, ever use), so I stop caring what they have to say. 🙂
Thanks! Do you use something for a backdrop or mini "studio"?
Ha! Ignoring advice is a good rule of thumb 🙂
Thanks again! I know I'd be interesting in a post like that 🙂
I can't find the exact one I have, but I use something similar to this: http://www.amazon.com/Cowboystudio-Photography-Table-top-Background-Backgrounds/dp/B004IIJRIQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408560401&sr=8-1&keywords=photography+sweep
I received mine for free with the light I purchased, but if something happened to it, I'd just replace it with two pieces of poster board held together with binder clips. I've only ever used the white backdrop, so two pieces of white poster board would be just as efficient, and a whole lot cheaper! I use a variety of cutting boards, wood boards, cheeseboards, and cloth (aprons, dishtowels, etc) as the "base" that I put my food on. I figure when "end of summer" sales start, I can probably pick up a few summery tablecloths on sale as well! If you're interested, I can throw together a post with a few pictures of my little "food photography studio" in my basement. 🙂
I never thought you could make naan NOT on the inside of those things they make them in (how about that for vague?). Do you know what I mean? I've always seen flat discs thrown into the side of a large kettle or something. Either way… I'm glad to know I could make them at home! These look wonderful!
Lynn, I know exactly what you're talking about! But most of my Indian friends don't have those things in their house and still make awesome naan, which is how I realized any old person can make it. 🙂 If you don't have a grill/grill pan, it will work in a cast iron or other heavy bottom skillet, but I like the grill pans the best because the bottom side gets those perfect blister bubbles like "real" naan.