Tawa Naan with Garlic

Do you enjoy a good Indian curry occasionally? Is the soft and buttery Garlic Tawa Naan Bread one of your favourite side dishes to order in an Indian restaurant? Then look no further. This most delicious naan bread recipe will be your new favourite companion to your homemade lamb biryani or red lentil dal with spinach. And the good news is that it is easier to make Homemade Naan Bread than you probably think it is!

Jump to:

• Why This Recipe Works?
• Difference between Naan Bread and Pita Bread
• Ingredients and Substitutes
• How to Make the Perfect Naan Bread?
• Related Recipes
• Top Tips From the Chef
• Tawa Naan with Garlic

The naan bread puffs up and bubbles appear as it cooks on the tandoor. Luckily, you don’t need a tandoor or any other special equipment to make great homemade naan bread. A good quality cast iron skillet or frying pan will be enough for the naan bread to rise nicely.

This soft, chewy, and extremely delicious Homemade Garlic Naan Bread is surprisingly easy to make and a great side to so many dishes. Although it is traditionally served with Indian dishes, Naan bread can go with anything and you can use it as an edible scoop to pick up sauce or dip.

Why This Recipe Works?

• They taste just like the best Indian buffet restaurants!

• It is extremely delicious, soft, puffy, and airy, with beautiful golden brown spots on the surface.

• You can make this traditional Tawa Garlic Naan Bread at home with just 7 ingredients (including water and salt!) and a super simple process. 

• Also, it is extremely versatile. You can add some coriander or nigella seeds after brushing with butter or just serve it plain.

• Naan bread is a great companion to curries, soups and dips. Our delicious Ezogelin Soup or Baked Prawns (Karides Guvec) are perfect for dipping this soft and fluffy Garlic Naan Bread.

Difference between Naan Bread and Pita Bread

Naan bread is quite similar to pita bread. Both are flatbreads and are often served the same way but made with different ingredients and techniques causing the difference in texture.

The main difference is that yoghurt and butter are used for the naan bread which gives it a softer texture. When the naan dough is done, it is shaped into a ball, stretched through hands and thrown on the interior walls of a tandoor (a cylindrical clay oven used in Indian cuisine).

Pita bread is a leaner dough that is thinner and usually consists of 4 basic ingredients: flour, water, yeast and salt. To make pita bread, you also need a very hot oven or pan to cook it with a pocket.

Ingredients and Substitutes

• Flour - The best type of flour for naan bread is plain white flour or all-purpose flour. Substituting it with other types of flour (such as whole wheat flour) will make the naan breads less soft and denser. you can also use strong white flour/bread flour if that's what you have in hand.

• Yeast - I use fast action dry yeast for this recipe. The recipe also works with standard active/dry yeast or fresh yeast. Although you don't normally need to dissolve the fast action yeast in warm water and then leave it to become foamy, the naan becomes fluffier if dissolved in warm water first. 

• Ghee or Butter – Ghee is clarified butter with milk solids and water removed, leaving behind pure butterfat. It has a more intense butter flavour than normal butter and it doesn’t burn even on high heat. You can either make your ghee or use butter.

• Garlic - It is an essential ingredient for this Naan recipe. You can turn it into a paste with a mortar and pestle or grate it with a Microplane.

• Plain Yogurt: Yogurt is a great way to add a tangy & rich flavour while adding some softness to the dough.

• Sea Salt:  Adding sea salt adds a salty texture to the naan bread.

• Baking Powder - It gives the naan some extra rise and softness.

How to Make the Perfect Naan Bread?

You might find daunting the idea of making your own naan bread at home. The good thing is that this bread is straightforward to make when you follow a few simple steps:

Prepare the Dough

Pour the warm water into a large bowl. Whisk in the yeast and half of the flour, mix, cover the bowl and then leave in a warm place for 30 minutes. Stir in the yoghurt and then add the rest of the flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix with your hands to form a soft and sticky dough.

Proof the Dough

This naan bread takes a bit of time and some patience. It doesn't need much kneading but requires a few " knead and let it rise " sessions for a smooth dough. Spoon 2 teaspoon of the melted ghee or butter and then rub it over the dough.

Roughly squeeze the dough a few times, cover the bowl with cling film or a clean damp kitchen cloth and leave it to rise for another 15 minutes. Pour another 1 teaspoon melted ghee or butter onto the dough and then rub it lightly all over.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface and knead the dough for 30 seconds. Return it to the bowl, cover, and leave for 15 minutes to rise in a warm place.

Shape and Cook

By this time, the dough becomes much smoother. Knead lightly on the oiled surface for a minute and divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, roll them into balls, lightly dust with flour, and leave for 5 minutes before shaping.

Heat a large heavy-based non-stick pan or a large skillet on medium to high heat. Lightly flour the balls and turn them into a teardrop or oval shape (about 3 mm or ⅛“ ) using your fingers or a rolling pin.

When the pan is really hot, place the dough and cook until golden brown and flip the dough using a tong. Cook for another couple of minutes. Put on a plate and brush with garlic and butter mixture.

Sprinkle some chopped coriander or parsley on naan bread. Keep wrapped in a clean cloth while you roll out and cook the remaining naan bread.

Related Recipes

For more delicious recipes around the world why not try:

• Pitka Bread

• Chicken Stir Fry Noodles

• Sticky Toffee Pudding

• Chicken Liver Pâté

• Traditional Shakshuka Recipe

• Spicy Chicken Wings

• Fish Pie Recipe

• Strawberry Mille Feuille

• Moules Mariniere (Mussels Marinara)

• Tartar Sauce With Capers

• Wild Garlic Pesto

• Dal Palak (Spinach Dal)

• Onion Raita

• Hyderabadi Mutton Biryani

Top Tips From the Chef

• Getting the consistency of the dough right - This is the key factor for achieving perfectly soft naan bread. The amount of flour in this recipe should be taken as a guide. When it comes to pastries, implementing the exact measurements in a recipe doesn't always guarantee perfect results due to external factors such as humidity at your location, and the type of flour and yoghurt that you use. Therefore, you should have a basic understanding of what the consistency of the dough should look like. And if necessary, you can adjust the amount of flour in the recipe. The naan bread dough should be soft and sticky. It is important to achieve soft and fluffy naan bread.

• The right type of flour - The best type of flour for naan bread is all-purpose flour. Substituting it with other types of flour (such as whole wheat flour) will make the naan breads less soft and denser.

• Preheat your skillet - For your naan bread to get bubbles on top, your skillet should be VERY hot. Tandoor ovens get exceptionally hot, resulting in naan bread that is soft and bubbly inside, and charred outside. To replicate this method, make sure you put your naan bread in the skillet when it is completely hot.

• Let it rise - This naan bread takes a bit of time and some patience. It doesn't need much kneading but requires a few " knead and let it rise " sessions for a smooth dough.

• Do not make it too thick - The shape and size of naan bread differ substantially in every restaurant you go to. Naan bread needs to be soft and fluffy. So do not make them too thin. But making it too thick will result in an uncooked doughy centre.

• Brush it with garlic butter or ghee for extra flavours - After cooking the naan bread, brush with some garlic butter/ghee and serve them straight from the pan.

• Do not make it in advance - Once you made the dough, you must use it promptly. If you want to make the dough in the morning to cook later in the evening, reduce the amount of the yeast to ¼ teaspoon and keep the dough in the fridge covered until required.

I hope you enjoy the process of making this delicious Homemade Tawa Naan Bread as much as you enjoy eating it!🙂

Bon appétit! / Afiyet Olsun!

FOOD SAFETY

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Don’t leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

See more guidelines at USDA.gov.

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