I guess I should start by expressing my love of bread. In a world that’s overcome with a fear of carbs (from keto diets to carb free dieting cleanses), I have professed my undying love for this food that so many claim makes you fat. If my choices are between gaining a few pounds and eating bread or giving up the sweet, chewy goodness that is bread, I will forever choose the former.

There’s only one problem with bread, and that is how long it takes to make a good loaf at home. As a student, Monday nights are not always ideal for baking projects that can take at best many hours and at worst (but tastiest) several days.

This is is where flatbreads, like naan, come into play. Instead of studying for an upcoming calculus test on Monday, I spent about 45 minutes making my own batch of naan bread, based off of Meera Sodham’s Naan from the New York Times by Sam Sifton. For only about 30-45 minutes of work and an hour of proofing, this bread was a resounding success.

This recipe made 12 good sized naan pieces, and took about 2 hours total.

• 4 cups all-purpose flour, or 500 grams
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, like canola, plus a teaspoon more
• 4 tablespoons whole-milk yogurt (I used greek, and needed to add about a quarter cup of extra milk, but other than that it didn’t seem to affect the recipe too much)
• 1 packet of active dried yeast, or 7 grams
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 level teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup whole milk, warmed (2% will also work, especially if you use greek yogurt like I did since the looseness of the milk was necessary to make the dough wet enough to work)

1. First the recipe calls to put the flour in a large mixing bowl (you can use a kitchen aid but I used a much bigger and shallower bowl — the dough won’t be HUGE so either will work fine). Next make a well in the middle of the flour, as if you were making pasta. To this well add all the ingredients except the warm milk.
2. Next, using your hands mix together the ingredients so that everything is combined. It will look very crumbly and not much like a dough, but don’t worry.
3. Now add the milk in splashes (about a quarter cup can work as a splash but there’s no need to measure it out — just eyeball it). As you do this continue to mix the crumbs together with your hands so that it forms a dough (your hands will get messy, but that’s part of the joy of bread baking!). If the dough is VERY dry (like, not sticking together at all and there’s a lot of loose floury crumbs in the bottom of the bowl) add in more milk a very small amount at a time. You want the dough to be sticky to the touch but not so wet that it’s coming apart.
4. Once mixed, form the dough into a ball and dump it out onto a well floured surface like a cutting board. At this point knead it for about 5-7 minutes. If you’ve never made bread before, this might be difficult but look up some youtube tutorials and they will help you figure it out! You will know you’re done when the dough begins to feel smooth (this may sound vague but I promise as you do it you will notice the dough changing under your hands; when in doubt, knead an extra minute or two. Your bread kneads the extra attention!)
   
5. Rub your dough ball with a teaspoon of canola/neutral oil and return it to a clean bowl. Here the original recipe says cover with a towel, but I noticed that a film appeared on my dough when only covered with a towel, so I would recommend covering loosely with plastic wrap. Now leave this to rise in a warm place for 60-90 minutes, until doubled (in an oven on the bread proof setting, which is 100 degrees in my oven, 60 minutes was enough. If your bread is left in a cooler place it will take longer.
   
6. Using a knife, divide the dough into 12 pieces. Take each piece, roll it into a ball and flatten it between your palms. Dust the dough with flour, and roll each piece out into an oval of about 5 by 8 inches. This will seem like you’re flattening or smooshing the dough too much, but don’t worry, it will still poof up and bubble like it’s supposed to.
7. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, and allow it to get hot (no need for oil or anything, just your naked pan). When it is, cook one naan in it for 30 to 40 seconds on one side, or until it begins to bubble, then use a spatula to flip it over to cook the other side for about the same amount of time, checking regularly to make sure that it does not burn. Flip the naan one more time, and press on it lightly with your spatula for 10 to 15 seconds, then remove to a warm platter. Repeat with the rest of the dough. (Keep the finished naan in a low oven, or wrap in foil until ready to serve.)

   

I thought this naan was delicious. We ate it with a homemade curry, along with rice and several chutneys, but honestly I could have eaten this with anything. While it’s rising it’s easy to go do other work, so the only high maintenance part of this recipe is the few minutes it takes to mix the ingredients and then the few minutes it takes to cook the bread itself. As far as a bread recipe goes, this was a simple and time effective alternative to dinner rolls, sourdough or focaccia, my other go-tos.
Even plain, I believe throwing this naan in the oven on a low heat for about 10 minutes with some olive oil and za’atar or garlic on it would make a lovely snack or slightly more complex side dish.

If you’re a fan of the prepackaged naan that you just heat up in the oven, I highly recommend spending a bit of time to try out this delicious, homemade alternative. See you next time!

Here’s the original recipe, in case you want to check it out!
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017747-meera-sodhas-naan