Naan

Naan

I am planning a theme dinner party using the recipes of The Curry Chicken Burger and Bismati Rice of April 20, with today's recipe for Naan and the dessert will be the Flourless Carrot Cake which I posted February 5, 2010 . Today I am offering two choices for the recipe for naan.

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Ingredients:

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 egg, beaten

2 teaspoons salt

4 1/2 cups bread flour

2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)

1/4 cup butter, melted

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Directions In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared. Yields 14 servings.

Note: Please read the comment posted by Meli. Her suggestion is to roll the dough.

A second choice: Recipe For Naan

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups tepid water (about 90 degrees)

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

5-6 cups bread flour (I use King Arthur)

1 Tablespoon salt(sesame seeds)

Directions: Put water and yeast in a large bowl and stir to blend. Add 3 cups of the flour, about a cup at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon. Beat for about a minute to develop the gluten. Sprinkle the salt over the mixture and slowly add more flower, a cup at a time, and stir until the dough is too stiff to work with. Note: you may not have to use all the flour…. Turn dough out on a lightly floured work surface and knead it for about 10 minutes until it’s smooth and easy to handle. Then put dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let it set at room temp for about 2 hours. If it goes longer, its ok… you can even put it in the refrigerator for up to 18 hours. Preheat oven to about 500 degrees. Punch down the dough, and cut it into about 4 or 5 pieces. Shape them into oval shaped balls 6×8 inches and let them sit for a few minutes to rest the gluten. Get a bowl of water to use. Take one piece and flatten it out by getting your fingers very wet and pressing them into the dough and make lots of deep dimples in it. If you make small holes, its ok. (It’s actually good for the texture.) The more wet the dough gets from pushing on it, the better! The pick the piece up and gently pull it in a long football shape 5 inches wide and about 12-18 inches long. If there are holes in the dough, its all good. Put some cornmeal on a peel, or use parchment paper and place on a baking stone in the oven for about 5 minutes. It cooks quick, so watch it closely… it should start to brown all around the edges. You can have 2 in the oven at one time if you are comfortable with it. Before you put these in the oven, you can put sesame seeds on top or olive oil with a few garlic cloves pressed in, or you can put cinnamon and sugar on top after it comes out. Thats it!