naan $1.27 recipe / $0.16 serving

naan

$1.27 recipe / $0.16 serving

And now for the much anticipated Naan recipe!

If you're unfamiliar with naan, it is basically just an Indian style flat bread. Okay, maybe it's not "just" flat bread. This stuff is AMAZING. It is soft, pillowy, full of lovely bubbles and so extremely versatile. You can eat this along side of a meal to sop up gravies and juices, you can make flat bread sandwiches with it, top it with tomato sauce and cheese for a quick personal pizza, use it in place of tortillas for quesadillas... the possibilities are endless!!

This recipe is so quick, easy and delicious that it is most definitely my new favorite yeast bread recipe. I can't quite get enough of it. My favorite way to eat it so far is to use it for my breakfast quesadillas or to just melt some mozzarella in it with a slight sprinkle of garlic powder... oh, it's divine!

Big props to The Novice Chef blog for posting the original recipe. I looked at so many recipes before making naan and this was the simplest, most delicious looking recipe that required me to buy the fewest number of ingredients (just the yogurt!).

Homemade Naan

Total Recipe cost: $1.27
Servings Per Recipe: 8 pieces
Cost per serving: $0.16 each
Prep time: 15 min. Cook time: 25 min. Rise Time: 45 min. Total: 1.5 hrs.

INGREDIENTS		COST
2 tsp	dry active yeast	$0.19
1 tsp	sugar	$0.02
1/2 cup	water	$0.00
2.5-3 cups	flour	$0.18
1/2 tsp	salt	$0.05
1/4 cup	vegetable oil	$0.15
1/3 cup	plain greek yogurt	$0.56
1 large	egg	$0.12
TOTAL		$1.27

STEP 1: In a small bowl, combine the yeast, sugar and water. Stir to dissolve then let sit for a few minutes or until it is frothy on top. At that point, stir in the oil, yogurt and egg until evenly combined.

STEP 2: In a medium sized bowl, combine 1 cup of the flour with the salt. Next, add the bowl of wet ingredients to the flour/salt mixture and stir until well combined. Continue adding flour a half cup at a time until you can no longer stir it with a spoon (about 1 to 1.5 cups later).

STEP 3: At that point, turn the ball of dough out onto a well floured counter top. Knead the ball of dough for about 3 minutes, adding flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking. I ended up using about 3 cups of flour total. The dough should be smooth and very soft but not sticky.

STEP 4: Loosely cover the dough and let it rise until double in size (about 45 minutes). After it rises, gently flatten the dough and cut it into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a small ball by stretching the dough back under itself until the top is smooth and round.

Step 5: Heat a large, heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat and spray lightly with non-stick spray. Working with one ball at a time, roll it out until it is about 1/4 inch thick or approximately 6 inches in diameter. Place the rolled out dough onto the hot skillet and cook until the under side is golden brown and large bubbles have formed on the surface (see photos below). Flip the dough and cook the other side until golden brown as well. Serve plain or brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with herbs!

TIPS: For the most bubbles, don't roll out the ball of dough until just before it is ready to be placed in the skillet. I experimented with different skillet temperatures and found that a medium heat produces the most bubbles in the dough and does not burn the surface.

Step By Step Photos

Start by dissolving the sugar and yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Allow to sit and get frothy.


Then mix in the oil, egg and greek yogurt. I was disappointed to find that I was out of regular cooking oil and had to use olive oil which is much more expensive... but it adds to the flavor so, oh well!


Stir those all up until they're well mixed.


In a separate bowl, mix 1 cup of the flour and salt together until they're evenly mixed.


Then add the bowl of wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients and stir well. Continue adding flour a half cup at a time until you can't stir it with a spoon.


Turn the ball of dough out onto a well floured counter top and knead for 3 minutes. Add flour as needed until you have a smooth, very soft ball of dough. I used about 3 cups of flour total for the recipe.


Shape the dough into a ball, loosely cover and let rise until it is double in size.


After it has risen, flatten it out slightly and cut into 8 equal size pieces.


Shape each piece into a small, smooth ball.


Heat a skillet over medium flame and lightly coat with non-stick spray. Roll out a ball of dough until it is 1/4 inch thick or about 6 inches in diameter.




Place the rolled out dough in the hot skillet and cook on one side until large bubbles form and the side touching the skillet is golden brown.


Flip the dough over and cook on the second side until golden brown as well.


The side that formed bubbles makes the pretty pattern characteristic of naan when it browns!


Brush the naan with melted butter, garlic butter or traditional ghee!


The small 8 oz. container of greek yogurt that I bought still hase 2/3 cup left in it which means that I can make two more batches of naan! Because yogurt is a cultured milk product, it has a long refrigerator life so I WON'T be letting it go to waste :)

Every time I go to make bread (of any kind) I remember that I want to buy a dough scraper... yet I forget every time I'm at the store! Ugh!