Naan bread

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 20 g yeast (half a cube)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 140 ml water, lukewarm
• 200 g flour (type 505)
• 1 tbsp yogurt
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp black cumin (kalonjee seeds, onion seeds)
• Flour for the work surface

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

Indian oven bread made from wheat flour

Place the yeast and sugar in a small bowl and mix with the lukewarm water. Once the yeast has completely dissolved, let it stand for 10 minutes. Bubbles should have formed. If they haven’t, then the yeast wasn’t fresh! Put the flour in a mixing bowl and make a well in the center for the liquid yeast. Now add the ghee, salt, yogurt, and the liquid yeast. Stir everything until you have a smooth dough. If the dough is too liquid, add a little more flour. If it’s too tough, add a little yogurt or water. Then knead the dough thoroughly on a floured surface for at least five minutes. It’s better to knead too long than too short! Then let the dough rise in a covered bowl in a draft-free place (e.g., in a switched-off oven) for 1.5 to 2 hours. Then knead the dough thoroughly again, this time for at least two minutes. Now preheat the oven to its highest setting. If the oven has a grill, use it! Divide the dough into six pieces and form rolls or balls. Sprinkle some black cumin seeds on the work surface, flatten the dough pieces into about 1cm thick flatbreads, and roll them in the black cumin seeds, pressing lightly so that the seeds stick to the surface on both sides. If you have time, let the flatbreads rise for up to 30 minutes. Brush aluminum foil with ghee and place the flatbreads on it in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Turn the flatbreads over when the surface is light(!) brown. Turn again when the top side has reached the desired browning. Brush with ghee again if you like. The naan bread is ready when the top side has reached the desired browning. It tastes best warm. Variations: You can use butter instead of ghee. Ghee is available at Asian stores. You can also brush the naan with butter after baking instead of ghee during baking. Since the bread is baked in a clay oven in India, it can also be baked in a pizza oven or on a bread stone. A lot of heat is important for a successful result. Other information: Naan is served as a side dish in India. It can be used instead of rice. It goes well with dishes that don’t require much sauce, but also with classic curries. It’s also a delicious snack. 6 loaves are enough for a main course for 2-3 people.