Stovetop Homemade Naan – Indian Bread

Name: Stovetop Homemade Naan Bread Recipe aka Indian Naan
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 16 Naans
Ingredients: 540 grams All-purpose flour (+ 50 grams for kneading); 2 1/2 tsp Instant dry yeast (one packet); 1 tbsp Sugar; 1 tbsp Oil; 1 tbsp Salt; 1 Egg (large); 120 ml Plain yogurt; 180 ml Warm water

October 4, 2012 By Veena Azmanov 38 Comments

Stovetop Homemade Naan Recipe- Indian Naan Bread

This homemade naan is an absolute treat, which when made properly just melts in the mouth. This simple, easy and effortless recipe will make the most deliciously soft and supple bread. It can be used to scoop any Indian curry, or wrapped around meats. Also, it works perfectly when made on the stovetop, baked in the oven or even grilled on a hot summers day.

Stovetop homemade naan recipe made with yogurt, egg, and all-purpose flour

Stovetop Homemade Naan Recipe – Homemade Indian Naan | how to make Naan bread at home

If you love Indian food then you probably have eaten naan. If not, the next time you visit an Indian restaurant make sure you order naan. yep! Absolutely amazing Indian bread. Taste delicious and is perfect for any Indian dish.

What is Naan?

Indian flatbread!! Naan is actually a Persian word for bread and it’s pronounced as ‘NAHN’. The traditional naan is baked in a tandoor oven which is why you don’t often get it made at home. We at home don’t own tandoor ovens so we usually make other Indian bread like chapati, roti, paratha, kulcha, etc.

Of course, the bread is so delicious that it’s a pity if you have to wait to go to a restaurant every time you craved for naan. right? So often we make naan at home despite the lack of a tandoor oven.

The recipe itself is simple and easy. It’s the process and time needed to ferment and add that depth of flavor that makes a huge difference. If you asked my mom, to make naan you have to make the dough the night before. Also, it needs to be kept in the fridge until it has the time to ferment. So the yeast has time to make do its thing.

A close up of the homemade Naan bread laying flat on the table. Simple, easy and effortless recipe that's made on the stovetop

Stovetop Naan, Homemade Naan, Naan bread recipe, Easy Naan Recipe.

Stovetop vs Oven Cooking

I have tried making naan in my oven, as well as on the stovetop just like my chapati. The difference – the oven has to be at 220 C, or 440 F, kinda hot!! Hence, you have to make sure you take it off just at the right moment. If not it can dry out making it really tough. Sometimes it can even get hard due to overcooking.

I have given you both methods below because I have tried both. You can choose which you prefer. Over the years I have found that making the naan on the stovetop, just as I do my chapati, works the best for me.

Naan Variety (Save/Pin)

The naan has come a long way over the years with many creative ways to serve it.

Brush the naan with butter to make a butter naan.
add a few crushed garlic cloves in the butter before you brush it over a hot nana to make garlic naan.
Brush some butter over hot naan and sprinkle with nigella seeds or caraways seeds.

This is my nigella garlic butter naan, one of my absolute favorite. I will be sharing this with you very soon. I think you will love this.

A version of the stovetop homemade naan bread made with nigella, garlic and butter on the stovetop skillet

Nigella Garlic Butter Naan Recipe, Homemade Garlic Butter Naan

Let’s Talk Ingredients and Substitutes (Save/Pin)

Flour – Naan is traditionally made with all-purpose flour. And yet, go ahead and substitute some of that with whole wheat flour. It tastes delicious. I know because I’ve tried it. I will share it with you soon too.
Yogurt – Apart from adding softness and flavor this really helps with over-night fermenting. Also, it adds a unique special flavor. Try not to substitute.
And yet, if you must, try non-dairy yogurt like coconut yogurt. I have not tried yet. If you try, please let us know in the comments below.
Egg – Helps keep the naan soft and flaky. If you need to make it eggless, you can replace the egg with 1/4 cup more yogurt.
Warm water – The water MUST be warm, not hot or cold. Hot water will kill the yeast, while cold water will not revive the yeast. So it has to be around 110 F.
Instant dry yeast – I like to use instant dry because I’ve always had great success with it. If you have to use active dry yeast you will need 2 1/4 tsp or one packet. And if you use fresh yeast you will need about 21 grams. It’s not necessary to activate the yeast but I like to take the guesswork out and make sure my dough will rise

A pile of homemade stovetop naan breads made with all purpose flour, yogurt and eggs.

Stovetop Naan, Homemade Naan, Naan bread recipe, Easy Naan recipe.

Overnight Naan Bread

I don’t think I ever saw my mom make instant naan. She always made the dough the night before. In fact, she proved most of her bread doughs overnight. So, if you plan your naan bread ahead of time, I highly recommend you prepare the dough the night before and let it rise in the fridge overnight. The overnight resting adds a unique fermented flavor that’s very authentic and delicious with that strong bread smell you get at a bread bakery.

Just make sure you thaw the bread for a good two to three hours before you plan to roll it out. When thawed the dough be a pleasure to work with and you will find yourself making naan more often than you think.

The homemade naan is an absolute treat, which when made properly just melts in the mouth. This simple, easy and effortless recipe will make the most deliciously soft and supple bread that can be used to scoop any Indian curry, wrapped around meats. This recipe works perfectly when made on the stovetop, baked in the oven or even grilled on a hot summers day.

Nigella Garlic Butter Naan Recipe, Homemade Garlic Butter Naan

Recipe – Stove Top Homemade Naan Bread – Indian Flat Bread

Useful Tips and Tools

A small Mixing Bowl or measuring cup to activate the yeast. I prefer to use glass over metal. If the metal is cold it can lower the temperature of the liquid ingredients. Not a big deal. And yet, it’s nice to get the yeast activated quickly and move on with the recipe.
I like mixing bread dough by hand. It’s quite therapeutic. But bread dough can be difficult to handle. Not just because it needs more kneading but also because it’s often a soft, sticky mess. And yet, keeping the dough soft and sticky is important for good bread baking. So, I highly recommend using a stand mixer Kenwood, kitchen-aidor other brands, it does not matter. Personally, I also have a hand mixer. And yet, I don’t use it for baking bread. Because bread dough is dense compared to cakes. So, it might harm my hand mixer. (recommended read – which stand mixer is good for home bakers)
Baking bread is a science. So measuring ingredients correctly is important. Also, do not wing the measurements. Use a Measuring Cup for liquid ingredients and Measuring Spoons for dry ingredients.
A good baking tray is as important to bread baking as it is to other baking Baking Tray. Therefore, buy a good quality baking tray that’s not too thin. The thick ones will prevent the bread from burning on the bottom. Sometimes you can even add a second tray on the bottom to prevent it from getting burnt.
Every oven works differently. So the baking times are just guidelines. In the case of bread, a hollow sound on the bottom of the bread is a great indication. If the bread bakes too quick or too slow compared to the time given it might be a good idea to check if your oven needs calibration. An oven thermometer is a great little gadget to help keep the oven temperature in check. All you need to do is adjust the temperature accordingly.

Ingredients

All-purpose flour – 540 grams + 50 grams for kneading
Instant dry yeast – 2 1/2 tsp (one packet)
Sugar -1 tbsp
Oil – 1 tbsp
Salt – 1 tbsp
Egg – 1 large
Plain yogurt – 120 ml ( 1/2 cup)
Warm water – 180 ml (3/4 cup)

Method

Prepare yeast mixture

In a measuring cup – add warm water, yeast, sugar, and oil.
Let rest for a while until foamy (about 5 minutes).

Prepare dough

Place flour in a bowl – add salt. Mix well.
Add the yeast mixture – start mixing in.
Followed by the yogurt and the egg.
The dough should be soft and sticky.
Continue to knead in a mixer for 3 minutes on medium or by hand on a floured surface for about 5 to 7 minutes.
Once the dough is soft and springy. Your dough is ready.

Proofing the dough

Place in an oiled bowl and cover with cling wrap.
Rest it out for an hour or two until double in volume.
During the resting stage if the dough does rise more than double in volume – just punch down and let rest again until you are ready.

This Homemade Naan is an absolute treat. Simple, easy and delicious laden bread to eat with any Indian curry. Add some butter for butter naan, a few crushed garlic cloves for a garlic naan twist or simply sprinkle with pretty nigella seeds.

Stovetop Homemade Naan Recipe | Easy Homemade Indian Naan Bread Recipe

Let’s make Naan

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface again.
Divide the dough into 16 portions – first in half and then half again, until you have 16 shapes.
Roll each into a ball and let rest for 5 to 7 minutes (resting helps the gluten relax and makes working with dough easy).

Stove Top Homemade Naan – Indian Flat Bread |Easy Homemade Naan Bread Recipe

How do you make that naan shape? it’s easy!

Roll each ball into a round circle shape.
Then pull/stretch the circle from one end and you have an oval shape.
That’s it!! This oval shape is usually quite characteristic of the naan bread.

Stove Top Homemade Naan – Indian Flatbread |Homemade Naan Recipe made easy

Stovetop Cooking – Here’s how to keep it soft and supple

Heat a skillet pan on high.
Place the naan on – let cook for 30 secs on the first side – you see some bubbles.
The first flip – flip the naan, let cook on the second side for another 30 secs.
then the second flip – cook on the first side again for another 30 secs.
Third flip – back to the first side again – 30 secs.
So you flip three times cooking the naan for 30 secs on each side.

Homemade Naan Indian Flat Bread – Stovetop Naan Bread Recipe |Homemade Naan made easy

Oven cooking

Preheat the oven to 220 C/440 F for at least 20 minutes before you put the first naan in.
Dust the try with some cornmeal or flour – place the naan on the try.
Place the tray in the preheated oven on the top shelf closer to the grill for about 2 to 3 minutes turning once or twice.
Until you see it’s puffed up and has dark spots.
Alternatively, place them on a hot pizza stone at 250C / 500 F – for 2 to 3 minutes.
The time of 2 to 3 minutes will vary depending on how HOT your oven is. So keep a close watch.

Keep it soft

As soon as you take the naan off the heat, wrap it in a clean kitchen towel or cheesecloth.
This retains moisture back into the naan keeping it soft.

Don’t forget to save this recipe on Pinterest for later.
You can find a collection of my tutorials and recipes here on Pinterest.

Stovetop Naan, Homemade Naan, Naan bread recipe, Easy Naan, Indian Naan Recipe, Naan Recipe

Stovetop Homemade Naan Bread Recipe aka Indian Naan

The homemade naan is an absolute treat, which when made properly just melts in the mouth. This simple, easy and effortless recipe will make the most deliciously soft and supple bread that can be used to scoop any Indian curry, or wrapped around meats. This recipe works perfectly when made on the stovetop, baked in the oven or even grilled on a hot summers day.

5 from 17 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: Indian

Adjust Servings Here: 16 Naans

Calories: 216kcal

Author: Veena Azmanov

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins