Naan Bread
Makes 3 naan
1. Sift the flour and salt together into a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, mix the yeast with the milk. Set aside for 15 minutes.
2. Add the yeast mixture, oil, yogurt and egg to the flour.
3. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise, in a warm place for 45 minutes, or until doubled in bulk.
4. Preheat the oven to its highest setting for at least ten minutes to 450° or even higher. As you preheat, place 3 heavy baking sheets in the oven to heat. (If you only have 1, then just cook the naan one at a time, and put 1 heavy baking sheet in the oven while it preheats). The heat of the pans will help the naan cook correctly.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and punch down. Divide into 3 and shape into balls.
6. Roll out each ball of dough into a teardrop shape about 10 inches long and 5 inches wide, with a thickness of about 1/4-1/3 inches.
7. Place the naan on the hot baking pan(s) and bake for 3-4 minutes or until puffed up.
8. Brush with melted ghee or butter and serve warm.
Some Naan Variations:
Spicy Naan: Add 1 teaspoon of ground coriander and 1 teaspoon of ground cumin to the flour in step 1. For extra fiery naan, add 1/2-1 teaspoon hot chili powder.
Cardamom Naan: Lightly crush the seeds from 4-5 green cardamom pods and add to the flour in step 1.
Poppy Seed naan: Brush the rolled out naan with a little ghee or butter and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Press lightly to make sure that they stick.
Peppered Naan: Brush the rolled-out naan with a little ghee or butter and dust generously with coarsely ground black pepper.
Onion Naan: Add 1/2 cup finely chopped or coarsely grated onion to the dough in step 2. You may need to reduce the amount of egg if the onion is very moist (to prevent making the dough too soft and sticky).
Whole Wheat Naan: Substitute whole wheat bread flour for some or all of the white flour.