This Garlic Naan From Scratch is an Indian flatbread that is incredibly easy to make, soft and chewy, topped with garlic and butter and a delicious side to any meal with a sauce to sop up!
If you guys know anything about me, it has to be my deep love for all things Bread. It's basically my favorite food group. I would give up sooo many other foods before I'd give up a warm freshly baked kind of any bread. And as we keep making more breads from scratch, that fact is solidified. I finally worked on a recipe I've been wanting to make for a loonngg time, this new favorite: Garlic Naan From Scratch!
Naan has been on my list for a long time; it's embarrassing how long it's taken me to finally make it because it's so easy. Not only does it have super simple ingredients, it's also a bread that's ready in just 2 hrs.
Simple Ingredients
- Flour - All purpose is what we use for this, but you could also use bread flour.
- Instant yeast - For a fast bread, I always prefer instant active yeast because, well, it's instant and doesn't take any activation time. But if all you have is active dry, just activate it first. See recipe notes.
- Sugar - Just a touch!
- Salt - A finer ground Kosher salt is our favorite for bread baking because it's non-iodized and free of impurities. Sometimes, iodized salt (table salt) can adjust the flavor oh so slightly so using a pure kosher salt is best!
- Plain Yogurt - I use a Non-fat Greek Yogurt because it's what we normally have on hand, but you can use any plain yogurt you have at any fat level.
- Milk - We use 1% because that's what we have, but you can also use 2% or whole.
- Butter, Garlic, and Cilantro - Fresh garlic and cilantro are best, but we you can use dried, see recipe notes.
Easy to Make
As with most of our recipes, this is a fairly easy recipe.
- Make the dough and let it rise.
- Knead just a little before separating them into dough balls
- Shape them into circles or ovals and roll them out.
- Slather them with butter and garlic.
- Fry on a hot skillet!
Eee-ah-zee!
Pan fried just a couple of minutes on each side and then another good slather of melted butter then top with fresh minced garlic and cilantro and Boom. Garlic Naan From Scratch!
What to Eat with Naan?
Not that you necessarily need to eat it with something (see a few of my aforementioned bread snacking above...), but it's super tasty with these favorites!
- Homemade Chicken Tikka Masala
- Chickpea Spinach Curry
- Super Easy Coconut Shrimp Curry
- Saag Paneer
- Sun Dried Tomato Hummus
- Homemade Shakshouka
- Chickpea Kale Curry Soup
Now that's to say that any of it makes it to a meal. Our first batch almost didn't!
It's buttery. It's soft. It's chewy garickly deliciousness. Garlic Naan From Scratch! Husband and bread lovin' toddler approved. Perfect for our or any other dish that has a delicious sauce that needs to be sopped up!
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
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Garlic Naan From Scratch
Ingredients
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 3/4 cup 2% milk warm
- 3/4 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 cup butter melted
- 5-6 cloves garlic minced
- Fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl mix water and sugar and sprinkle yeast on top. Set aside until activated (foamy), approximately 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix flour and salt.
- Add yogurt and milk to activated yeast and mix. Make a well in the flour and slowly add the milk yeast mixture, incorporating the sides of the well as you mix (like you would when making pasta). Mix well until smooth and then on a lightly floured surface, knead for 3-4 minutes.
- Return to bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled. Approximately an hour.
- When risen take dough and split in half. Then split those halves into thirds and then those thirds in half until you have 12 evenly sized balls.
- Heat skillet to medium. Roll a ball into a circle or an oval and brush one side with butter. Add the dough butter side down into the skillet and quickly brush the other side with more butter. Let cook until bubbles begin to form - approximately 2 minutes - then flip and cook another 90 seconds.
- Stack naan on plate and cover with towel to keep warm while you roll out each dough.
- Add garlic to remaining butter and then microwave naan to warm and brush with remaining butter.
- Serve immediately.
One ball of dough split 4 times gives you 16 evenly sized balls of dough, not 12. While I may be reading the instructions wrong, the discrepancy I see is bothering me. Does anyone else see this?
Oh boy, you're right! I edited the instructions to what it should have said! Thanks for pointing that out!
Your arithmetic in the original recipe is correct. The difference is that you are not halving the dough each time. You are turning the original dough into twelve pieces.
The correction is also true but results in sixteen smaller sized balls of dough.
It's very good and easy, I make a few an then I make empanadas my children love it, Thank you
Can this Naan be made and freeze uncooked
Hi Arti! Great question. Yes, you can! Make sure you let it rise and then you can freeze it in an oiled plastic bag. When you're ready to use, take out of the freezer and let thaw and then separate into balls.
Hi, i would love to try...pardon me if i ask when do i apply the minced garlic to the naan?
Hello! You'll add the garlic to the melted butter and then brush the naan with it 🙂
Could I use almond milk? What can I substitute for the yogurt?
Your recipes sound delicious. If I follow your recipe, I. WILL eat the whole thing! 😛 So I am trying to come up with something that’s not one big caloric monster! (I know, I am the monster)! 🥴 Anyway, thanks for the great ideas! 🤗
Hi Sandra! Hmm I wouldn't use almond milk but maybe try a 1% milk or even skim? The yogurt you can't really sub for anything that's going to be fewer calories... haha. You could try some lower fat yogurt though. Oooh I'm one of those monsters, too ;P
Hi,
Can I substituted Greek yogurt with sour cream diluted with milk?
Thanks.
Yes! 1:1 , no need to dilute with milk 🙂
Oh I love naan! I worked at an Indian restaurant when I was younger and I was always afraid to slap the dough against the hot tandoori oven. This skillet version sounds soooo much easier! I definitely need to make this one.
I always prefer homemade to store bought, especially in the bread department. It helps that the whole house smells divine! I make Indian food often and I don't know why I've never tried to make Naan to go with. Thank you for this simple recipe with easy to follow directions.
Be still, my carb-loving heart! I swooned a little just at the sight of those delicious, garlicky, nicely browned pieces of naan. I didn't know you could make naan in a frying pan like this, but it makes so much sense. I've got a pizza stone for the oven and I've heard those are good for making naan too (high temperature and all that). I'm curious to try the base recipe both ways to see how they come out. Thanks for sharing this!
This is un-be-lievable! First of all, naan is so overpriced at generic supermarkets and you get all of TWO naan in one package. I love that this recipe gives you a dozen! And then the obvious: nothing beats fresh bread. I can already think of a few curries I make that I'll pair this with on the reg.