Baking Steel Naan

Naan

Recipe Adapted from Neelam Batra, 1000 Indian Recipes

Yield: 10 Naan
Ingredients

• 7 g Dry Yeast (1 packet)
• 5 g Sugar
• 60 g Warm Water
• 220 g Plain Non-fat Yogurt
• 20 g Vegetable Oil
• 330 g AP or Bread Flour
• 2.5 g Kosher Salt or to taste
• Bench Flour
• Melted Butter or Ghee

Cooking Directions

1. Place the Baking Steel on a shelf at the second level below your oven's broiler. Preheat the oven to 500 or 550 F.
2. Combine the yeast, sugar and warm water in a small bowl.
3. When the yeast mixture is frothy combine it with the yogurt and vegetable oil. Whisk until a smooth homogenous mixture is achieved.
4. Place the flour and salt in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Cover and pulse once or twice to combine.
5. Add the yogurt mixture and process until a smooth ball is formed. It should be quite soft and a little sticky. If necessary, add a little more flour (if too wet) or yogurt (if too dry) and continue to process.
6. Place the dough ball in a lightly oiled bowl, rotating to coat it with oil, cover with foil, and allow it to double in volume, about 1 hour in a warm kitchen.





7. When the dough has doubled in volume, lightly flour your work surface and hands and roll the dough into a a log about 10 inches long.
8. Cut nine 12 inch squares of wax paper.





9. When the oven is preheated cut the log into 10 sections.
10. Roll out each ball into an 8 inch disk. Stack each naan, separated by a piece of wax paper. Cover the pile with the damp towel.
11. Switch the oven to broil.





12. Stretch the first naan into the characteristic triangular shape.
13. Carefully toss the naan onto the Baking Steel.





15 Seconds






60 Seconds



14. Cook for about 90 seconds. Adjust the naan's location with tongs to optimize browning.
15. Remove the naan with tongs, brush generously with melted butter and set aside, covered.
16. Continue until all are cooked.
17. Serve hot.

Notes: 

Quantities: The original recipe is expressed in cups and teaspoons and is, perhaps, somewhat inaccurate. (If you have Batra's book, you'll see that I used considerably more yogurt.) I weighed everything out as I measured for this version. Use caution and good sense if you choose to give it a try. As always with bread recipes, the exact amount of liquid will vary somewhat depending on you flour, the weather, and the whims of Hestia.

Flour: I used King Arthur Bread Flour.