NAAN

AUTHOR:
MAE

Naan:
1kg flour
4 tspns demerara sugar
3 tspn salt
2 tspn yeast
200ml Luke warm milk
450ml Luke warm water


In a high walled large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and Knead into dough.
Cover the mixing bowl with cling film and leave to rest for half an hour in a warm place/proving drawer.
Portion the dough into small fistfull portions and smooth and shape the portions into smooth balls. Place balls on pre-floured proving tray with inch space all around them. Cover the tray with cling film and leave to rest for two hours or until balls have doubled in size. (Alternatively if you have a large rectangular air tight container with walls at least of three inches high you can also flour this box and place the balls in there to avoid cling filming on a tray - see image below.)

​Once doubled in size balls are ready to hand stretch and cook in wood fire oven/ or normal oven.

(To hand stretch your naan, dust your hands with flour then gently lift out one dough ball. Hold the dough ball with both hands and till both your hands and the dough ball so that the top of the ball is facing you and the bottom that was in contact with your tray is now facing outward. Gently softly pinch the top edge of it with your thumb and finger of your dominant hand on its respective side, ( ie right hand holding right side) then repeat with your other hand on the other top edge side. This should look like you are holding a steering wheel with both your hands holding the top right and left edges of your dough. This will cause the rest of the dough to droop down due to gravity.  Feed the dough around from one hand to the other, like you would a steering wheel to turn, as you feed it the dough should start to stretch. Once you have it to your desired thickness place the now flattened out naan on to your baking tray or woodfire oven paddle - see below. (If you are using a woodfire oven paddle be sure to liberally dust it with fine semolina flour every time before placing a naan bread on it. This prevents the naan from sticking on to the paddle and gives it a nice bottom crust.)

If cooking in woodfire oven this will take between 5-8 minutes to cook depending on your flame.
If cooking in regular gas oven, cook at gas mark 9 for 10-15 minutes or until nice crust is formed both on top and bottom and when pressed on top it bounces back and does not stay "stuck".

Finish off the cooked naan with a butter glaze if you like. (I highly recommend it!)

TOP TIP:
If you are cooking in regular gas oven you can also buy a pizza stone to put into the oven to help get a more nicer finish on the naan. Be sure to preheat the stone well (about half an hour), before placing the naans/pizzas on it for best results.
​