While chatting with my work colleagues who were drooling over the thought of a curry, I mentioned that I cook my naans on the barbecue. When you think about it, it’s an ideal substitute to a tandoor, you can get it very hot, close the lid and cook the naans for a few minutes each side – they puff up really well.
This is the standard naan recipe – if you want to make it more interesting you can mix fresh coriander, into the dough, or fold some cheese in, stuff it with potato, methi/fenugreek leaves or spicy mince (keema), or cook off some minced garlic and mix that through.
Makes 6
Ingredients
yeast mix:
2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons caster sugar
150ml lukewarm milk (use soy or rice milk for dairy free version)
Stir the above 3 ingredients together in a small a bowl and leave to froth and dissolve.
450g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
half teaspoon salt (you can also use onion and garlic powder, but if you do this omit the salt)
150ml plain yoghurt (for dairy free version use coconut yoghurt OR approx 60mls coconut cream OR a tablespoon of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons dairy free spread, or omit the yoghurt completely)
1 egg (lightly beaten) OR egg replacer for vegan version OR omit
2 tablespoons oil (vegetable oil is ideal – don’t use a strongly flavoured oil)
Method
1. Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl – flour, baking powder, salt.
2. Add the wet ingredients – yeast mixture, egg, yoghurt, oil.
3. Mix together to form a ball of dough. Knead well.
4. Form into a ball, put a few drops of oil in a bowl and roll the dough in the oil, then wrap the bowl in cling film and leave in a warm place for an hour.
5. Knead the dough again and divide into 6 balls.
6. Roll the balls into naan shapes.
7. Cook on a very hot barbecue for a few minutes each side, or on the bars of a very hot oven. If you have a tandoor, of course, cook them in the tandoor. They should puff up nicely.
Truly Scrumptious 
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