Naan Pakistani
“A leavened flatbread slapped against the searing wall of a clay tandoor, emerging soft and pillowy inside with charred, blistered bubbles outside. The everyday companion to Pakistan's rich curries and barbecue.”
Where it comes from
Naan entered the subcontinent during the Delhi Sultanate, first recorded in the writings of the Indo-Persian poet Amir Khusrau in the 1300s, who described the tandoor-baked naan-e-tanuri eaten by Muslim nobles. In Pakistan it remains inseparable from the roadside tandoor, where bakers slap dough onto clay walls each evening to feed the dinner crowds.
On the plate
The crust crackles and chars at the bubbles while the crumb stays soft, chewy and faintly tangy from the yogurt. Brushed with butter, it is fragrant and just rich enough to mop up any gravy.
How it works
Yeast and yogurt ferment the dough to produce gas and acidity for a soft, springy crumb, while the tandoor's extreme heat flash-bakes the surface into blistered char in minutes.
Variations
plain naan, garlic naan, butter naan, Peshawari naan with nuts, roghani naan, keema-stuffed naan
On the Palate
Ingredients
Serves 6How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓20 min active · 90 min waiting
How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓- 110 min
Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm milk and let it froth.
- 25 min
Mix flour with salt, then add the yeast milk, yogurt and a little oil.
- 360 min
Knead into a soft, supple dough and let it rise until doubled.
- 420 min
Divide into balls and rest them again briefly.
- 55 min
Stretch each ball into a teardrop shape and dimple with fingertips.
- 63 min
Slap the dough onto the hot tandoor wall or a preheated tawa.
- 76 min
Bake until puffed and charred in spots.
- 82 min
Brush with butter and serve warm.
