Tandoori Naan - Makes 8

Among all the different forms of Indian Bread, naan definitely is a hit among both my husband and me. It is a bread made of refined flour ( Maida). There is an interesting story behind the success of my mum making naan, which i would love to share with all of you....Traditionally, in India, naan is a bread which is made in a tandoor or clay oven. Clay ovens are made by digging the earth to form a pit and then throwing coal in the pit and using the heat from the coal to give the flavor to many breads as well as marinated meats like tandoori chicken.

My mum wanted to replicate that flavor without having the convenience of owning a tandoor, so she ingeniously converted her tawa ( the pan used to make Indian breads like roti) to simulate the effect of a tandoor. 

Once the naan is rolled out in the right shape, she used water to wet her hands and cover the entire surface of the naan with water. The wet naan is then gently placed on the tawa in such a manner that it sticks to the surface of the tawa. The bread is cooked for 2-3 minutes in this way and then the entire tawa is inverted over the gas flame in order to simulate the tandoor effect. This is a simple act which might take a few rounds of practice , to achieve perfection, but once achieved......the results are amazing!!

Ingredients:

Maida- 2 cups
Warm Water- 1/4 cup
Milk- 1/4 cup
Yogurt- 1/2 cup
Fresh Yeast- 1 tsp
Sugar- 1 tsp
Oil- 2 tsp
Salt- 1/2 tsp

Method:

• Mix water, milk and sugar.
• Dissolve yeast in it.
• In a bowl mix maida, salt, oil, yogurt and yeast liquid.
• Knead the dough cover and keep aside for 1 hour till double in size.
• Knead it again and divide it in to 8- 10 balls and keep aside for 10 minutes.
• Roll the ball into the shape of a naan.
• Now apply water on one side of the naan . Stick the naan on the heated tawa or gas tandoor and cook as demonstrated above. 
• Serve hot with butter chicken, makhani daal or shahi paneer.