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Being a big fan of wild yeast I had to make a sourdough version of naan. What is so special about sourdough naan, you ask ? The answer lies in the depth of flavor , and of course there is the added nutritional value. Naan by any method is a fantastic flat bread. The sourdough version takes it a step further..
Converting any regular bread recipe to its wild yeast version is like a journey back in time , to an age where commercial packaged yeast was not common or even available . Bakers and home cooks used to ferment a variety of things , fruit peels , grains etc. to make homemade yeast cultures. Once the starter culture is created , regular feeding and maintenance regimens ensured that the yeast population is active and healthy. Often times a piece of dough , made with these starters is saved and allowed to ferment for longer periods typically overnight or 8 to 10 hours to be used as the starter for the next batch.
This recipe uses a simple sourdough starter at 100% hydration. If you do not have a starter here is the recipe to make your own. Typically naan is made with all purpose flour. But to my delight I have found that one about 1/3 of the flour can be substituted with whole wheat flour (Atta) without compromising the puffy soft texture. Tasty and healthy , isn’t that a win for all?
This recipe is very similar to the regular naan recipe .
Take the fed and active starter in a large mixing bowl. Add flours, salt, oil and yogurt to it.Stir well. Slowly pour the water and knead a few times to moisten all the flour. Cover and set aside for 20 minutes. Uncover and start kneading. The dough should be a little sticky. As you knead the dough becomes less sticky more pliable. If after a few minutes of kneading the dough is still very tacky add a few tablespoons of flour. Knead for 10 . Form into a ball. Transfer to an oiled bowl, turn the dough ball to coat all sides with oil . Cover and let rise for at least 4 hours till doubled in volume. Under normal temperatures it takes at least 4 hours but if the ambient temperature is high and the dough seems to be rising very fast place it in the refrigerator to slow it down. Alternately the dough can be refrigerated for longer rise for up to 48 hours.
Punch down the risen dough and divide into 8 portions. Form each portion into a ball. cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Lightly oil the work surface . Place one dough ball on it and using the heel of your palm stretch the dough out to an oval / teardrop shape . The dough should not be sticky at this point but if it is spread a little bit of oil in the palms to prevent sticking.
My favorite way to cook this is a combination of stove top and broiler. This is the quickest and most energy efficient way to do it at home . Heat a thick bottomed pan – like a cast iron griddle till it is smoking hot . Turn the broiler on and place a cookie sheet about 4 inches away from it . Place the shaped naan on the hot griddle and cook for 30 seconds. By this time bubbles start forming on top . Use a wide turner or a pizza peel to transfer the naan to the cookie sheet , without flipping . Let it cook for a minute or till the bubbles are fully formed and the tops begin to brown . Remove from the oven and brush with oil (optional) , and keep covered .
If you have a pizza stone, set the pizza stone in the lowest rack of the oven . Heat the oven set to the highest setting . Once the oven is preheated , keep it on for 20 minutes or so for the stone to absorb as much heat as possible. Place the shaped naan directly on top of the stone and cook for 2 to three minutes until it has puffed up and light brown spots appear on top .
These can be made the same way in the grill.

A naturally leavened version of the popular Indian flat bread Naan.
- 125 g Whole Wheat Flour 1 C
- 300 g All Purpose Flour 2 3/4 C (unbleached)
- 200 g Starter 1 C (Notes)
- 120 g Yogurt 1/2 C
- 150 g Water 1/2C + 2 Tbsp
- 8 g Fine Sea Salt 11/4 Tsp
- 1 Tbsp Oil
Place 200 gm of fully fed and active starter in a large mixing bowl . Add the flours, salt , yogurt and oil to it . Mix everything and begin to knead while slowly adding the water. If measuring by volume add enough water to just get all the flour wet.Once the mix comes together cover and set aside for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes uncover and knead for 10 minutes to get a very soft and pliable dough. If the dough feels very tight add a few drops of water, on the other hand if it feels too sticky add a few teaspoons of flour. Try to keep the additions to minimum.The dough becomes more elastic as you knead. Form into a ball and place in an oiled bowl. Turn to coat all sides of the dough with oil. Cover and set aside to rise for at least 4 hours, till doubled. If the kitchen is warm and the dough seems to rise very fast, transfer to the fridge to slow down its progression.
- Uncover and punch down the dough. Divide into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
Lightly oil a work surface. Take one dough ball and place it on the work surface. Use the heel of the palms to press the dough and stretch it out into a teardrop shape. Follow any of the following methods to cook the Naan.
- If you have a pizza stone in the oven , pre heat the oven to the highest setting. Keep heating once it has reached the desired temperature for at least 20 minutes for the stone to get heated as well .Use a pizza peel or a cookie sheet to slide the shaped naan to the hot stone . Bake for a couple minutes , until it blisters and begins to brown. Remove from the oven and brush with ghee.
- Heat a thick bottomed tawa, or cast iron pan on high heat. Turn on the broiler. Place a cookie sheet on a rack about 4 inches away from the broiler. Test the pan by sprinkling a couple drops of water on the pan. If the water sizzles and jumps out the pan is hot enough. Place the naan on the hot pan and cook for 30 seconds until bubbles appear on top . Transfer to the cookie sheet under the broiler and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until the bubbles develop fully and the top begins to brown.
- Preheat the oven to the highest setting . Place the cookie sheet in the oven. Once the oven is hot enough , place the naan on the cookie sheet . Cook on one side for 1 to 2 minutes until it begins to puff up , flip and cook the other side.
- Follow the directions for the oven.
- Brush the naan with oil and keep covered using aluminum foil or wax paper till ready to serve . Serve warm.
- The starter used here is 100% hydration starter. In other words 200g starter has 100g flour and 100g water.
- Fully fed active starter means that the starter has been recently replenished and has about doubled in volume.
- Volume measurements are approximate. Measurements are for standard 250ml cup .
Naan tastes best when freshly made. Brush a Naan with a little bit of oil and cover with a piece of foil / wax paper / kitchen towel. Serve warm.
The dough on the other hand stores well in the fridge or freezer. If freezing make sure that the dough is covered completely.
If you try this recipe, I would love to hear about it ! Leave a COMMENT, RATING , share a photo and TAG me on INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK OR GOOGLE+
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Hi, If I can substitute “whey” from making homemade yogurt, should I substitute for just the water or can I substitute for both yogurt and water?
Thanks
Hi Bob, You can definitely substitute whey for water. I would leave the yogurt in though, for a more rounded diary flavor. But if you substitute, I would love to hear about the
results .
Hi,
We tried your “Sourdough Naan” and it is fantastic!!!
We used “Sprouted Wheat Flour” and split the yogurt half and half with whey and then used the whey in place of the water to finish off the dough. It is great!
The “Ghee” adds a wonderful finish.
Thanks for the recipe!!
Bob
Hi Bob,
Thank you for the update. I am so glad you liked it.
Sprouted Wheat flour and whey sounds wonderful. Can’t wait to try it myself.
Syama.
THANK YOU! This was my first successful sourdough bread and it was PERFECT! I think I’m going to try this for cheese pies and pizza too! I will be checking out a lot more of your recipes now!
I am so glad it worked for you ! For pizza I would suggest you increase the hydration, i.e. make a more wet dough. Creates beautiful bubbly crust in hot oven. Happy baking & happy holidays !!!