"Almost Stonefire" Naan Recipe

I have been trying to get this recipe right for weeks.  I am in love with Stonefire Naan (Stonefire Naan Website).  We get it at Costco, but it's still a decent chunk of our food budget.  Especially with my addiction to naan with hummus for every snack.  Yummmm!!

So, I've been trying to perfect a homemade naan recipe that doesn't taste like soft pretzels or sourdough bread.  Disclaimer - I have never had authentic naan and wasn't trying to get as authentic as possible.  I've also never purchased ghee. I was going for a homemade version of my store-bought delicious flatbread.  There are a million recipes online that I tried and tweaked, and here's my final product.  I am pretty satisfied with the result, although if any bakers out there have any ideas on how to tweak this to get even closer, let me know!

Naan is a little labor intensive, so I typically have Caleb help me mix up the dough before lunchtime and then let it rise while we eat and get ready for naptime.  I then take care of the rolling and baking during naptime so I can focus.

Homemade "Almost Stonefire" Naan

Time required: 15 min to prep, 1 hour to rise, 45 min to bake (bake time is all hands-on)

1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 packet yeast, dissolved (follow yeast instructions)
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp oil
1 cup hot water

Mix the above ingredients well, until mostly smooth.  I mix with a whisk.

 Add to the mixture the following
1 tbsp sugar
2 1/2 cups flour (or more)

Add sugar and flour until dough can be turned out and kneaded.  Should be a little sticky but still kneadable.

Note on the flour:  I used ultragrain flour from Costco.  Tried with Aldi all-purpose and it turned out much too chewy.  From working in flour manufacturing, this doesn't surprise me at all.  If you're making cookies, all purpose is a great flour to use.  For breads, you really should think about getting a better quality flour.  General Mills makes a Gold Medal Better For Bread flour, or the Ultragrain flour from Costco worked really well also.

Place dough ball in oiled bowl and cover in a warm place, allow to rise for 1 hour.

After it rises, punch down and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  And here's a picture of my little helper.  He loves Naan!

Cut the dough into 8-10 sections, roll each into a ball and use rolling pin to flatten into a pancake.

Caleb loves to help roll out his own naan!

Here's where methods differ based on your available kitchenware...  I have a broiler oven and cast iron skillet, so that's what I use.  Other methods involve a baking stone in a really high temperature oven.  When I tried that I set off my smoke alarm in the other room during naptime (not a good thing, let me tell you!!), so I'm sticking with my cast iron.  :)

Using a well-seasoned cast iron skillet (so it won't stick), brown 1 side of the naan.  It will bubble up but stay doughy on the top.

When lightly browned on the bottom, transfer to the top rack of the oven with the broiler set to high.  The bubbles in the naan will brown on the top in a few minutes, but you'll need to watch it closely.   Remove from the oven when it browns to your liking.

This last step is really important!  Set on a towel to cool just long enough to handle, then place in a ziplock bag and seal.  Do the same with each piece of naan, putting it in the ziplock bag after it cools slightly.  Close the bag between each piece of naan.  This will help trap in the moisture and allow it to re-absorb into the bread, giving you the soft bread feel of packaged naan rather than having crispy edges from baking.

Wrap the bag in a towel after all the naan is finished and allow it to sit for at least 15 minutes.  I typically allow it to sit for about 2 hours before unwrapping and letting any remaining steam out.

Definitely a hit here!  Let me know if you have any feedback!