Garlic butter naan – a quick, easy Indian flatbread

I have grown to love making bread over the years.

Watching that soft, messy pile of flour slowly come together under your hands into a smooth, supple ball of dough feels incredibly satisfying. Kneading used to make me a little apprehensive. Was the dough too sticky? Had I kneaded it enough? Would it actually rise? Now, strangely enough, it is one of the parts I look forward to most.

And I have absolutely no idea why I waited this long to make naan for the camera.

Because naan looks so good while it cooks. The dough stretching between your fingers, the flour scattered across the worktop, those first bubbles appearing in the hot pan, the little charred spots, and finally that glossy brush of melted garlic butter. It is one of those foods where the process is almost as beautiful as the finished plate.

Mine are definitely not the enormous, perfectly puffed restaurant-style naans that arrive dramatically hanging out of a basket. These are smaller, softer, slightly rustic homemade naans—and I love them that way.

I made them to go alongside a bowl of chole, and honestly, tearing into warm garlic-butter naan and scooping up that thick, spicy chickpea gravy is reason enough to make a batch.

The recipe is deliberately simple and relatively quick. A little yogurt keeps the naan tender, while yeast gives it enough lift to create those lovely bubbles when it hits a very hot pan. And the garlic butter at the end? Be generous with it.

Quick Garlic Butter Naan

Makes: 6–8 small naans
Prep time: 15 minutes + 45–60 minutes resting
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

For the naan

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• ¾ tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ cup plain yogurt
• 2 tbsp oil
• ½–¾ cup warm water, as needed
• 1 tbsp melted butter or ghee

For the garlic butter

• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
• 1–2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander
• Pinch of salt

Method

1. Add yeast and sugar to a bowl of lukewarm water. Let the yeast wake up and create bubbles. In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, and salt.
2. Add the yogurt, oil, and remaining warm water. Begin mixing by adding the remaining water gradually until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough.
3. Avoid adding too much flour at this stage—the softer dough gives softer naan. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 7–8 minutes, until it becomes smooth, elastic, and beautifully soft.
4. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and leave it somewhere warm for around 45–60 minutes, or until visibly puffed. Meanwhile, melt the butter for the topping. Add the grated garlic and a small pinch of salt.
5. Stir in the chopped coriander and set aside. Divide the rested dough into 6–8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a smooth little ball and allow them to rest, covered, for another 10 minutes.
6. This makes the dough much easier to roll and stretch. Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet or cast-iron pan until very hot.
7. Take one ball of dough and roll it into an oval or teardrop shape. Don’t worry about making every naan identical—the slightly irregular shapes are part of the charm of homemade naan. Place the naan directly onto the hot, dry pan.
8. Within a few seconds, you should begin to see bubbles forming across the surface. Cook until the underside develops deep golden-brown and slightly charred spots, then flip and cook the other side.
9. Remove from the pan and immediately brush generously with the garlic butter. Repeat with the remaining dough, stacking the cooked naan under a clean kitchen towel to keep them warm and soft. Serve immediately with chole, curry, dal, or anything with enough sauce to justify tearing off another piece of warm naan.

A Few Tips for Soft Naan

Keep the dough soft. It may feel slightly sticky when you start kneading, but resist adding too much extra flour.

Get the pan properly hot before adding the naan. That initial blast of heat is what creates those beautiful bubbles and charred spots.

And finally, don’t wait until all the naan are cooked before brushing them with butter. Brush each one while it is still piping hot so the garlic butter melts straight into the surface.

They might not look exactly like restaurant naan—and they don’t need to. Hot from the pan, blistered around the edges and glistening with garlic butter, homemade naan has its own kind of beauty.