INSTANT NAAN

INSTANT NAAN

Indian flat bread

I got my first cookery book, as a gift, by one of my colleagues in 1995, which was written by Madhur Jaffrey. I made many dishes using the recipes from her book and everybody in the family has enjoyed them. Some of the recipes were totally new to me where I had to start from scratch. However, her instructions in the book were so easy to follow and the measurements given in that book were so accurate that even an unacquainted person can easily follow them and can cook. I remember once I made coconut chutney using her recipe, then my husband said, “Let me call Madhur Jaffrey and tell her that my wife can cook exactly like you”. That was a big compliment for me.

A few weeks ago, I was amazed to see in the news that Madhur Jaffrey was publishing her 30^th cookery book, I could not believe it. Now she is 82 years old, she is an internationally known authority on Indian and vegetarian cooking and a big inspiration to many like me. She is recognised for bringing Indian cuisine to the western world with her first book, which was published in 1973 as “An invitation to Indian cooking”. I was astonished to see how this lady has written so many books in the last six decades and inspired the world with the knowledge of the Indian cuisine.

While I was writing this post, I came across another clip of her in the news on 9^th December 2015, when she was interviewed by Chris Caldicott of Telegraph.co.uk. My eyes wanted to get the glimpse of that headline, and it read- “No restaurant can ever compete with home cooked Indian food”. I searched on Google and then read the whole interview.

Through this post, I would like to pay my personal tribute to herself and her reputation in Indian cooking/book writing and want to salute her for the commendable job she did in the field of cookery and book writing from last 50 or more years.

Only because of personalities like Madhur Jaffrey, people in the world today have the knowledge about Indian cuisine. Even before Google came into our life, these were the people spreading the knowledge of Indian cuisine to the world through their writings.

Coming to the recipe, naan is a world famous Indian flat bread, which is served in many Indian and non-Indian restaurants around the world. People really admire this Indian flatbread with both vegetarian and non-veg curries and stews of different types.

I have already posted Stuffed Tandoori Naan on my blog, that was the traditional recipe. This one is an instant one, which can be made in an hour or two depending upon the fermentation of the dough, and off-course is the recipe of Madhur Jaffrey.

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• 2 and ½ cups all-purpose flour/ white bread flour (500 grams)
• 1 tsp instant yeast *
• 1 tsp sugar
• butter to garnish the naan
• some water to make the dough
• 1 tbs oil for glazing the dough

* Check instructions on the yeast packet, you might need more.

METHOD

• Mix instant yeast in half cup warm water, mix it and leave it to froth.
• Take flour in a big bowl, mix water with yeast and make a medium-hard dough by adding more water.
• Glaze with oil, cover it with cling film and leave it aside in a warm area to ferment, it may take 1-2 hours, depending on the temperature of the room.
• Once the dough is fermented, make small balls.
• Heat the grill /broiler to 200 degrees C
• Flatten the ball with the help of your palms and roll it, giving round shape around 5 inches diameter.
• Heat a frying pan on the stove.
• Roast one side of the naan over fry pan, once slightly roasted transfer it into the oven in a flat tray.
• Roast till golden brown on both sides, garnish with butter and serve hot, it may take 5-10 minutes.
• Around 20 naans can be made, depending on the size.

I am sending this recipe as my blog post entry for Way wow link party, and Healthy happy and green party, with Cook blog share, and with Tasty Tuesday link party, and with Hearth and Soul party, and with Yum yum linky party, with My Two fav things on Thursday and with full plate Thursday, and with Real Food Friday and Funtastic Friday, and with Fiesta Friday with co-host Elain and Julie, and with Food and fitness Friday, and with Meatless Monday together with Sarah, and with What do you do this weekend, and with Tuesday Tutorial