This no-fail recipe makes the most soft and fluffy Vegan Naan! Enjoy them with your favorite curry!
Recipe Snapshot
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 95 minutes
- Yield: 8
- Category: Breads
- Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients
- 3.5 cups all purpose flour (455 grams, + 1 tablespoon (9 grams) flour if needed)
- 1 teaspoon salt (7 gram)
- 1 cup water (240 ml/8 oz)
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast (7 grams)
- 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar (13 grams, make sure it's vegan)
- 2 tablespoons oil (30 ml, I used avocado oil)
- 1/3 cup cashew milk, unsweetened (80 ml, or use any non-dairy milk)
- 2 tablespoons cashew milk yogurt (35 grams, plain)
- vegan butter (to brush the naan)
- chopped cilantro (optional, to sprikle)
Method
- In a large bowl mix together 3.5 cups (455 grams) flour and 1 teaspoon salt until combined. Set this aside.
- To another bowl (I am using the steel bowl of my stand mixer here), add 1 cup (240 ml/8oz) warm water (not hot but warm, optimal temperature around 110 F degrees) and to that then add 2 teaspoons active dry yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Give a quick mix and let it proof for 5 to 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, the mixture will be bubbly frothy on top indicating the yeast is active (if your mixture isn’t like this, throw it away and start over).
- Now add 2 tablespoons (30 ml) oil, 1/3 cup (80 ml) cashew milk and 2 tablespoons (35 grams) cashew milk yogurt. Mix until it’s all combined.
- Now start adding the dry ingredients, ½ cup at a time and mixing after each addition.
- After you have added all the flour, you can add extra 1 tablespoon flour (9 grams) here at this point if the dough feels very sticky (I did add) but resist the temptation of adding more flour and making the dough dry. The dough will be sticky and that’s okay. Just grease your hands while handling it. If you add too much flour, the naan won’t turn out as good. Now knead the dough for around 5 minutes using the dough hook attachment of your stand mixer or you can knead with your hands for around 8 to 10 minutes.
- Now transfer the dough into a greased bowl. I like using my Instant Pot here- grease the steel bowl of your Instant Pot and place the dough inside the bowl, grease it with little oil on top as well and then cover with a kitchen towel and press the yogurt button. Set the time for around 45 minutes. The yogurt setting maintains an optimal temperature which is perfect for the dough to proof quickly. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, no worries place the bowl anywhere in a warm place. I often pre-heat oven to 200 F degrees, then turn it off and then place the dough inside the oven. And if you live in a warm place or it’s summer right now, then just place the dough on counter.
- After 45 minutes in the Instant Pot, the dough had more than doubled in size. The dough proofs rather quickly in the Instant Pot on yogurt mode, if you have kept in inside oven (with oven off) it might take 1 hour 30 minutes or so depending on the weather.
- Punch to release the air from the dough and then divided it into 8 equal parts, around 100 grams each. Heat a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. Roll a dough into an elongated shape around 8-10 inches long and 5-6 inches wide. You can also press some garlic on top (first wet your hands with water and then push some chopped garlic on top of naan).
- Place the rolled naan on the hot skillet. Cook for 1 minute, then as you see bubbles on top of the naan, flip the naan.
- And cook the other side for another 1 to 2 minutes until it’s golden brown from both sides. If you have a gas stove, you can place it directly on heat too to cook it (the naan gets little charred that way). Cook all naans similarly. Brush with vegan butter and sprinkle chopped cilantro on top (if desired). Serve vegan naan with curries, dal and enjoy.
Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note
Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.