BAKARKHANI NAAN

BAKARKHANI NAAN

INGREDIENTS

• 4 Cups Plain Flour
• Warm Milk - About a Cup more or less
• 1 Egg - Lightly Beaten
• Ghee (Clarified Butter) 1/2 a Cup
• 2 Tablespoons Melted Butter 
• Sugar - 2 Teaspoons
• Salt - 1/2 a Teaspoon
• Cardamom Powder - 1 Teaspoon
• Instant Yeast - One and a Half Teaspoon
• Sesame Seeds and/or Nigella Seeds - Enough to Sprinkle

DIRECTIONS

1) Sift the flour into a large bowl. Add salt, sugar, cardamom and yeast. Mix with hand to distribute these evenly in the flour. Make a well in the centre of the flour. Add the egg in the well along with the half cup of clarified butter.

2) Start adding the milk right in the well and with one hand start gathering the flour to the centre to combine. Keep adding milk a little at a time and keep gathering the flour to form a very soft dough. Knead the dough for about 5 Minutes. Form the dough into a ball.

3) Cover the bowl containing the dough with cling wrap or anything that will be airtight. Set this aside for at least 1 hour or more if necessary. The dough should have rise to double its size before you go on to the next step.

4) After the dough has risen well, punch it down and divide into 8 equal portions. Work each piece to form a ball. Set aside for at least 5 minutes.

Flatten out one ball of dough on your working top and flatten it down with your palm. With a rolling pin roll it out into a thin circle. Smear ghee all over the surface. 

Now fold it in half as shown and smear some more ghee all over

Holding on to both the edges of the lower part of this circle of dough, lightly stretch out to form a rectangle

Now fold it over again to form a broad strip

Holding on to both ends, stretch slightly to elongate the strip. Do not stretch too much.

Start rolling it up from one end. Make sure you do it uniformly

Continue rolling to the end of the strip to form a spiral

Turn it on its base and flatten slightly with palm. Prepare the rest of the dough balls in the same manner.

Take each spiral and roll it out but do not roll it thin. It has to be slightly thick this time round. Place each rolled out naan in a baking tray. Sprinkle some sesame or nigella seeds over each. 

5)  Heat the oven to 200 C. Place the tray into the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until the tops have turned to a golden brown.

6)  While the naans are baking, add a little bit of water to the melted butter. Mix well. As soon as you remove the naan from the oven, brush some of this glaze over each. Cover with a damp kitchen towel immediately. Serve warm.