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This homemade naan recipe makes soft, chewy flatbread with beautifully blistered spots and a buttery finish. All you need is a hot skillet—no tandoor required.
Naan is a soft, pillowy flatbread traditionally baked in a tandoor, a blazing-hot clay oven that gives it those characteristic bubbles and charred spots. Of course, most of us don’t have a tandoor at home, but I’ve found that a good, hot skillet does a wonderful job. The trick is to keep the dough soft and slightly sticky, then cook it over high heat so it puffs up and develops those beautiful golden, blistered spots.
This homemade naan recipe is one of my favorite breads to make because, aside from the rising time, it’s surprisingly quick and easy. And there’s nothing quite like brushing a warm piece of naan with melted butter and serving it alongside chicken curry, butter chicken, or chicken tikka masala.
“My search for the perfect naan bread is over—this recipe is the best!”
What You’ll Need To Make Homemade Naan
- All-purpose flour: The base of the dough. For best results, spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off.
- Sugar and salt: Sugar adds a touch of sweetness and helps the yeast along, while salt brings out the flavor.
- Instant or rapid-rise yeast: Helps the dough rise and gives the naan its pillowy texture. You can use active dry yeast instead, but allow a little extra time for rising.
- Warm water, plain yogurt, and olive oil: Bring the dough together and help keep the naan soft and tender.
- Anise seeds (optional): Add a subtle licorice note. You can substitute nigella, poppy, or sesame seeds, or leave them out.
- Melted salted butter: Brushed over the naan after cooking for a rich, buttery finish.
- Chopped parsley (optional): Adds color and freshness. Use cilantro if you prefer. For garlic naan, stir minced garlic into the melted butter before brushing it over the cooked bread.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Naan
Make the dough: Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the yogurt, olive oil, and warm water, then add to the dry ingredients. Stir with a fork until the dough starts to come together, then knead gently with floured hands until you have a soft, slightly sticky ball. There’s no need to knead it until smooth.
Let it rise: Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover. Leave it in a warm spot until it’s about doubled in size. The dough should look noticeably puffier and feel soft and airy.
Divide and shape: Turn the dough onto a well-floured work surface and divide it into six pieces. Dust with flour as needed to keep the dough manageable, then roll each piece into a thin oval. Don’t worry about making them perfectly uniform—a slightly irregular shape is part of naan’s charm.
Cook the naan: Heat a dry cast-iron or heavy nonstick skillet until very hot. Add a piece of dough and watch for large bubbles to form on the surface and golden-brown spots to appear underneath. Flip and cook until the other side is browned and blistered, with a few darker charred spots. Adjust the heat as you go; I usually lower it to medium after the first naan.
Brush and serve: Brush each naan with melted butter as soon as it comes out of the skillet, then keep it tucked in a clean kitchen towel while you cook the rest. Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve warm.
storage & Freezing Tips
Naan is best enjoyed fresh from the skillet, but leftovers can be stored in a resealable plastic bag. To reheat, wrap the naan in aluminum foil and warm in a 350°F (175°C) oven until heated through. Naan also freezes well for up to 3 months. Once completely cooled, wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and place them together in a freezer bag. To reheat from frozen, wrap the naan in foil and warm in a 350°F (175°C) oven until hot.
Naan Recipe Video Tutorial
Homemade Naan
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off, plus more for rolling (see note)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon instant dry yeast/rapid-rise yeast (see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Heaping ½ teaspoon anise seeds (optional)
- 3 tablespoons plain yogurt
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ¾ cup warm water (about 100°F/38°C)
- 2 tablespoons melted salted butter, for brushing on finished naans
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley (optional), for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, yeast, salt and anise seeds (if using). Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt, olive oil, and ¾ cup (180 ml) warm water (about 100°F/38°C).
- Add the yogurt mixture to the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until the dough begins to come together. Lightly flour your hands and knead gently to form a soft, slightly sticky dough, adding more flour a little at a time if it’s too wet to handle. Stop kneading as soon as the dough comes together.
- Lightly oil a clean bowl or coat it with nonstick cooking spray (the bowl should be large enough to allow the dough to double in size). Transfer the dough to the prepared bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place for 1 to 1½ hours, or until roughly doubled in size.
- Place about ½ cup (65 g) flour in a small bowl. Lightly dust a work surface with some of the flour and turn the dough out onto it. Sprinkle a little flour over the dough and your hands.
- Shape the dough into a long rectangle and cut it into 6 equal portions, dusting with more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Roll each portion in the bowl of flour to coat lightly.
- Warm a large cast iron or heavy nonstick pan over medium-high heat until very hot.
- Using a rolling pin, roll one portion of dough into an oval about ⅛ in (3 mm) thick and 9 x 4 in (23 x 10 cm). Gently toss the dough back and forth between your hands to shake off any excess flour, then carefully lay it in the dry skillet.
- Cook for a few minutes, until air bubbles form across the surface and the bottom is golden brown with blackened spots. Flip and cook 1 to 2 minutes more, until the bottom is lightly browned and blistered in spots.
- Remove the naan from the skillet, brush with melted butter, and place in a tea towel-lined dish to keep warm.
- Repeat with the remaining naans, adjusting the heat lower if necessary as you go (I usually find it necessary to lower the heat to medium after the first naan). Sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve warm.
Notes
- I use King Arthur flour, which is higher in protein than some other all-purpose flours. If using a flour with a lower protein content, such as Gold Medal, you will likely need to add a few more tablespoons of flour.
- Active dry yeast may be used instead of instant/rapid-rise yeast, however, the dough will take longer to rise. To give active dry yeast a boost, you can dissolve it in the lukewarm water and let it sit until frothy, about 10 minutes. After that, add it to the flour, sugar, salt, and anise seeds, and proceed with the recipe.
- To keep the cooked naan warm, place them in a 200°F (96°C) oven.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Ways to Use Naan
Naan is delicious alongside curries, but there are plenty of other ways to enjoy it. Serve it with a bowl of mulligatawny soup, use it as a base for individual flatbread pizzas, or fold it around grilled chicken, kabobs, or roasted vegetables for a sandwich or wrap. You can even top warm naan with fried eggs for a quick and satisfying breakfast.
More Homemade Bread Recipes You’ll Love
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Wonderful! This was my introductory recipe to Once Upon a Chef! A coworker brought some naan in to lunch and i asked where she bought the smaller ones. When she told me she made them and offered me a sample, I was amazed. It was so much better than what I have been paying way too much for at Costco. She pulled up the site on her phone and ever since, I have been telling everyone. Do try this recipe. It is fabulous.
Hi Jenn! This recipe is terrific! The texture was nice and soft inside and the just the right amount of crisp on the outside. I didn’t use anise seeds, instead I used onion powder (kids don’t like the onion bits). The flavor was so good!
This recipe is so simple and really brings the meal together! Everyone is always impressed that the naan is homemade! The recipe is straight forward and as long as you follow it it comes out perfect every time! To change it up I like to add cumin seeds or everything bagel mix instead of the caraway seeds! This goes great with butternut squash curry!! Thanks again for a stellar recipe!
Hi. I can’t wait to try this recipe. Can I make this in my stand mixer. Thanks Debbie
Yes Debbie, that should work. Enjoy!
My first time making naan to go along with a curry I made. I hand-stretched the dough and tried both a cast iron skillet on the stove and a terracotta saucer I use as a pizza stone – I was happier with the cast iron as it held more heat to brown the naan. It’s every bit as good or better than what I would order at an Indian restaurant and certainly better than store bought! I did an overnight rise in the fridge, and I baked them when I came back home.
I also experimented a little – I made another batch with a mix of dry beer yeast I had mixed with some rinsed yeast slurry from a beer I made(I rinsed the slurry to get rid of any bitterness from hops residue), while that didn’t rise in the fridge as much as the one made with active dry yeast, it also made for a delicious naan. Just a slight flavor difference.
Have recently found your website and really enjoying it. Recipes are always really clear to follow and really appreciate the progress photos along the way so I know what its
meant to look like 🙂 This was a hit with all the family including the hubby so will definitely be making again. Thanks for a great resource and looking forward to your book launch. I’m sure it will be worth the wait!
Hi Jenn! Thanks for all the great recipes. I really want to try to make naan for the next time I make your chicken tikka masala, but I seem to have a problem with the ingredients. I live in Norway, and I have never heard of active dry yeast before. The only thing we have in the grocery store is fresh yeast, and what I think equates to instant active dry yeast. It’s just called dry yeast (tørr gjær), and is a fine powder you mix with the dry ingredients when baking. Can I substitute the active dry yeast with fresh yeast? Or do you think our regular ‘dry yeast’ could possible work?
Hi Elise, I wasn’t familiar with fresh yeast (I looked it up). I think that should work here, but the rise time may be a little different, so keep your eye on it. Here’s some more information that may be helpful. LMK how they turn out!
Thanks for the quick response, Jenn! I have made them twice now, once with the fresh yeast and once with the dry yeast we have here. Both turned out great! I don’t believe I could really detect much difference between them, but I will use the fresh yeast when I have it on hand. Great recipe, we loved the naan!
So glad!
A beloved staple in our home! I love making it for guests too. I’ve successfully doubled the recipe without any issues. I’ve never added the melted butter at the end, and it’s always tasted amazing! In addition to soups and curry, we enjoy this with some marinated grilled chicken. Very tasty and filling sandwiches!
Love this bread – it’s so easy and it is delicious. I’ve made it several times now, and made it a few different ways – with or without the anise, and I tried adding garlic and cilantro into the dough (that turned out delicious also). This is a wonderful recipe.
LOVED this recipe. Simple, delicious, and easy to follow!