Whole Wheat Garlic Naan

Homemade Whole Wheat Garlic Naan is pillowy soft, warm, and buttery Indian flatbread. This bread tastes so flavorful and is covered with some melted butter, garlic, cilantro, and nigella seeds. The naan bread tastes so delicious, easy to make, and stays soft for a long time.

Traditionally, naan is made with all purpose flour and cooked in a tandoor (clay stove) on a charcoal. Make this whole wheat garlic naan bread on a stovetop with ease without feeling intimidated. 

It is one of the most popular types of bread which you can find in Indian restaurants. In these restaurants, all purpose flour is used for making soft and fluffy bread. Make this bread at home by using more of the whole wheat flour and lesser all purpose flour for the best results. 

I have tested the recipe with different ratios of ingredients for making the best tasting whole wheat garlic naan. I have finally found the perfect ratio for this recipe and it tastes so wonderful every time I make the garlic naan at home. 

If you want to make this whole wheat garlic naan in a lighter color then add equal amounts of wheat and all purpose flour in the recipe. I have added some finely chopped garlic before roasting the naan – you can add some in the dough or make some garlic butter for brushing. 

What Is Naan Bread? 

Naan is an Indian or middle eastern flatbread, mostly eaten with dal or curry. It can usually be found in Indian restaurants. 

It is a leaven bread made with yeast, sugar, water, and salt to make them soft and fluffy. 

Traditionally, naan is cooked in a tandoor or clay stove but you can easily make this bread on a cast iron skillet with the best results. 

Naan is a very versatile bread which you can enjoy with some Indian curries, dals, or raitas. Use the bread as a pizza base for making delicious tasting pizza. 

Ingredients

For dough:

• Whole wheat flour
• All purpose flour
• Active dry yeast
• Milk
• Yogurt
• Oil
• Sugar
• Salt

For Garnishing:

• Garlic
• Cilantro
• Nigella seeds
• Melted butter 

Whole Wheat Garlic Naan Step By Step Recipe

Activating The Yeast

In a small bowl, add warm milk (about 105℉), sugar, and active dry yeast. Mix and cover it. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes and allow the yeast to bloom. 

Making The Dough 

In a large mixing bowl, add wheat flour, white flour, and salt. Mix everything well. Make a well, add the yeast mixture to the flour, and some yogurt. Combine everything well.

Kneading The Dough 

Start kneading the dough with your hands and add 1⁄3 cup or more water as needed to form a soft dough. Next, add some oil and keep kneading the dough. 

Knead the dough by pushing with the base of your palm and bring the dough back to you to reform into a ball. Keep kneading the dough for about 8 – 10 minutes or until the dough feels stretchy, soft, and pillowy. It should have a stretchy and smooth exterior. 

Proofing The Dough

Grease some oil to the base of your bowl, place the dough, and spread some oil on the top of the dough. Cover it with a kitchen towel. Allow the dough to proof in a warm place for about 2 hours or until it rises to double in size. In colder temperatures, you can keep the bowl covered in an oven by keeping the light on, which will help the dough rise faster. 

Shaping The Bread

Lightly punch the dough down with your fist and transfer it to your clean countertop or wooden chakla. Lightly knead the dough for 30 seconds. 

Divide the dough into 12 equal parts with the help of a sharp knife or a dough cutter. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel. 

Take 1 part of the dough and form into a smooth ball. Spread a drop of oil or dust some flour to the working surface and start rolling the ball into a oblong or oval shape about ⅛ inch thick with a rolling pin.   

Sprinkle some chopped garlic, cilantro, and nigella seeds on top of a naan. Gently press the toppings with a rolling pin. 

Roasting The Bread

Heat a cast iron or heavy griddle over medium heat. Transfer the naan (topping side up) on a preheated skillet and cover it with a lid until you will see bubbles for about 1 to 1.5 minutes. 

Remove the lid and lift the naan bread with the help of tongs. Place the topping side facing down directly over the stovetop on medium low heat. I like to use a wire roaster rack and cook the naan for 1 minute or until you will find brown spots on them. 

Brush some melted butter on top of the roasted naan and serve. 

Tips For Making Whole Wheat Garlic Naan 

• Activate the active dry yeast before proceeding to the next steps. If the yeast is not active do not proceed. 
• While making the dough, add sufficient water to make it soft. It should have enough moisture to keep the naan bread soft for a long time.
• Roasting the naan directly on the stovetop gives an amazing taste to the bread but you can roast both sides over the cast iron skillet. 

Variations

• You can make the whole wheat garlic naan by adding equal amounts of both the flours in the recipe. 
• Use water in the recipe instead of milk but do not skip adding yogurt in the dough. Milk makes the naan bread soft, you may skip water and add warm milk while kneading the dough. 
• If you add an equal amount of flours then you will need to add some less water in the recipe.
• Knead the dough in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer attaching a dough hook. 
• You can completely skip adding toppings on the naan and make plain whole wheat garlic naan. 
• Add some black sesame seeds instead of nigella seeds as a topping. 
• You can finely shred some garlic cloves or some garlic powder and add them while kneading the dough for more galicky flavors in the naan bread. 
• Heat some butter in the pan or microwave safe bowl, add some crushed garlic pieces, and let them sit in the butter overnight to make some garlic butter. Melt the butter once the naan is ready and apply it before serving. 

Can You Make The Dough In Advance?

Absolutely! Knead the dough and cover it overnight in the refrigerator. The next day, take the dough out, let it sit in a warm place for 1 hour and start making the naan bread. 

How To Store Whole Wheat Garlic Naan?

Homemade naan bread doesn’t have preservatives so it cannot be stored at room temperature for more than 2 days. 

Store the garlic naan in a plastic bag or in an airtight container once cooled down completely for 3 days at room temperature. 

You can store it in a plastic bag or an airtight container for 8 days in a refrigerator.

It can be stored in a freezer for 2 months in a freezer safe bag. Take it out on the countertop for 30 minutes and warm them a little in the oven just before serving.

How To Serve Whole Wheat Garlic Naan?

Enjoy the warm whole wheat garlic naan with any kind of dal like green peas split dal, spinach dal, dal tadka, or dal fry. 

Naan bread tastes so amazing with any paneer curry like kadai paneer, paneer tikka masala, palak paneer, mutter paneer, paneer jalfrezi, or malai kofta. 

Garlic naan tastes so wonderful with chana masala, chole, zucchini kofta, veg kolhapuri, arbi masala, black eyed peas curry, dum aloo, kadhi pakoda, and many more. 

You can reheat the leftover naan bread in the oven while serving. Preheat the oven to to 350℉/175℃ and warm the whole wheat garlic naan for 2-3 minutes and serve. 

Place the leftover naan on a plate, place a damp napkin over the bread, and heat in the microwave for 20-30 seconds before serving. 

Spread some pizza sauce or basil pesto sauce over the whole wheat garlic naan. Next, add your your favorite cheese, toppings, and bake in the oven to 375℉/180℃ for 10 minutes to make some pizza. 

Toast the naan bread in the toaster oven or griddle, spread your favorite chutney and sauce, add some marinated cooked veggies and paneer, and serve as a paneer kathi roll.

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