Avocado Naan Bread

green colored naan stacked in a white cloth.

Avocado Naan - I swapped the oil in my garlic naan recipe for mashed avocado, which adds the prettiest hint of green while making the naan bread incredibly soft and fluffy. You might not go back to regular naan!

Course Dinner

Cuisine Indian

Keyword avocado naan, garlic naan, naan, naan bread

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Resting time 1 10

Total Time 1 40

Servings naan

Calories 207kcal

Author Maria Doss

Ingredients

1 teaspoon rapid-rise or instant yeast
1 teaspoon sugar, divided
¼ cup lukewarm water, refer to notes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons plain yogurt, at room temperature
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons mashed avocado, at room temperature (about 1 medium)
salted butter, for brushing

Instructions

Proof yeast. Add 1 teaspoon yeast and ½ teaspoon sugar to ¼ cup lukewarm water in a small cup and stir gently. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for about 10 minutes. (Lukewarm water is crucial for proofing-refer to notes for more details)
Combine dry ingredients. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, add 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder and the remaining ½ teaspoon sugar. Whisk together for a few seconds.
Knead the dough. After 10 minutes, add the proofed yeast mixture, ¼ cup + 2 tablespoon yogurt, and ¼ cup + 2 tablespoon mashed avocado to the dry ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together and is evenly moistened. Then knead for 1–2 minutes, until the dough is soft and fairly smooth. If it feels too sticky, add a little more flour as needed.
👉 The dough should be soft, but not so sticky that it’s hard to knead. If it feels too sticky, add 1-2 tablespoons of flour as needed. Don't add too much flour - Soft dough equals soft naans!
👉 Use room-temperature yogurt. Cold yogurt can slow down the dough’s rise. If your yogurt is cold, warm it briefly in the microwave for 8–12 seconds, stirring every 4 seconds.
Rise. Cover the dough with plastic wrap, then place a tea towel over it. Let it rise for one hour.
Roll into balls. Once the dough has risen, divide it into 8 pieces. Gently roll each piece into a roughly even ball—you don’t need to make them perfectly smooth. (Lightly dust your hands with flour if the dough feels sticky and starts to cling) Keep the remaining dough covered with a kitchen towel to prevent it from drying out.
Cook. Heat a large, heavy-bottomed pan (cast iron preferred) over medium-high heat. Take a piece of the dough and roll it on a lightly floured surface into a circle or oval shape (less than ⅛ inch thick). Keep the dough moving between rolling, so that it doesn’t stick to the counter.
Place the dough on the hot pan (make sure it’s hot to ensure good puffing) and cook until large bubbles have formed and the bottom is golden brown (about 2 to 3 minutes). Flip and cook 1-2 minutes more until the other side is golden brown as well. Maintain a medium-high heat!
Brush with butter. Transfer the hot naan to a pan lined with a kitchen towel. Brush with butter and keep the pan covered—this helps the naan stay soft and warm until serving time! Repeat with the remaining pieces. Refer to notes to make garlic butter avocado naan!
👉 Loosely drape the towel over the last naan or place a paper towel on top, then cover the pan until serving. This helps absorb steam and prevents condensation from dripping back down, keeping the naan soft without turning the first piece soggy.

Notes

Use lukewarm water: The foolproof method is to use a thermometer - aim for a reading between 105°F to 110°F (40°C to 43°C). An easier method is to place a few drops of water on the inside of your wrist or the back of your hand. The water should feel neither hot nor cold, and barely be warm to the touch. This method is similar to testing a baby's bottle temperature.

Garlic butter avocado naan: Start by making the garlic butter. Add 4–6 finely chopped garlic cloves and 3 tablespoons butter to a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring often, until the garlic is fragrant and lightly golden. Be careful not to let it brown.

Remove from the heat and stir in 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro and a pinch of salt if using unsalted butter. Set it aside, then brush the warm naan generously with the garlic butter as soon as they come off the pan.

To use Greek yogurt: Use ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt and 2 tablespoons of water (both at room temperature).

Cooking temperature: Cook naans over medium-high heat. Low heat takes too long to brown the naan and can make it turn out less soft. Whereas high heat will brown it much faster, before it cooks through.

Choice of pan: A cast-iron skillet is best since it holds heat well. If not, use any heavy-bottomed pan.

Rolling the dough: Roll the dough to just under ⅛-inch thickness—slightly thinner than a typical naan.

Nutrition