Sourdough naan is a delicious, soft, and chewy flatbread that's super easy to make with your unfed sourdough starter.
Mix the dough in the morning and enjoy fresh, homemade naan in the evening!
Serve with hummus, soups and stews, sandwiches, and even flatbread pizza.
Sourdough naan has got to be the easiest flatbread to make from scratch EVER! This recipe is so simple, anyone can make it. Even sourdough beginners.
Don't worry about turning on your oven because naan is cooked on the stovetop. That means you can make sourdough any time of the year without having to heat up the kitchen. Yay!
Just take a look at the sample schedule below to see how easy it is to make homemade sourdough naan!
Sample schedule
We test our recipes in a 68°F (20°C) kitchen. Warmer kitchens will need less time for the dough to double and colder kitchens will need more time.
- 8 AM: Mix dough, cover and let rest until doubled.
- 4 PM: Divide the dough and shape it into balls. Prepare the cast iron skillet.
- 4:30 PM: Cook the sourdough naan.
Ingredients needed
- All-purpose flour: All-purpose flour is what we use in this recipe but you can add some whole wheat flour if you are looking to get a little more nutrition in your flatbread. If you decide to use whole wheat flour in this recipe, just replace up to half of the all-purpose flour and make sure to adjust the water amount. You will need to add more water than called for, about 25-50g more.
- Unfed sourdough starter: Use your unfed sourdough starter right out of your fridge. There is no need to feed your starter for this recipe. However, you can use an active starter if that's what you have on hand.
- Yogurt: Choose from either plain dairy yogurt, greek yogurt, or plant-based yogurt.
- Milk: Choose from cow's milk or plain, unsweetened plant-based milk. We love using oat milk or soy milk.
- Olive oil: Or any neutral flavored oil of your choice. Avocado oil or coconut oil works great.
- Salt
Step-by-step instructions
This sourdough naan dough only takes a few minutes to put together. Mix it up in the morning and you'll be making sourdough naan to enjoy with dinner the same day!
Mix the ingredients together by hand, cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise at room temperature until doubled in size.
Turn the dough out onto your work surface and use a bench scraper to divide it into 8 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball and keep them covered with a kitchen towel to prevent the dough from drying out.
Preheat a cast iron skillet or a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Working with one dough ball at a time, use a rolling pin to roll it into a round shape with a â…›" thickness.
- Lay the rolled out piece of dough onto the hot skillet and allow it to cook for 1-2 minutes. Bubbles will start to form on the surface of the dough when it's ready to flip.
- Flip the dough over with a spatula and allow it to cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Flip the naan back over to the first side of the pan. The naan should start to expand and quickly become very puffy. Once the entire naan is full of air, remove it from the skillet and place it on a platter.
- Repeat these steps with the remaining dough.
Tips for Success
- If your starter is new, your dough may or may not double in size. That's ok! Go ahead and cook it anyway. The sourdough starter is used to ferment the dough making it easier for us to digest, not to make it rise. This is a very forgiving dough!
- If you'd like to cook the dough at a later date, after you divide and shape the dough balls, you may store them covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Bring the dough to room temperature before cooking for the best results.
- If you find the dough is sticky when you go to roll it out, use a little flour on the rolling pin and the work surface to prevent sticking.
- If the naan does NOT puff up during cooking, do not fret. This usually happens during the first one or two that go onto the skillet. Sometimes this happens if you roll the dough too thin or if the pan is not hot enough. The naan is still good to eat, I promise!
- A non-stick skillet can be used if you do not have a cast iron skillet. I recommend lightly spraying the non-stick surface with a little cooking spray before placing the dough in the skillet.
How to store and freeze
Store the sourdough naan at room temperature, in a plastic bag for up to 3 days. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
More easy sourdough recipes
Check out these other easy sourdough recipes!!
- sourdough butter crackers
- slow cooker sourdough bread
- sourdough tortillas
- sourdough english muffins
- sourdough pancakes
Sourdough Naan Flatbread
INGREDIENTS
- ½ cup (125 g) sourdough starter discard (unfed)
- 2 ½ cups (300 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (120 g) milk (dairy or plant based)
- ¼ cup (60 g) plain yogurt (dairy or plant based)
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) olive oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons (7 g) sea salt
INSTRUCTIONS
- Mix the dough: Mix the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the flour and salt to the bowl. Use your hands to incorporate the ingredients until they are well combined and there are no dry bits left in the bowl. The dough will be stiff. Cover the bowl with plastic and let rest at room temperature until doubled in size. In my 68°F ( 20°C) kitchen, it takes roughly 8 hours. Warmer kitchens will take less time, colder kitchens will take more time.
- Divide and shape: Turn the dough out onto your work surface and use a bench scraper to divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 78g each. Shape each piece into a ball and cover them with a kitchen towel. (At this stage the dough balls can be stored in a covered container, in the fridge for up to 3 days before cooking.)
- Preheat skillet: While the dough is resting, preheat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes. If you are worried about sticking, feel free to oil the skillet, but I find it's not necessary.
- Roll dough: Working with one ball of dough at a time, use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a round shape with a â…›" thickness. Use a little flour if necessary to prevent sticking. The dough rounds should be about 6" in diameter.
- Cook naan: Place the rolled dough into the skillet and cook for 2 minutes. Flip the naan over and cook on the second side for 1-2 minutes. Flip the naan one more time and watch for the dough to puff up with air. Once it is full, remove it from the skillet and repeat with the remaining dough. Serve hot or at room temperature.
NOTES
- Store the cooked naan at room temperature in a plastic bag for up to 3 days.
- If you store the dough in the fridge to cook later, allow the dough to come to room temperature before cooking for best results.
- Freeze the naan in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
Gina Ferraro says
Wondering if these could be made with active starter?? If not…. If I feed my starter to get the amount I need…. How long after it has been fed and doubled in size is it now qualified as unfed? Does that make sense? Like I have probably 30g of starter in my fridge. I could feed it to make 150g needed for the recipe… so how long after I feed it does it become unfed? Hope that makes sense. Thanks!!!
Amy says
Hi Gina, after the starter has risen and fallen back down in the jar it is ready to feed again, so it's considered "unfed" because it wouldn't have the strength to make bread rise.
Rosa says
This is THE best naan recipe! Made it last night for chicken shawarma wraps. They were soft and tasty, I wish it were a blanket!
Sydney A says
Hello! The recipe says unfed starter. I typically out my starter in the fridge when not in use. Does this mean I could take it from the fridge and use that discard? Will it still rise doing it that way?
Amy says
Yes that is correct.
Sharlene Briggs says
I made your Naan recipe to accompany an Indian dish I was making. Ohmygoodness, they were incredible! It was a lot of fun watching bread blow up and deflate. The pockets were such a wonderful surprise. The following night used leftovers to make pita sandwiches. I’ll be making these over and over again.
Natalie says
Such a great recipe!! I'm freezing the leftovers and wanted to see if you have a tried and true method for reheating without drying them out? Microwave, toaster oven, etc...
Thank you for sharing your talent with everyone!
Janice Thomas says
Great recipe! Just love the results, thank you.
Kathryn says
Hi Amy! Love the apron you wear in this sourdough naan flatbread video, sit up high and has pockets! If you can share a link, I'd be grateful.
Thanks - I'm getting addicted to all your wonderful recipes and tutorials!!
Kathryn
Jasmina Salo says
We have our new favorite flatbread. It was easy, delicious, and fun to cook, thanks
Debbie says
My starter was fed last night, can I still start this recipe (in the AM)?
Amy says
Yes you can.
Kennedy says
Such an easy recipe. I’ve tried several of your recipes in the last 2 weeks and each one has turned out beautifully. First sourdough bread to truly work so went from there on your website and I’m so glad I found you! Made these with our tried and true butter chicken recipe and it was all devoured. Never will I ever buy naan bread again. Healthy and fantastic recipe! Bravo!
Lia says
The best Naan recipe I have tried. The Naan dough was so easy to make and cook. I made the dough the day before, let it double, rolled into balls then let the dough rest in the fridge until the next day. I let them come to room temp, rolled them out and cooked the Naans in a hot pan. They puffed up beautifully and tasted great. The Naan breads were a big hit for Curry night family dinner