Soft and Fluffy Gluten Free Naan: The Perfect Bread for Your Indian Feast

This delicious gluten free naan is fluffy with the right amount of chewiness. It is an easy-to-make recipe and it is perfect for dipping into your favorite Indian foods! All you need are a few simple ingredients!

If you have missed naan bread since going gluten free, I am really excited to share my new gluten free naan recipe with you! I tested my recipe with two gluten free flour blends so you have some choices in which to use. Each blend needed some specific tweaks, and we will talk about those so you have success with this recipe.

This gluten free naan can be made dairy free, and one of the flour blends I tested is gum free so you can make naan without xanthan gum if you prefer.

If you love to make bread, I have a lot of easy gluten free bread recipes to try!

What is Naan and What Do You Eat With Naan?

Naan is a popular flatbread from India that's often served with a variety of dishes. In many cases, Indian food is gluten free, but unfortunately, the naan you find in Indian restaurants is not gluten free. This is why I am so excited about my homemade gluten free naan recipe.

Popular recipes to serve with naan:

1. Curry: Naan is often served with a variety of curries, such as Chicken Tikka Masala, Butter Chicken, and vindaloo.
2. Kebabs: Grilled kebabs, such as chicken tikka or seekh kebab, pair well with naan.
3. Dips and spreads: Naan is great for dipping into sauces and spreads, such as hummus, baba ganoush, roasted eggplant dip, or tzatziki.
4. Stews and soups: Naan is a great accompaniment to hearty stews and soups, such as lentil soup or beef stew.
5. Chana masala: Chana masala, a popular Indian dish made with chickpeas, is often served with naan.
6. Biryanis: Biryanis, a type of Indian rice dish, are often served with naan.
7. Vegetable dishes: Vegetable dishes, such as Instant Pot Saag Paneer, aloo gobi, or baingan bharta, are often served with naan.

Why This Recipe Is Great:

1. This is the best gluten free naan recipe. You can enjoy it plain with just the melted butter, or add some garlic for extra flavor! This will quickly become one of your favorite recipes!
2. I tested this recipe with two gluten free flour blends.
3. This gf naan freezes easily so you can make a big batch, then enjoy it any time. Just thaw it in your microwave oven.
4. Naan is traditionally dipped in Indian food, but I tried dipping it in my gluten free pasta sauce, and it was incredible.
5. You can use this naan as a pizza crust for flatbread pizza!

These are just a few examples of popular dishes to serve with naan. Experiment with different recipes to find the combinations that work best for you.

Ingredient Notes:

• Gluten Free Flour - I tested this recipe with my DIY Gluten Free Flour Blend (gum-free) and Cup4Cup. I haven't tested other blends, but it is important to read the bag of your blend to ensure it works with yeast. Many flour blends don't. See Gluten Free Flour Blend and Comparison below for detailed information about these blends.
• Yeast - Most yeast is gluten free, but Red Star Platinum is NOT gluten free! I used Fleischman's Rapid Yeast to make this naan.
• Yogurt - I used plain Greek Yogurt in my recipe. Plain dairy-free yogurt also works.
• Butter - Use salted or unsalted.
• Egg - Use size large.
• Sugar - I used just a tiny bit to help activate the yeast. Honey will also work.
• Salt - Feel free to use kosher or sea salt.
• Water - When using yeast, I usually recommend using filtered water. I find chlorine affects yeast growth negatively in bread recipes.

Tips For Success:

• Go with your gut. If your dough is sticky, sprinkle more of your gluten free flour blend to make it easier to roll. Every gluten free flour blend is different and has different starch to grain levels, so needing to adjust is normal.
• You can make this gluten free naan dough and refrigerate it overnight if you prefer.
• I love using my cast iron pan to cook my naan because it evenly disperses the heat. Some pans do not disperse heat well and it will affect how your naan cooks.

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How To Make Gluten Free Naan:

Step 1: Add the gluten free flour, salt, and rapid yeast to a large mixing bowl. Use a whisk to blend them together.

Step 2: In a smaller bowl, add the melted butter, water, yogurt, and egg. Whisk to blend.

Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. See the FAQ for more details.

Step 4: Mix the wet and dry ingredients into the dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and rise the dough for 45 minutes.

I rise my dough in a warm oven, especially in the colder months. I preheat the oven to 200º F, then turn the oven off. I put the bowl into the oven.

Step 5: Remove the plastic wrap and evaluate your dough. If your dough is really sticky, add more flour. With Cup4Cup I had to add a lot more flour so that it wasn't too sticky to work with.

Step 6: Break off a piece of dough and place it on a silicone mat. (You can dust it with flour if needed.)

Step 7: Roll the gluten free naan dough. I made mine ¼ inch thick, but you can make yours thicker if you prefer.

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Step 8: Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Drop the rolled dough onto the skillet and cook for a few minutes. Flip the dough over. Adjust the stove temperature hotter if needed to get the charred bubble bumps.

Step 9: Melt some butter in a small microwave-safe dish. Add optional minced garlic. Use a pastry brush to brush butter over the naan, then sprinkle a little salt over the tops. Everyone will love this delicious gluten free naan! It has the same texture and flavor!

For best results, serve warm!

Gluten Free Flour Blend Comparison and Notes:

These are side-by-side comparisons of the two gluten free flour blends I tested. The plate on the right is made with Cup4Cup, and the plate on the right is made with my DIY Gluten Free Flour Blend.

Both blends yielded tender, fluffy soft naan that was full of flavor. The main difference seemed to be in the quantity of flour needed in the recipe. 2 ½ cups of my gluten free flour blend weighed 406.2 grams and the same amount of Cup4Cup weighed 343.4 grams! That is a big weight difference!

• Cup4Cup - The texture is light and fluffy. This naan is a little more golden, and I think it is because the Cup4Cup has dried milk powder in the blend. This blend was a lot stickier to work with and I had to add almost half a cup of additional flour. Because of this, I reduced the total water amount by ¼ cup. You will need to dust the silicone mat and rolling pin in flour when making gluten free naan with Cup4Cup flour.
• My DIY Flour Blend - My blend needed a lot more water than the Cup4Cup, and I think this is due to the fact it had less starch, so it uses psyllium husk instead of xanthan gum. From a cost perspective, this made it more economical to use this blend because you need less flour. I also did not have to dust my silicone mat when using this blend.

Recipe FAQ:

More Gluten Free Bread Recipes:

• Gluten Free Garlic Knots
• Gluten Free Bread Machine Bread Recipe
• Easy Gluten Free Bagels
• Gluten Free Sourdough Bread (sandwich loaf style)

📖 Recipe

Easy Gluten Free Naan

Sandi Gaertner

This gluten free naan has the perfect soft chewy inside and a crisp buttery outside. It is perfect for dipping in Indian sauces.

5 from 8 votes

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Prep Time 10 mins

Rise Time 45 mins

Total Time 55 mins

Course Gluten Free Bread Recipe

Cuisine American

Servings 12 pieces

Calories 146 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 ¼-2 ½ cups gluten free flour blend See notes!
• ▢ 2 ½ teaspoons rapid yeast Do not use Red Star Platinum.
• ▢ 1 teaspoon sugar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¾ to 1 cup water purified, see notes!
• ▢ ½ cup plain yogurt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons melted butter
• ▢ 1 large egg

Topping

• ▢ 3 tablespoons melted butter
• ▢ dash salt

Instructions

 

• Add the gluten free flour, salt, and rapid yeast to a large mixing bowl. Use a whisk to blend them together.
• In a smaller bowl, add the melted butter, water, yogurt, and egg. Whisk to blend.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix the wet and dry ingredients into the dough.
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and rise the dough for 45 minutes. I rise my dough in a warm oven, especially in the colder months. I preheat the oven to 200º F, then turn the oven off. I put the bowl into the oven.
• Remove the plastic wrap and evaluate your dough. If your dough is really sticky, add more flour. With Cup4Cup I had to add a lot more flour so that it wasn't too sticky to work with.
• Break off a piece of dough and place it on a silicone mat. (You can dust it with flour if needed.)
•  Roll the gluten free naan dough. I made mine ¼ inch thick, but you can make yours thicker if you prefer.
• Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Drop the rolled dough onto the skillet and cook for a few minutes. Flip the dough over. Adjust the stove temperature hotter if needed to get the charred bubble bumps.
• Melt some butter in a small microwave-safe dish. Add optional minced garlic. Use a pastry brush to brush butter over the naan, then sprinkle a little salt over the tops. Everyone will love this delicious gluten free naan! It has the same texture and flavor!
• Serve warm!

Notes

1. I tested this recipe with Cup4Cup and my homemade gluten free flour blend. See below for important notes on each.
2. I recommend purified water in yeast recipes. Chlorine in tap water can inhibit yeast growth.
3. For my DIY GF Flour Blend, start with 2 ¼ cups of flour, and expect you may need more water.
4. Cup4Cup - start with ¾ cup of water and expect to add more flour. My gluten free flour blend - start with 1 cup of water and plan to add more water.
5. Be sure to use plain yogurt.
6. To make this recipe dairy-free, use vegan yogurt and butter.
7. Store cooked naan in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze it in freezer bags.

 

Gluten Free Flour Blend Notes:

I tested my gluten free naan recipe with two different gluten free flour blends. 

• • Cup4Cup - The texture is light and fluffy. This naan is a little more golden, and I think it is because the Cup4Cup has dried milk powder in the blend. This blend was a lot stickier to work with and I had to add almost half a cup of additional flour. Because of this, I reduced the total water amount by ¼ cup. You will need to dust the silicone mat and rolling pin in flour when making gluten free naan with Cup4Cup flour.

• • My DIY Flour Blend - My blend needed a lot more water than the Cup4Cup, and I think this is due to the fact it had less starch, so it uses psyllium husk instead of xanthan gum. From a cost perspective, this made it more economical to use this blend because you need less flour. I also did not have to dust my silicone mat when using this blend.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1pieceCalories: 146kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 4gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 28mgSodium: 146mgPotassium: 46mgFiber: 3gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 176IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 1mg

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Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.

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