Makes 12 Pieces

Ingredients

For the Raita

3 cups yogurt
½ cup grated or finely chopped cucumber
¾ white onion, chopped very fine
1 t cumin
1 t cayenne pepper
1 t salt
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 bunch of finely chopped cilantro
Pepper to taste

For the Naan

1 ½ cup water, warm
2 teaspoons yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons oil
1 ½ cup yogurt
4 cup all purpose flour
2 T garlic
¼ cup ghee or butter, to brush on top after cooking
Plenty of extra flour for dusting

Special Equipment

Large mortar and pestle, preferably granite
Mandoline (or box grater or food processor with shredder attachment)
Chinois or fine mesh strainer
Mixing bowls
Citrus juicer

Instructions

For the Raita

Combine all ingredients, and chill for at least a half hour before using. You can add more spices to taste, if the mixture is not spicy enough.

For the Naan

Put your warm water in a bowl and mix in the yeast and sugar and let this rest for 5 minutes. Now add the yogurt, salt and oil to the liquid and mix. Put your flour in a large bowl and add your liquid mixture to it. Mix this dough until it just comes together. This is not meant to be kneaded in the same way you would knead pizza dough. It should be very wet and sticky. Once it is combined, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rest for at least 30 minutes and as long as a few hours. After it has rested, flour your hands and gather up the dough, divide it into 12 portions, dust each ball with more flour, cover them with a damp towel and let it rest on a floured work station for a few minutes. With well floured hands, flatten and stretch each ball of dough so they are nice and thin.

Optionally, you may chose to mix any of the garnish ingredients into each dough ball before cooking.
Cook ghee with chopped garlic or herbs for brushing on naan after cooking.

To Cook the Dough

You have two options to cook this dough:

Version 1:
Preheat the broiler in your oven to 500°.
Under your broiler (or heat source), lay the dough on a cookie sheet. Cook for 2-3 minutes under the heat source, flip and cook the other side for 30 seconds.

Version 2:
Over an open flame! Stretch the dough over a wire rack (cooling rack) and hold over an open flame until browned on each side.

When they are finished cooking, brush some butter or ghee on each flatbread and serve with the raita.

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