Sunday, April 4, 2010

a challenge

Since my cute cousin Eliza decided to challenge me to make some naan, I thought I'd better follow through.  And since I had leftovers from a huge pot of curry I made, there was no better time than today to try.

Naan is a special item for me.  When we were kids, my parents took us to this incredible Indian restaurant in Tokyo called Moti.  And I may have mentioned earlier on this blog that the owner's son went to the same school as my brother, so his mom taught my mom how to make their signature butter chicken curry.  And it became a family staple.  But one thing we never recreated was the naan.  It was this special Moti treat for me, and I seriously think I would eat several pieces whenever we went.  Indian curry is just better with naan.  Somehow chewy and crispy at the same time, smothered in ghee.  Love the stuff.  I know the method they're made is so unique to naan that I just never thought you could make it at home.  Not the way it should taste, anyway.  But boy, thanks to this book that I can't stop talking about, I made naan.  And not that store bought, dry, dense stuff.  No, no.  It was chewy and puffy in some parts and charred and crispy in others.  Perfectly how naan is supposed to be.  I even made some clarified butter, which was a little labor-intensive, but it made it perfect.  And the whole thing was so easy!  I don't think I can go back to naan-less Indian curry again.
you can find the recipe here.

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