Chances are, when you hear “naan,” you think of plain naan. But what if I told you there are many variations of naan—ranging from flavored naans to stuffed naans? Today, I’m sharing a recipe for aloo and paneer stuffed gluten-free naan. It is super soft and tender. If you’ve never tried stuffed naan before, you’ll be surprised at how simple and effortless it is to make at home. Be sure to watch the process video for the stuffed naan on my YouTube channel.
Stuffed naan is often served at Indian wedding parties as an appetizer and in last few decades it has also been on the menu of some Indian restaurants. The most common Naan filling is spinach and paneer, with the occasional addition of potatoes or cheese, but you can pretty much do whatever you want. I’ve filled the naans with potato and paneer mixture, and some mixed cheese. If the thought of stuffing gluten free naan intimidates you, don’t be. It is in fact easier than making plain naan in the oven. My recipe produces perfectly supple and pliable gluten free stuffed naan with a simple trick. Have fun!
Making stuffed naan is a four stage process
- Make the dough
- Prepare the filling
- Divide and Roll
- Cook
The recipe starts with making naan dough. You mix the flour with water, yeast, salt, ajwain (optional), and yogurt. The addition of yogurt brings tenderness and ajwain gives the dough more flavor. Once you have mixed the dough, it needs to rest for about 2 hours at a warm draft place. Check my naan post how I do. While the dough is resting, you prepare the filling.
For the filling, I went with ginger, green onion that are sautéed for a minute. Next, we add grated potatoes, paneer, and finally, aromatic spices like cumin powder, crushed chili, and cilantro.
To roll naan, divide the dough into small balls and flatten it into rounds on a flour dusted surface. I generally shape naan on a piece of parchment spread over the surface, or on a silicone mat. You can get away with less flour that way.
Add some mixed cheese in the center of a patted dough, then place a portion of the filling mixture, sprinkle some more mixed cheese. Using, potatoes, paneer and mixed cheese give a bit of a different texture in comparison to just using cheese alone. But it is an optional ingredient so you don’t have to use it. Fold the edges over the filling, trying to leave as little air as possible. You can see what it looks like in the picture below.
Next, you flatten the ball again with your hands to prevent the filling to escape. I recommend using the rolling pin just in the end to even out the naan. Keep the naans covered under a moist cloth to keep them from drying.
Cook Naan
Once you have rolled the naans, heat a cast iron skillet. When it is hot, place the naan in it. After about 20-30 seconds, when it sets a bit, sprinkle water on the sides and cover the skillet. This simple trick creates steam, which helps the naan cook up softer. Once the bottom is golden brown, flip the naan and cover again. Cook the naan covered for a minute or two on each side. Store cooked naan in a sealed container lined with kitchen cloth.
If you are eating them right away, you can brush each naan with softened butter and sprinkle with cilantro. If they are not to be used right away and you want to keep them softened, keep them in a container.
This recipe below is for 4 stuffed naans, you can easily double it.
You could enjoy this stuffed naan on its own. Simply slice it as if it were a pizza and serve as an appetizer or as part of main course with other sides. The awesome thing is that these stuffed naan are especially good for freezing. All you have to do is reheat in oven or air fry them before serving. They will taste almost as good as freshly cooked. Handheld food like this is perfect for parties and pairs super well with dips.
I hope you enjoy this Gluten Free Stuffed Naan recipe and consider subscribing to my blog simpleglutenfreekitchen for more amazing recipes in the future, and spread your love for food by sharing this post everywhere. If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram so I can see it! I also try to post videos every week so make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel if you haven’t already.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup Gf all-purpose flour (Used GF bob's red mill 1 for 1 baking flour)
- 2 tbsp unflavored homemade yogurt
- 3/4 tsp quick rise yeast
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tbsp oil
- 1/3 cup warm water plus more
- Add 1/2 tsp ajwain
- 2-3 medium size potatoes (boiled, peeled, and grated, about 1 cup)
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 cup shredded paneer
- 1 tsp heaped grated ginger
- 1 tbsp heaped green onion, chopped
- less than 1 tsp salt
- 2 green chilies, chopped
- 1/2 tsp crushed red chilies
- 1/2 tsp (+) cumin powder
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup more shredded mixed cheese
- 2 tbsp soft or melted butter
- 1 heaped tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)
- *No need to be super precise in the filling ingredients
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl stir flour, yeast, ajwain, and salt.
- In a small bowl place yogurt. Add hot water (about 115-120 deg F.). Mix in olive oil.
- Make a well in the center of the flour and stir in the liquid ingredients.
- Slowly mix the dough by working from the center and incorporating the flour from the edges of the well to make a soft sticky dough.
- Grease the dough with oil, cover, and set aside in a preheated oven, until proofed about 1 hour.
- When the dough is ready take it out and preheat the oven to maximum temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- Heat oil in a pan.
- Sauté ginger and green onion. Add grated potato, salt, green chilies, red crushed chilies, cumin powder. Mix and cook for a minute.
- Turn off heat and add paneer and cilantro. Divide the mixture in 4 parts. Leave to cool.
- Split the dough into four equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball using your palm. Cover them with a damp kitchen cloth to keep them moist.
- Dust your baking mat with flour. Place one dough ball in the center of the mat and flatten it with your hand to form a 5-inch round.
- Add a little mixed cheese in the center, followed by the potato paneer filling. Sprinkle more mixed cheese on top.
- Bring the edges of the dough over the filling and pinch them together to seal it, forming a ball again.
- Carefully flatten the sealed ball using your hands, taking care not to break it. Shape it into a circle. Use a rolling pin in the end to roll it out evenly to a thickness of about 1.5 cm.
- Place the rolled naan on a tray lined with parchment paper or a Silpat. Cover it with a damp cloth. (If making more than four naan, stack them with parchment paper in between, covered with a slightly damp cotton towel.)
- Repeat the process with remaining dough.
- Preheat a cast iron or non-stick griddle or pan over medium heat.
- Place the rolled stuffed naan on the hot griddle.
- After 20-30 seconds, sprinkle a little water around the edges to create steam.
- Cover the griddle and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until you see brown spots on the bottom.
- Flip the naan over and cook by covering the griddle until the second side has brown patches.
- Transfer the cooked naan to a container and keep it warm under a dry towel.
- Continue the process until all the naans are cooked.
- Brush the warm naan with melted butter and sprinkle with chopped cilantro before serving.
Bringing this stuffed gluten free naan to Angie’s Linky party at Fiesta Friday.
angiesrecipes
They look absolutely amazing!
Tandy | Lavender and Lime
I love stuffed naan and the idea of aloo works for me! I am not a huge fan of paneer so I would sub that out 🙂