Curry Recipes Online
Curry Photos & Videos => Pictures of Your Curries => Topic started by: Mark J on January 07, 2006, 11:57 AM
-
Just got my tava (got it from the ebay shop you recommended darth)
Pete, what recipe do you use for nans in your tandoor?
-
And here it is!
Its slightly curved, not quite flat
-
I have the same exact tawa and it has turned black after 2 uses - perhaps it is supposed to?? Have not had as much success with it as I had hoped.....I am going to pick up a non-stick tawa from India next month - they have some nice ones now.
Payal
-
paast10, I have a non-stick one but you'd be better off with the one you have. Try heating it up on a high flame, add 2 tbl oil and spread around with kitchen towel until it smokes. This seals and seasons the metal making it effectively non stick - very siimilar to the way you keep and treat a wok. If storing for a while, keep it seasoned with oil to prevent it rusting.
-
I have a cast iron one which I have had for about 20 years. Never had any problems with it and it makes great chapatis. One minute cooking on one side and then about another 30 to 45 seconds on the other. I have never used it to make anything else though.
-
So do you mean it is supposed to turn black? I did try to season it like I do with a wok but when it smoked, it all turned black. I then scoured it all off until it became shiny again ::) Perhaps I wasnt to do that?
-
I first of all washed it front and back with warm soapy water, then I put it straight on a big gas burner and burnt all the coating off, the I wiped oil all over it.
Ive just used it and I made a right hash of the nan (could get it big round and flat and onto the tava all in one go) so I ended up with a big thick nan, however it tasted good and BIR like so next time I will make sure I roll out the nan on a floured surface first and get it ready.
There's certainly no problem cooking the back of the nan thats on the tava, it was very well done
-
How did you cook the nan? In the stove or in the grill oven?
-
So do you mean it is supposed to turn black? I did try to season it like I do with a wok but when it smoked, it all turned black. I then scoured it all off until it became shiny again ::) Perhaps I wasnt to do that?
Yes, it turns black. That's normal.
-
I put the tava on my gas hob until the oil layer on it ws smoking and then slapped the nan on it and then slapped it under a pre heated grill.
I used rays madhur jaffrey recipe
-
I use a Tava type on a built-in Jenn-air gas range ( similar to a wok )....it is quite thick and after seasoning it does turn black . Never wash it.....just wipe with paper towel .
CC
-
I have a cast iron one which makes great chapatis.? One minute cooking on one side and then about another 30 to 45 seconds on the other.
Hi CQ,
At one of my local BIRs they cook the chappati like you do on one side then they turn it over onto a direct gas flame. It puffs up in a few seconds and is done. I do this myself at home with care.
It takes a bit of time to learn the trick and not burn the house down but seems to keep the bread a bit more moist and fluffy than with more prolonged cooking on the Tava. I have never used that technique on Naan breads though.
Some asian shops sell a large flat round mesh spoon type of thing to hold the chappati over the flame.
Ray
-
Had another go with the left over dough and it was a roaring sucess, perfect.
I rolled it out this time before trying to pop it on the tava
-
Mark
Your bread looks superb! Does it taste as good as it looks, like at a BIR?
Regards
George
-
Gosh Mark,
That is ace to say the least.
I am going to try that one myself. I also use the Madhur Jaffrey recipe but oven cook it at the highest temperature for about 3-4 minutes. However your attempt looks better and more authentic to the BIR.
Can't wait to give it a go.
Did you make the recipe as written or have you altered it at all?
Ray
-
Hi Folks, indeed they tasted very good and like a bir apart from I floured my hands and surface to roll them out so they had a dusting of flour on them and I didnt baste it in ghee (I've only eaten a bit of it and have frozen the rest).
The recipe was exactly as you said ray apart from I added a heaped TSP of kalonji. I did the dough in my bread maker.
I got the tava really hot and then slapped the nan on it and slapped it under the grill, it started to bubble immediately, in the picture the grill doesnt look that hot but it was.
If I was to make the recipe again I would reduce the amount of milk in it to 50ml because I think there was slightly too much liquid in it which I guess is down to all sorts of thinks like the flour I used etc. This is the recipe I used : http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/curry/index.php?topic=661.msg6183#msg6183
Do you folks know how I can manipulate the dough and roll it out without having to flour my hands, rolling pin and surface? When Ive seen tandoor chefs make nan they get their hands wet and they spin it between 2 hands, I tried this for my first attempt and guess I need more practice as it started to resemble scrambled egg! ;D
-
Wow, the pics look great! I will try the nan tomorrow using the Madhur Jaffrey recipe, egg and all, to see what happens. Can't wait to try it out. By the way, I went to a large Sainsbury's yesterday and saw Nan mix by an indian brand - forget which one - in the flour aisle.
-
Hi Ray,
Been there and done it! My husband prefers them so that they are chewy still. Its all down to preference. I prefer naans myself with loads of garlic and coriander on top.
-
I did the dough in my bread maker.
Hi Mark,
I use my bread maker for the same reason. Since using it as the lazy way to knead the dough I have found it produces very light fluffy Naan bread, it must be the air it gets in it. It is also easy to adjust the mix with liquid if you need to without having to handle a sticky mess. Breadmakers make great dough for Pizza bases too.
Good luck with your attempt tommorow Payal, it is a very good recipe and worth a try.
Ray
-
Hi Ray , i made my first Nan Bread with a Bread maker :D
-
Hi Darth,
Do you find it gave you a better result than kneading it by hand.
I know it's a lazy way and not too politically correct but for me it works really well.
What recipe did you use and what result did you get?
Regards
Ray
-
Its the only way Ive ever done it ;D.
By the time Ive cooked a 15 Onion base I'm damned if i can be arsed to kneed anything by hand after all that chopping. ;D
-
Yep, I know just what you mean. Being a 15 onion chopper must be a toil!
I can imagine once you have sliced all those Onions you have to keep pulling your dark lords helmet off to wipe those tearful eyes!
What we have to do do for a decent meal!
Ray
-
No I've got a special Dark lords Curry making life support suit ,Deluxe helmet with Onion guards & chilli proof gauntlets ;D.
Failing that i can use the Force & get some weaker minded sole to chop all me veg.. ;D
-
Nice Thinking, I might try that one!
Ray
-
Looks great Mark!
Has anyone had any sucess with pizza stones? Im tempted to buy one as Ii lose so much heat as soon as the oven door is opened.
Bread making machines and dough mixers are excellent way to make dough for nan bread, otherwise the dough needs to be slightly drier if you kneed it by hand. A good tip ive learnt is to use fresh yeast and cold water, this gives a slightly delayed start to dough and the longer the dough rests before it starts to yeast, the better the results, Ive heard of alot of bakers who use this technique as it improves flavour, but they add slighly more sugar to sustain the yeast if the dough needs to rest over night.
Also has anyone used an indian rollingpin(I presume they are Indian)? Ive seen these sold in Indian shops, they look like thin rounded sticks, id imagine this helps you roll out dough which is slightly stickier without the dough riding up the pin.
-
Mark,
how thin were you rolling out the nans?? It will give me an ida of how thin to roll it out...also, how many nan did the recipe make? I may have to half it since i dont want to freeze anything as I will be traveling alot in the coming days.
Also has anyone used an indian rollingpin(I presume they are Indian)? Ive seen these sold in Indian shops, they look like thin rounded sticks, id imagine this helps you roll out dough which is slightly stickier without the dough riding up the pin.
I was told the thinner rolling pins are supposed to be used to roll out the rotis very thin....all my relatives use them and it looks like it is a bit more difficult to roll with it....it will take practice.?
-
Also has anyone used an indian rollingpin(I presume they are Indian)? Ive seen these sold in Indian shops, they look like thin rounded sticks, id imagine this helps you roll out dough which is slightly stickier without the dough riding up the pin.
Never used one but will look out for one to buy as they are probably very cheap. I would think you are right about their use with tickier dough.
They use these thin rolling pins a lot in Turkey where the ladies make bread ( called Gozlem ) beside the road, fill them with cheese and herbs and cook on a domed hot plate called a Plancher ( I think ). The bread is rolled very thin and folded in half with the filling before being cooked.
Ray
-
Ray, I have seen those thin rolling pins for less than a pound in indian stores.
-
I made the dough for the nan just now.....made it by hand. The 225 grams wasnt too much so I made the entire batch and put a small amount of kalonji seeds in it - figured it may help mask some egg taste if there is any! I had to add a bit more dough as it was too sticky with the given measurements. I will post on the final results tonite.
-
Mark,
how thin were you rolling out the nans?? It will give me an ida of how thin to roll it out...also, how many nan did the recipe make?? I may have to half it since i dont want to freeze anything as I will be traveling alot in the coming days.
Hi Paast,
I rolled them out to about 1/8 of an inch, maybe slightly thicker, it made 2 large nans (each big enough for 2 to share quite happily)
-
Thanks Mark.....will try that tonite.
Payal
-
I jjst made a sample mini nan for myself and WOW :o!!!! It tastes like real nan!!!! No eggy aftertaste!! I think that is because of the yeast - the last recipe I tried, from the balti videos, used baking powder but no yeast.
The nan came out a bit too done on the bottom - it cooked a bit in the grill oven too so it doesnt need to be cooked so long on the stove top. The whole thing puffed up.....i think to avoid that, i have to make it different thicknesses - I used a rolling pin and the edges were thicker but the center was the same thickness.
Now, to avoid using flour, use oil!!! I dropped 1 drop of oil on both sides of the dough ball and then rolled it out using just that! no flour at all and it worked great!!
The hint of kalonji is great and I wil make some garlic butter to smear on top after it comes out of the oven.
What an amazing technique!! I highly highly recommend this method using a tawa and the grill oven.
Thanks Mark J!!!
Payal
-
Ah yes, actually now you mention it Im sure its oil I have seen tandoor chefs coat their hands in
-
Yes, I believe its oil - but i recall them putting water on the side that adheres to the tandoor. I didnt have to oil the tava each time but it became messy with oil on both hands so I switched to flour - just a quick dip of the dough ball - once - and then i rolled it out - wasnt covered in flour when it was done. My nans puffed up completely - dont know how to avoid it.
The nans were delicious!!! I melted some unsalted butter and put some grated garlic in it and heated it for a minute on the stove....then painted this on the nans as they came out of the oven!! Delicious!!