Grilled Naans with Tamatar Malai Rajma (Curried Kidney Beans)

Next up on my series of grilling dishes is Naans. Believe it or not grilled naans turned out to be quicker to make and extremely soft & delicious. When I tried making them on the stove or even in the oven, it takes the dough longer to cook through because of lower temperatures and the end result is usually a tougher naan. But as grill can get to a slightly higher temperatures than the regular oven and since the heat source is much more direct, naans cook faster and stay softer longer. I added 1 cup white whole wheat flour to make them slightly healthier.

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour – 2cups
Whole wheat flour – 1 cup
Yeast – 1tbsp
Yogurt – ½ cup
Baking Powder – 1tbsp
Sugar – 1tbsp
Salt – 2tsp
Oil – 2tbsp
Method:

• Whisk flours, salt, baking powder, yeast and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
  
• Add 1 cup luke warm water (around 110ºF—a few degrees up or down is completely OK), oil and yogurt. Mix until the ingredients come together into a ball (add more water or flour as needed).
  
• Remove on to a floured surface and knead lightly until the dough is soft and smooth, about 5 minutes.
  
• Lightly oil the bowl and slide the dough back; cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1-2 hours or until the dough doubles in volume.
  
• Punch down and divide the dough into small balls depending on how big you want your naans. Place them on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 45 mins to 1 hour or until doubled in volume.
  
• Next roll them out into a circle and slightly stretch or pull on the ends to form an oval shaped naan. Brush them lightly with oil and stack them until ready to grill.
  
• Now to the easy part; grilling. Have the grill preheated and ready to roll: Place the oiled side down on the grill and let cook for about 1 minute. To get those beautiful grill marks, turn the naan at 45 degrees and grill again for 45 seconds. Oil the top side, turn it over, cover and grill for another 1-2 minutes. Remove and enjoy hot with your favorite curry.
  

We had our naans with Rajma/ Kidney Beans curry that I made from Raghavan Iyer’s 660 Curries. It’s a very simple recipe with few ingredients but the way in which the tomatoes are cooked or “bhunao”(ed) makes the dish taste very complex-flavored and absolutely delicious. I realized I’m a rather restless cook and for some of the Indian dishes you really need to take time to get the flavors out of the ingredients.. Lesson learnt!! Coming to the recipe:

Recipe from 660 Curries.
Ingredients:
Red Kidney Beans - 3 cups, cooked
Garlic - 2 cloves, finely chopped
Ginger - 2" long, finely chopped
Cardamom pods - 2
Cinnamon sticks - 2 (3" long)
Bay leaves - 2
Tomato Paste - 3tbsp
Red chili powder - 1tsp (or more to taste)
Sweet paprika - 1tbsp
Ground coriander seeds - 2tsp
Ground cumin seeds - 1tsp
Turmeric - 1/4tsp
Fried Onion Paste - 1/4 cup**
Heavy (Whipping) Cream - 1/2cup
Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Cilantro - for garnish
Method:

• Heat 2tbsp ghee or oil in a medium sauce pan on medium-high heat. Add the cardamom pods (elaichi), cinnamon and bay leaves and cook until they sizzle and are aromatic, 5 to 10 seconds.
  
• Add ginger and garlic and fry to a golden-brown color, about 1 minute.
• Add 1/2 cup water and the tomato paste, red chili powder, paprika, salt, coriander, cumin and turmeric. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and simmer until the water evaporated and a thin film of oil starts to form on the surface of the sauce, about 5 minutes.
• Add another 1/2 cup water and continue to simmer the sauce, covered, stirring occasionally, until the water evaporates and the oil film reappears on the surface, about 5 minutes.
  
• Repeat the addition and evaporation of water twice more to create a rich tasting, lush-red sauce.
  
• Stir in the onion paste and simmer, covered for another 5 minutes.
• Add kidney beans and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Uncover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce starts to thicken, 13-15 minutes.
• Pour in the cream and add the garam masala. Cook until the cream is warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Garnish with cilantro and serve.

** Fried Onion Paste (makes 3 cups):

Heat 2-3 tbsp oil in a large saute pan. Add 2 pounds of thinly sliced red onions and cook them, stirring occasionally until they are caramel-brown with a deep purple hue, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool. Grind into a smooth paste once cool enough to handle. Stored in a tightly sealed container, this paste will keep for 1 week in the refrigerator or can be frozen into smaller batches for 2 months.