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Bread is as integral to an Indian meal as a piece of cutlery is on an Australian dinner table, and there are different varieties, depending on which region you're in.
But what these breads have in common is their ability to sop up leftover curries and sauces, wrap around kebabs or be stuffed with vegetables and spices.
are the two most conventional Indian flatbreads, which are staples in North Indian cuisine. They may be eaten interchangeably but differ in more ways than you'd expect, as outlined below.
Maida flour is refined and powdery, which creates a denser, pillowy bread. The leavening process also breaks down the gluten and contributes to naan's soft texture. For this reason, it's more time-consuming to make than roti, which is unleavened and results in a coarser, less flexible bread.
When does a roti become a chapati? You'll soon find out. Source: Seema Choubey
in Sydney's Surry Hills, explains that you can make naan by mixing a little bit of milk, a little bit of yeast, sugar and salt. "The sugar helps to get the yeast going.
"Then mix this into the refined flour, knead it until soft, and leave it for about 25 to 30 minutes to let it all come together."
Once rested, the naan is traditionally cooked in a tandoori oven that's powered by charcoal or woodfire. In bakeries, the dough is hurled against the oven's walls, where it sticks and bakes to achieve an outer crispness.
"Naan is more of a restaurant thing," Kalyanaramanadds. "You wouldn't make naan for everyday dinner because not everyone has a tandoori oven at home."
These three ingredients are combined to form a dough, which is rolled out and cooked on a flat griddle or tawa until brown and blistered. This same method is applied to make chapati, another unleavened, wholewheat bread (and technically, a type of roti).
"The fundamental difference between the roti and the chapati is that you finish both sides of the chapati with fat, and then cook it again on the griddle," Kalyanaramanexplains.
"So, if you're making a roti, and you apply some oil on one side and cook it again on the griddle, it becomes a chapati."
You can make plain naan or flavour it. Source: Far Flung with Gary Mehigan
Different flavours
The pillowy texture and thickness of naan makes it ideal for housing a variety of stuffing and spices. Many enjoy it plain or brushed with butter or garlic.
Roti also has many types, such as fluffy tandoori roti, which is cooked in the tandoor, rumali roti, which is rolled thin and wrapped around kebabs, or missi roti, made using chickpea flour.
Whether you choose roti or naan, they are the ultimate sidekick to any curry and the building block for any Indian meal.
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(meaning it uses yeast), while roti is an unleavened bread (meaning it doesn't). The different ingredients give a far different texture: naan is soft and chewy, while roti is dense and thin.
Naan tends to be thicker than most types of rotis. Roti has a coarser texture, often requiring more chewing. Naan has a softer texture due to the use of specific flour and yeast. Making roti is relatively quick and simple, requiring less preparation time.
The additional ingredients in naan, while contributing to its richer flavor and texture, also increase its calorie and fat content, making roti a slightly healthier choice in terms of lightness and fiber.
Naan on the other hand is an Indian flat bread made out of refined wheat flour (maida). Cooked in a tandoor without any oil and is smeared with butter. Naan might cost more due to the operational cost for a Tandoor.
From health perspective, flat breads made of whole wheat flour (roti/paratha/chapati/phulka) are better than the ones made with all-purpose flour (naan & kulcha).
The two breads differ from each other in thickness as well. Naan, being fluffy, is thicker than Roti. Owing to this thickness, it is also denser in texture. On the other hand, Roti is soft but thinner than Naan, especially the phulka variety.
In regular terms Roti is called Indian Flat Bread or Tortilla in English. Roti or Indian Flat bread is made of Wheat flour/flour non fermented. Sometimes also known as Chappati. Tortillas are similar to Roti/Chappati but are made from corn flour.
Saturated fat constitutes about a quarter of the total amount of fat in naan. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends that saturated fat calories account for less than 10% of your total daily calorie intake ( 6 ). As such, you should avoid filling up on naan if you're watching your saturated fat intake.
Typically rotis are made using atta, a type of whole wheat Indian flour. However, it is not readily available and the typical substitutions of using Western flours do not work as well (different types of wheat, different grinding sizes, different gluten-forming capacities, different water-absorption rates, etc.).
Naan and curry go together like bread and butter and there are a bevy of flavourful Indian curries that you can dip your naan into. Here a few must-tries: Dal Makhani: A hearty dish of black lentils cooked and seasoned with garlic, tomato and cumin makes for a great accompaniment with Indian bread such as naan.
The closest thing to roti from the Western Hemisphere is tortillas. These are rolled flatbreads traditionally made from corn flour (maize). Some people also make tortillas out of wheat flour (atta).
Whether you call it chapati or roti, this bread goes by many different names and is perhaps the most popular flatbread in India. Made of a simple recipe of wheat flour and water, every household in India has its own signature take on this Indian flatbread.
Paratha, while definitely bread, is not baked the way that naan is. Rather, it's fried in a tawa, a stone frying pan, using butter or cooking oil. While naan is generally rolled out once and slapped up against the side of the tandoor, paratha often gets rolled out multiple times, creating a very flaky bread.
A paratha is fairly different from both roti and naans. Most parathas are made primarily with wheat flour, as they do not rise. Additionally, they are heated on a skillet, not baked in a tandoor. Parathas are thicker, and are often stuffed with spices and another filling.
Naan is made from the basic ingredients of wheat flour, water/milk, salt and yeast. It is shaped in artisan production, mostly by hand. The secret to the special taste is a combination of the baking process in the traditional tandoori oven and the addition of Indian yoghurt, which makes the dough light and loose.
Which is healthier: bread or naan? Naan is a flatbread, whereas bread comes in loaves. Naan is higher in fat, protein, and carbohydrates than loaf bread. The higher protein content of naan will allow you to feel fuller for longer and curve cravings.
Because naan is a bread, it tastes better if eaten with gravy and chicken butter masala is perfect. In fact, naan and butter chicken is a classic combination that everyone loves!
Naan bread is soft, fluffy, and chewy, whereas pita bread is denser with a slightly crispy texture on the outside. Naan bread also has a buttery flavor due to the ghee and buttermilk in the dough, which adds an extra dimension of flavor compared to pita bread's more neutral taste.
Roti is certainly a healthier option due to the presence of fibres including proteins, carbs, and soluble fibre. These fibres provide you with an energy boost, promote good blood circulation, and keep you feeling full for a longer period of time.
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