This easy keto naan is fluffy and flexible, just like traditional naan bread. My coconut flour naan is soft, light and perfect for scooping up your favorite curry! It is gluten-free, egg-free and made without mozzarella cheese.
I have been eating plenty of Indian curries recently. But one thing was missing. NAAN BREAD!
Well, this easy keto naan bread recipe is here to save our curry night - at just 3.6g net carbs per serving.
It's actually really simple to make low carb naan at home that puffs up as beautifully as naan made from wheat.
This naan bread recipe is a bit of a personal breakthrough - it is my first EGG FREE low carb bread. Plus, it contains an extra portion of fiber.
Serve it warm with curry, use it as a keto flatbread or brush it with garlic butter for a restaurant-style side dish.
Jump to:
Why My Keto Naan Is So Fluffy
Many keto naan recipes use mozzarella cheese and almond flour. This can make the flatbread cheesy and very dense, especially once it has cooled.
This recipe is different.
The combination of coconut flour, psyllium husk and yogurt creates a pillowy and light bread. The texture is fluffy and authentic without the heaviness of classic fathead dough.
My naan stays soft and flexible, with no cheesy flavor.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need:
- Coconut flour - the gently sweet taste lends itself to Indian cuisine. Also, coconut flour is less fatty and therefore lighter than almond flour.
- Psyllium husk powder - adds elasticity and a fluffy texture
- Xanthan gum - for a stronger structure
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Hot water
- Full fat yogurt - or Greek yogurt
- Coconut oil - or olive oil
The xanthan gum is non-negotiable. Coconut flour is naturally gluten-free and therefore lacks the elasticity of wheat flour. In the absence of eggs, we need the help of xanthan gum to bind and create an elastic dough.
I'm using psyllium husk powder and not psyllium husks in this recipe. The powder is REALLY finely ground. Psyllium husks, on the other hand, look like tiny sticks. It's easy to mistake them for powder at first glance, so do double-check your pack.
Instructions
This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
STEP 1
Stir together the dryingredients in a bowl - coconut flour, psyllium husk powder, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt.
TIP: I like to use a balloon whisk for this and check that there are no lumps. Coconut flour has a tendency to clump together!
Add the melted coconut oil and the yogurt.
STEP 2
Now add the hot water and stir. At first, it seems like there's a lot of liquid. But both psyllium and coconut flour are very absorbent and a dough will form quickly.
I find it easiest to use a fork for this step. If you continue with the whisk, the dough gets caught in the middle, which is a major mess.
STEP 3
Time to get your hands involved. Form a dough ball and let it rest for a few minutes until the dough is not sticky any more.
STEP 4
Cut the dough into six equal slices and form balls.
STEP 5
Place the balls between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll out into long flatbreads. Pierce the middles a few times with the fork and sprinkle with nigella seeds and/or sesame seeds.
STEP 6
Place the parchment with your naans onto an upturned baking tray. I find this helps the flatbreads brown more evenly.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes and give them a poke with the fork in case huge air bubbles form.
The baking time will depend on how thinly your naans are rolled out. Just keep an eye on them and remove them from the oven once they're nicely browned.
STEP 7
Brush with melted coconut oil or butter or olive oil and top with more chopped coriander or parsley and more salt before serving! A pinch of cumin would also work well.
Variations
How To Make Keto Naan In A Skillet
I like baking my naans in the oven so they are ready to eat all in one go. But you can also cook them on the stovetop for the same characteristic brown marks as on traditional tandoor naan.
Fry the coconut naan bread in a skillet over medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown and puffed up.
Dairy-free naan: To make the naan bread recipe dairy free, use an unflavoured coconut yogurt such as by the Coconut Collaborative.
Garlic naan bread: Brush it with a simple garlic butter (melted butter, 1 chopped garlic clove, salt).
Change the size: Just like with regular naan, it's easy to change up the size! Make 3 large naans (increase the baking time by 3 minutes) or 12 small dippers (oven time reduces by 2 minutes).
How To Make Low Carb Naan With Yeast
I have tested a version of this naan with yeast instead of baking powder. It produces a slightly more tangy bread.
I found it looked identical to the yeast-free bread, but had a little more elasticity.
Step 1.) Stir 2 teaspoons of dry active yeast and 2 teaspoons of inulin (or honey/maple syrup) into 1 cup of WARM water. Cover with a cloth and leave to proof in a warm place for around 10 minutes. (This could be on top of a radiator, for example).
Step 2.) Once the yeast is frothing, stir in the coconut flour, psyllium, xanthan gum, salt, melted coconut oil and yoghurt. Make sure that the yoghurt is room temperature.
Step 3.) Form a ball, cover again and let the dough rise for 30-60 minutes until it has increased in size considerably.
Step 4. ) Proceed as per recipe below.
Toppings
Without the toppings, the naan is fairly neutral in flavor. After all, it is mostly coconut flour. Therefore, I recommend brushing over melted butter, coconut or olive oil and adding one or more toppings:
- Sea salt
- Black or white sesame seeds
- Nigella seeds
- chopped cilantro or parsley
- garlic powder
- onion powder
Recipe FAQs
Traditional naan bread has around 40 grams of carbs. Yikes! In contrast, one keto naan comes in at only 3.6g net carbs. That's all the great naan taste without the blood sugar spike!
I have not tried it yet, but it should work. I would use 2 ¼ cups or 225 grams of super-fine almond flour. The texture will likely become a little heavier, because almond flour contains more fat than coconut flour.
Use the recipe for my keto garlic bread. You only need to change one ingredient: swap out the cream cheese for yoghurt. And instead of brushing the bread with garlic butter, brush it with coconut or olive oil after baking. Then, sprinkle over sea salt, black or white sesame seeds, nigella seeds or chopped cilantro.
It's the psyllium brand you used. Some brands turn bread grey or purple after baking. This is not dangerous and you can't taste it. Choose a "blond" brand with a high purity factor. I have used Green Origin, Just Natural and BonPom. The NOW brand is also fine.
How To Serve
I recommend to serve keto naan bread warm - either straight from the oven or toasted. Once it cools, it loses its crispy crust.
It is designed to be eaten WITH a curry. Try one of these:
Or even better, put all 3 on your to-make list. I love all of them!
Storage
Refrigerator: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freezer: Keto recipes with coconut flour generally freeze well. Freeze for up to 3 months, layering parchment paper between the breads so they don't stick together.
Reheating: Defrost overnight. Pop in the toaster to reheat. You can toast it from frozen.
More Keto Bread Recipes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
★ STAY IN TOUCH on FACEBOOK, PINTEREST and INSTAGRAM for more great food and join my NEWSLETTER for the latest updates and a FREE EBOOK.★
Recipe
Keto Naan
Video
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- ⅔ cup coconut flour 75g
- 2 tablespoon psyllium husk powder
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- GENEROUS pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon nigella and/or sesame seeds
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup hot water 240ml
- ¼ cup full fat natural yoghurt 60g
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil / olive oil melted
Topping
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil / butter / olive oil melted
- handful chopped parsley or coriander / cilantro
- generous pinch salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 Celsius / 356 Fahrenheit.
- Mix all dry ingredients in another bowl - coconut flour, psyllium husk powder, xanthan gum and salt. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Add the wet ingredients - hot water, yoghurt, melted coconut oil or olive oil - and stir together until a dough forms.
- Form a dough ball and let it sit for a few minutes until the coconut flour and the psyllium have absorbed all the moisture and the dough is not sticky.
- Cut the dough into 6 pieces and roll them out between two sheets of parchment paper into long flatbreads, about ½ cm thick. Place on an upturned baking sheet and remove the top parchment. Optional: sprinkle with sesame seeds and/or nigella seeds.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until browned (baking time will depend on how thick your flatbreads are). If large air bubbles form, pierce with a fork during baking. If necessary, rotate the baking sheet so the flatbreads brown equally and/or turn on the grill/broiler at the end to ensure they crisp and brown on top.
- Top with melted butter, olive oil or coconut oil, sprinkle with more salt and chopped parsley or coriander/cilantro leaves before serving.
karen
Will full fat sour cream work instead of yogurt in the naan bread?
Katrin Nürnberger
Sour cream does have plenty more fat than the yogurt. My guess is that this will change the texture of the bread and possibly make it less fluffy.
Hanna
Hi. This is a great recipe. I've tried doing it a few times and it doesn't seem to raise and fluff up during baking. Any suggestions? Thank you.
Katrin Nürnberger
Provided that you use fresh baking powder, it's about rolling out the dough to the correct thickness. If it is too thin, it cannot rise.
Artemis
Have you thought of filling with Keto sweet almond filling to resemble a peshwari naan and would you fill with this before you cook them or split them after and spread with the filling?
Katrin Nürnberger
That's a good question! Spreading the bread with it afterwards is the safe bet. I wonder how a filling may affect the rise of the bottom part of the naan as we're using a flour without gluten and no egg for sturdiness.
Joanna
I’m about to try this but found I’d bought whole psyllium husk. Will it work? Or can I somehow make powder out of the whole husk?
Katrin Nürnberger
It is possible to powder whole psyllium husk in a high speed blender.
Lisa
Would blended cottage cheese or cream cheese, or beaten egg whites work instead of yogurt. I see you do not recommend sour cream.
Katrin Nürnberger
Blended cottage cheese may be a good alternative for the yoghurt as it has a similar consistency.
Katrin Nürnberger
This can happen when the dough is rolled out too thick. When you try the recipe next, check out the step by step images and the video to see how thick the naan breads should be. Do you think this could have been the issue?
Rana Gill
It was very gooey and runny,not solid and firm like in your pictures. I was wondering if the water was too hot,or could the psyllium husk powder have gone "off",I've had the packet opened for some months now. BTW,is the recipe easier with egg? Thanks
Katrin Nürnberger
Psyllium does not go off easily, but it does sound like your wet dry ratio was off. Often, people use whole psyllium (which looks like little sticks) and think it’s psyllium powder.
Rachel
Hi! Could you sub the xanthum gum with an egg instead?
Katrin Nürnberger
If you add an egg, the dough will be much softer and you'll have to increase the amount of flour as well. I am not sure by how much - you'll have to experiment.
Eileen Rodriguez
I tried the recipe, and I really did like it. However, mine looked nothing like the pictures. They turned like a dark greyish purplish color. They also did not puff up like the picture. Nonetheless, they were tasty and I will make them again with a different expectation regarding looks.. (FYI my husband is an expert at making authentic naan bread without the tandoori oven, so I got excited when I saw the picture and it looked quite close to a regular flour naan). Has anyone else made them and had the same experience? or is it just me?
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Eileen, some psyllium brands turn a purple/grey colour. I have never experienced this, and I list the brands that are fine in the post. As you mention, the colour does not affect the taste. Buy a different brand next time you need a pack an hopefully that one will be fine. As for the puffiness, it's always a question of rolling the dough not too thin (because then it can't rise) and not too thick (because then it stays gummy in the middle). Like with so many things in life, a little practice makes perfect. Check out my images and the video for guidance. I am sure the next time round they will turn out much better.
Martha
Me parecen maravillosos
jennifer
instead of yogurt can i use sour cream or mayo?
Katrin Nürnberger
You would be adding a lot more fat this way. I do not recommend it.
Katrin Nürnberger
I have not tried it, but I think it should work. Low temperature, so it does not burn.