Popular Indian Bread You Need to Know

Served alongside the country’s famous dishes like curry, Indian bread is an integral part of Indian cuisine. There is a wide variety of Indian bread, from flatbreads to crepes, using dough that is either unleavened or one that has risen. Here are five bread types that you need to know.

Naan

Naan is arguably the most famous of Indian bread. This fluffy, leavened Indian flatbread is best served hot. You’ve probably seen naan used for sopping up the gravy in curry dishes, but it’s also the perfect accompaniment for other dishes like chicken tandoori. Traditionally naan is made in a clay oven called tandoor, but you can easily make naan in your oven at home.

Chapati

Chapatis can be eaten with anything. It is unleavened Indian flatbread traditionally cooked on a flat skillet called tava, but a griddle or cast iron pan is just as good. To make chapatis that are soft, make sure to knead the dough thoroughly—the longer, the softer the bread will be. If you use milk or fresh yogurt instead of water, your chapati will be so soft that no one will be able to resist!

Paratha

Crispy and flaky, parathas are pan-fried Indian flatbread. They go well with most Indian dishes, whether it's curries or dry stir-fries. Parathas are easy to prepare even though it does take a few steps and time. If you want your parathas flakier, create more layers by folding the dough over itself. Oiling and flipping the bread a few times in a hot pan will crisp it up. One famous type of paratha you might have heard of is aloo paratha, which is paratha made with potatoes.

Poori

Crispy, golden fried Indian flatbread. Serve poori with any dish, vegetarian or otherwise, plus your favourite pickle. You’d want your poori to be light golden in colour, puffed up like a somewhat deflated ball. It’s easy to make with ingredients that are probably already in your pantry: whole wheat flour, water, salt, and oil.

Kulcha

Kulcha is a mildly leavened bread prepared with all-purpose flour without any yeast, but rather leavened with yogurt and/or baking powder. It is similar to naan, only you don’t need a tandoor oven to make kulcha; you can easily prepare it on a griddle.

Indian bread doesn’t have to be eaten as an accompaniment for other dishes, you can enjoy it as a meal on its own. Get them while piping hot, at The Yarra Indian Restaurant