Naan is a round flat bread made of wheat flour Naan is a staple accompaniment to hot meals in Central and South Asia, including the Punjab, Gujarat, and Rajasthan regions in North-west India, as well as Pakistan, Afghanistan Iran, Uzbekistan and the surrounding region. In Turkic languages (such as Uzbek and Uyghur) the bread is known as nan. In Burmese, naan is known as nanpya. It bears a resemblance to pita bread, but is softer in texture. The first recorded history of Naan/Roti can be found in the notes of Amir Khusrau (1300 AD) as naan-e-tanuk (light bread) and naan-e-tanuri (cooked in a tandoor oven) at the imperial court in Delhi. Naan was in Mughal times a popular breakfast food, accompanied by keema or kabab, of the royals.

A typical naan recipe involves mixing white flour with salt, a yeast culture, and enough yogurt to make a smooth elastic dough. The dough is kneaded for a few minutes, then set aside to rise for a few hours. Once risen, the dough is divided into balls (about 100 grams each), which are flattened and cooked. In Indian cuisine, naans are typically graced with fragrant essences, such as rose, khus (vetiver), and kevra (a pine essence native to Southern India), and butter or ghee is melted upon them. Traditionally the naan is cooked in a tandoor, the type of clay oven after which tandoori food is named. In homes without a tandoor, a cast-iron frying pan without oil can be used.