Vegan Stuffed Potato, Cheese & Spinach Naan

This recipe for Vegan Stuffed Spinach Potato & Cheese Naan Bread turns out perfect every time, without any added yeast thanks to a mix of dairy-free yogurt and baking powder. Served brushed with garlic butter – so good! Nutfree Soyfree. Gluten-free option included.

My favorite part about going to an Indian restaurant is when that big stack of butter naan arrives. You can always find different kinds of Naan on the menu – some are stuffed and some are plain. While Plain Naan is obviously delicious Stuffed Naan is a treat that I have a difficult time saying no to. There are different types of Stuffed Naan with the most popular ones having fillings with Potato, Paneer, onion, Cauliflower, spinach, cheese etc. Unfortunately most Indian restaurants don’t offer vegan versions. Today, I have decided to bring to you my favorite stuffed naan – Vegan Potato Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Naan. It’s aloo paratha + greens and herbs + cheesy goodness + stuffed in bread! What’s not to love.

Crispy and perfectly charred on the outside and stuffed with an incredibly cheesy grated potato and spinach filling. It’s the best quick pan bread recipe to serve as a side dish to Indian curries or soups!

No yeast needed

Most vegan naan bread recipes call for yeast. While yeast can be used for making fluffy restaurant-style naan bread, there are other options to make this Indian Naan recipe without having to yeast or dairy.

The bread dough comes together in no time at all and bakes up perfectly fluffy and moist on the inside and crispy on the outside. And without any added yeast – just a bit of baking powder combined with dairy-free yogurt.

Apart from spinach and potatoes, I add a whole bunch of vegan mozzarella cheese which makes these such a treat. Now let’s talk herbs: Cilantro works well but so does parsley or even chopped mint. I put them into the filling and then some more on top right before serving

You will love this Stuffed Naan

• Its yeast free! No waiting for hours for the dough to rise
• The dough is easy to form and handle
• you can stuff with other fillings
• dont want to stuff, just use it like pizza dough, top with the spinach mixture or other toppings and bake at 425 deg F for 10-12 minutes.
• gluten free option

MORE NAAN AND FLATBREAD RECIPES TO TRY

Ingredients:

• The base for the naan dough is a simple mix of flour and baking powder mixed with some water and salt
• yogurt adds moisture and acts with the baking powder so that we do not need to add any yeast
• melted vegan butter is a must when making naan – both in the dough and on top
• the filling is a mix of spinach and grated potatoes sauteed with garlic and chili flakes
• vegan mozzarella is added to the filling for extra cheesiness
• I like adding some fresh herbs as well: cilantro or basil or other fresh herbs of choice.
• the freshly baked naan begs for a good brushing of vegan garlic butter
• chopped cilantro or other fresh herbs complete the restaurant-style look

Tips:

• For fluffy bubbly Naan, spread the stuffed dough out using your fingers (even after rolling) . Let the Naans rest 10 minutes before cooking. It usually will be 10-15 mins while you roll all of them out.
• You can make smaller Naans as they are easier to handle and quicker. the stuffed naans won’t even need a rolling pin. Just use your hands for a couple of presses and done.
• Variations: Change up the stuffing! Use cauliflower plus chard, or just entirely spinach and cheese. Add in some spiced lentils.
• To substitute the yogurt, you can use thick cashew cream or coconut cream. But if you’re using these, you want to add some yeast in as well. Add in 1/2 teaspoon of yeast to the water cream mixture.
• To make the stuffed naan gluten-free, you can use my chickpea flour naan batter. Spread out the batter and then bake for 2 minutes and then sprinkle the filling all over the batter and drizzle the rest with some batter on top to cover the filling and then bake again until the batter sets.
• Or you can make simple stuffed flatbreads , stuff my Glutenfree cauliflower flatbread or Pita bread recipe.Once you have rolled it out, add the filling, then fold it in. Seal and then roll it out again. Do not make it too thin. Just roll it out so that it is somewhat rolled out and even, and then cook it according to the instructions on that post.

How to make Stuffed Vegan Spinach Naan

In a large bowl, add the hot water and yogurt and the oil or melted butter, and mix really well.

Then add in 1 cup of the flour and mix well. Cover and Let this mixture sit for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, you can make the filling: Grate the potato if you haven’t already and thaw the spinach if you haven’t already. Then heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is starting to turn golden.

Then add in the grated potato, spinach and salt and mix well. Continue to cook until some of the moisture from the spinach evaporates and the potato is cooked. This will take 5 to 7 minutes. Stir once or twice in between.

Let this filling sit to cool. Once cooled, mix in the mozzarella and herbs and set aside.

Back to the dough, mix the salt, baking powder in 1/2 a cup of the flour, and add that to the dough mixture. Mix well and knead for a minute or two to mix all the dough and see if you need more flour.

You want the dough to be soft and somewhat smooth. If you overwork the dough, it will continue to get sticky so you just want the dough to kind of form. Add in more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time until you have a well-formed dough.

Prep your rolling out station with some flour. Divide the dough into three equal portions. Shape one of the portions into somewhat of a flat disc and then press it with your hands outwards until you have about an eight-inch circle.

You want to keep the edges thinner than the middle. Or roll it out using a rolling pin. I usually roll it a bit then use my hands to thin out the edges

Add a good helping of the filling in the middle of this rolled-out dough. Then fold it like you will fold a crunch wrap and seal really well in the middle.

Sprinkle a little bit of flour and then use your hands to spread it out initially, because if you start rolling it, the filling might split the edges.

So use your hands to spread it out a little bit first an inch or so, and then use a rolling pin very lightly to roll out the rest of the flatbread. Hand spread Naan bubble up more than rolled out Naan.

Repeat for the rest of the dough and the filling Heat a cast Iron or heavy bottom skillet over medium-high heat and let it get hot.

Once the skillet is hot, place one of the rolled out flatbreads onto the skillet.

Let it start to get golden brown spots and bubble a bit. Keep checking because depending on the stove and your skillet, the bread might get brown within a minute, or it might take another 30 seconds to 2 minutes.

Once the bottom of the spinach naan flatbread is getting brown and it’s somewhere bubbly on top, flip and continue to cook the other side until it has some brown spots. Repeat for the rest of the flatbread. Then put them on a serving dish.

In a bowl, melt your vegan butter until it’s very hot. Add in the minced garlic and cilantro and mix well. Then use a brush and brush the freshly made breads all over.

Serve as is or with a side of curry or dal or marinara sauce.

Storage

Store covered on the counter for a few hours, refrigerate for upto 3 days. Reheat in a skillet or microwave and serve