Vegan Keto Naan

Puffy, soft and crisp like classic naan but this deliciously upgraded vegan keto naan has only about 3g net carbs a piece!

Video Tutorial for Vegan Keto Naan

Why Make this Vegan Keto Naan

Each full sized naan is

• packed with plant-based protein (20 grams),
• high in fiber (12.9 grams),
• with about 3 grams net carbs,
• PUFFED so your naan has two distinct layers,
• deliciously soft on the inside with a touch of crispness on the outside!

Personally, I love it because I get to have my favorite curry dishes with REAL NAAN again without triggering my chronic pain! Also, this recipe makes 8 full-sized naan so I get plenty of leftovers. They keep for several days at room temperature or in the fridge. But I love to freeze them as well for longer-term storage. 

I love to use the leftover naan for:

• scooping more curries,
• using as a pita for sandwiches, or
• as wraps, plus
• cutting up into small pieces and toasting for “chips”

How to Make Vegan Keto Naan

Make sure to block out enough time to make this recipe from start to finish. Because this is a yeasted dough and we’re working with a very limited amount of carbohydrates for the yeast to feed off of, the timing is pretty important. However, most of this time is spent “resting” the dough. There isn’t much hands-on time until we cook the naan.

Make the Vegan Keto Naan Dough

First, bloom the yeast in warm water enhanced with a teaspoon of maple syrup. Yes, you read that right! Don’t worry, the sugar is used up by the yeast while it makes carbon dioxide to make our dough rise.

Then, add the dry ingredients and mix until the dough forms.

The dough is kneaded until it’s smooth and elastic; about 8 minutes at speed 3 in my stand mixer. If you’re kneading by hand, it will take longer but try to work quickly since timing is so important for this dough.

Note: this step is super-crucial to the puff-abilty of your naan so make sure that dough becomes nice and smooth!

Divide and Shape the Dough

Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Fold the edges into the bottom side and pinch to keep the tension on top. Then roll on your work surface to tighten the ball.

They will become firm and stiff during this process so you’ll let them rest afterwards.

Cover and rest for 45 minutes in a warm, draft-free location. Then the gluten within will become relaxed and the dough will become soft again.

Hand stretch the dough balls OR use a rolling pin to flatten into your naan shapes.

Cover the raw naan with damp, clean lint-free kitchen towels and to allow for more rising; one hour in a warm, draft-free location.

After the naan has puffed up to about double in thickness, they are ready to cook.

Cooking your Vegan Keto Naan on the Stove

Heat up a large non-stick pan, brush on a super thin bit of oil, and lay down your first piece. Cook about 3 to 4 minutes until the bottom is golden brown with, perhaps, a few char marks.

Quickly brush the top with a thin layer of oil, then flip the naan. If all went well, it will puff up!

Continue cooking for another 2 to 4 minutes until the bottom is golden as well.

Transfer the freshly cooked naan to a dish and cover with a clean kitchen towel to hold in the steam.

As you cook the rest of the naan, pay attention to how fast the naan is cooking and adjust your times and/or the heat. Before long, you’ll have eight pieces of lovely puffy naan to enjoy!

Ingredients to Make the BEST Vegan Keto Naan

This low carb bread dough uses the same ingredients as my Vegan Keto Sandwich Rolls, Vegan Keto Bread Loaf, Vegan Keto Pita Bread, and Vegan Keto Pizza Crust with slight variations in quantities. Just like how traditional breads are all made with flour, yeast and salt, my vegan keto doughs all have the same key ingredients that work together to replace the qualities of whole wheat flour while omitting the starch.

In photo, clockwise from top left: salt, nutritional yeast, vital wheat gluten, freshly ground golden flax seed, oat fiber.

I’ve also found that the quality of the ingredients really matters to the success of the recipes. So in this section, I’ll also include links to the exact brands of the ingredients I’ve been using and recommend. Please note that some of the links are Amazon affiliate links. This means, I will earn a small commission if you decide to use them. There is no extra cost to you.

Nutritional Yeast

Because there’s no starch, the flavors that would develop from the yeast fermenting that starch would be missing from our naan. That’s why I add a bit of nutritional yeast for its savory flavor. You can also add other seasonings like garlic or onion powder, spices, or herbs.

Oat Fiber

With zero net carbs, this Oat Fiber adds bulk to the dough as well as a lovely toasty aroma during cooking. However, please be careful not to confuse it with Oat Flour which is made with whole oats and is very high in carbs. In contrast, Oat Fiber is made from the indigestible husks of oats.

Another thing to watch out for is the nutrition label. While the Anthony’s brand of Organic Oat Fiber I use is completely made of fiber, some that I’ve seen online are not so please check the label before purchasing.

When working with oat fiber, be careful because this ingredient is extremely light. It’s easy to kick up a cloud of dusty oat fiber so please be gentle. Also, for accurate measuring, a scale is best. I have stopped including “cup and spoon” based measurements for recipes with this ingredient because it’s just too easy to screw up.

Photo below: Vegan Keto Sandwich Rolls 

Golden Flax Seeds

Flax seeds help this dough retain moisture and adds bulk to the dough without weighing it down and preventing rising (something too much oat fiber can do). I choose Golden Flax Seeds over regular brown flax seeds because they have a milder flavour and give a lighter, nicer appearance to the rolls.

Buy only whole flax seeds. They are less delicate and less prone to rancidity when kept intact. I store them in the fridge for maximum freshness and longevity. Then, simply grind them as you require. Always be careful not to let them overheat. This way, the oil inside stays fresh. 

You may be tempted to buy pre-ground golden flax seed. Unfortunately, some commenters have reported trying my vegan keto bread recipes with pre-ground flax and having mixed results. 

Vital Wheat Gluten

The gluten in wheat flour is what creates structure in bread and allows it to rise and keep its shape. But instead of using the whole wheat that includes so much starch, we can use only the protein part: Vital Wheat Gluten.  However, too much of it will make your dough too tough and chewy plus have an unpleasant doughy flavour. So it’s important to mix in the flax and oat fiber. Also, I like to use Anthony’s brand of Vital Wheat Gluten especially because it has less of that distinct “gluten-y” flavour.

Oil

You’ll need to brush a tiny bit of oil on to the hot non-stick pan before laying down the raw naan. Then after it’s cooked on one side, you’ll want to brush on a little oil on the top before flipping. This oil helps to crisp the outside and improves the flavor. Plus, it seems to help with heat-transfer. 

I tested cooking these naan without oil and they did not puff up. So if you do not mind that and you prefer to cook without oil, you can omit it.

How to Store Vegan Keto Naan

I love to freeze the naan so I can have perfect crisp yet soft naan anytime! To keep them from freezing into a solid, hard-to-separate block, I put parchment paper between each naan and stack them. Then place the whole stack in a freezer bag, press out any air, and seal. You can keep them in the freezer for up to a month.

To reheat, I air fry at 400°F for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how soft or crispy I want the naan to be.

If you’re eating the naan within a week though, you can simply place it in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge. 

If you don’t have room in your fridge, your naan will be fine for a couple days on your kitchen counter. Just keep it in a bread box or bag.

Nutritional Info for Vegan Keto Naan

This recipe makes 8 full-sized servings of vegan keto naan. For the nutrition information, I plugged the ingredients straight into Cronometer. However, please keep in mind that Cronometer does not account for the yeast’s action in transforming sugar into carbon dioxide and ethanol which evaporates during cooking. So the carbohydrate count is a little on the higher than the actual.