# Indian bread and yogurt **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 31, 2004, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710 "2004-07-31T11:50:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Angua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8baadc/32.png) [@Angua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angua)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2004, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/21 "2004-08-03T09:58:58Z")
> [@gouda](#): > > **Brutus** , not all that odd in the sense that there are many similarities between Hindi/Sanskrit and Germanic languages. This was discussed briefly in [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=180127&highlight=Deutsch) thread. [warning]It’s all in German[/warning]. I think, as I mentioned in that thread, that the reason behind it is that Hindi/Urdu/Sanskrit and the Germanic languages are all members of the Indo-European language family group. Therefore, there are bound to be many similiarities. Its the same reason why many French/Spanish/Itallian speakers can understand each other despite never having learnt the other languages - they’re all part of the Romance language family, and so are mutually comprehensible to anyone with a modicum of intelligence! I recall when I went skiing in Sweden two years ago, there were groups of English, Dutch, Swedish and Norwegian speakers, and it was fairly easy to understand them all. ---
**Author:** ![noname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/58f4c7/32.png) [@noname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/noname)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2004, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/22 "2004-08-03T12:30:54Z")
You know, you can get a naan takeaway at most restaurants. The only condition is, you eat it within an hour, or it wil go hard as a rock. ---
**Author:** ![Avumede](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/avumede/32/7235_2.png) [@Avumede](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avumede)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2004, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/23 "2004-08-03T16:20:32Z")
**noone** ’s point is good - but I’d further say that if you don’t eat naan within 10 minutes it becomes an overly chewy mess. No need to make naan, though. I haven’t tried making it, but the incredible heat of a tandoori cannot be replicated in the kitchen. There are plenty of other Indian breads you can make on the stovetop. though, including chapati (basically a puffed up tortilla made from a type of whole-wheat flour), roti, paratha, and even poori (if you don’t mind deep-frying your bread). Some, like the chapati, are easy to make, and in fact many Indians I know make it as part of almost every supper. You can make it from scratch in about 40 minutes, 30 of which are letting the dough rest. ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2004, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/24 "2004-08-03T16:51:19Z")
Another good quick substitute for Indian bread is whole wheat tortillas that have been partially pre-cooked. You can sometimes find them in the refrigerated section of health food or ethnic groceries. You just finish cooking them on each side in a dry, nonstick skillet. If you like you can also brush them afterward with a little clarified butter. ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/25 "2004-08-04T05:44:17Z")
> [@Avumede](#): > > **noone** ’s point is good Who’s that? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TeaElle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@TeaElle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeaElle)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/26 "2004-08-04T10:35:27Z")
> [@Ponster](#): > > AFAIK, recipes aern’t copyright. You can’t copy a site or a published book of recipes but there’s no problem to copy & paste one from the web. They are, actually – not the lists or amounts of ingredients, but the author’s specific way of describing the process of making the food item in question is absolutely under copyright and all standard rules apply. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/27 "2004-08-04T13:50:05Z")
To add my 2 cents-- _Anything_ written down is automatically subject to copyright-- at least in Canada, and probably most of the western world. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/28 "2004-08-04T16:18:50Z")
[QUOTE=don’t ask] Indian breads are tricky without a Tandoor. [QUOTE] A _tandur_ is necessary only for making _nan_. All other Indians flatbreads–_ruti_/_roti_, _chapati_, _rumali_, _luchi/puri_, _porota_/_paratha_–can be made in a skillet. > [@gouda](#): > > **Brutus** , not all that odd in the sense that there are many similarities between Hindi/Sanskrit and Germanic languages. Indo-Aryan languages (such as Hindi and Sanskrit) are Indo-European languages and, thus, share similarities with all Indo-European languages, including Romance, Celtic, Slavic, etc., languages. Indian languages are no closer to Germanic languages than they are to any other Indo-European languages. ---
**Author:** ![II\_Gyan\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@II\_Gyan\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/II_Gyan_II)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/29 "2004-08-04T20:31:21Z")
Sorry for the hijack, but where in the US can I get the proper ‘Pav’ for Pav Bhaji? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710/30 "2004-08-04T21:30:16Z")
Apologies if this has already been mentioned, but you can buy naan in most Indian grocery stores (along with parathas, pooris, chapatis, and so forth). Weirdly, some of this is sold under the Pillsbury label. Also, pita bread can be used as a substitute for naan, and you can get that in the supermarket. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/indian-bread-and-yogurt/257710.md?page=1)