Last updated on February 12th, 2021 at 06:58 am
Easy recipe for pita bread – Make this super easy bread which is soft and comes with a pocket! Only a handful of ingredients go into this pita bread and it is the perfect accompaniment for falafels and gyros!
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I took a long break from making pitas and then I very recently started making them. There was a time when I was all into making pitas, gyros, falafels, tzatziki sauce; basically into the Mediterranean food. My husband and I had recently returned from a month-long day trip to the US. So naturally, we were in so in love with it.
Then I had my daughter and I stopped making pitas and a bunch of other fun dishes. Cooking was a chore and we cooked only to survive, lol. But that was only until my daughter turned 1.5 years old and I started making all those fun foods except pitas. So we’re back to making gyros and pita sandwiches every once in a while and I thought I should share this easy recipe for pita bread that I very much enjoy!
Easy recipe for Pita Bread:
I love making them, seriously. I mean, I am used to making roti flatbread from a young age. But making pita bread at home is such a feeling to me. I love how it puffs up perfectly just in the middle and I also love stuffing those perfect little pockets with whatever comes to my mind.
The ingredients that go into this easy recipe for pita bread are so easy to obtain. Mostly we’ll all be having these ingredients in our pantry. And making it is easy as well, except the part where you have to knead for 20 minutes. I know, but before you drop the plan to make your own pitas, know that the kneading time will be over before you know it.
Also, you can always take breaks while kneading the dough. The stretch and fold action does a huge deal to gluten development and thereby the pockets. It will be so worth it when you are done. Once that is done, these rest is so easy. You just have to let the dough rise, divide and roll it out into discs. Finally, you’ll cook the discs to form the pita bread. The cooking time is less than 10 minutes AND you can two or three at a time. So you see, it is easy!
What goes into this recipe?
Like I said, only a handful of pantry ingredients go into this easy recipe for pita bread. Like all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, salt, sugar, yeast, olive oil, and water. That is it.
I like to add whole wheat flour for some flavor. You can skip it and go with all-purpose flour all the way. Or you can use 1/2 cup more of whole wheat flour and decrease the same amount from all-purpose flour. The gluten development in the dough is at its best when the whole wheat flour doesn’t exceed 1 cup in total.
I like to use and almost always use Instant Yeast. I like the rapid rise time and it saves me so much time. Especially, in this case, I can start in the morning and get the pitas ready in time for lunch on a nice Sunday. Other ingredients are pretty simple; the sugar feeds the yeast and the salt is to balance and control the growth of yeast.
Troubleshooting:
Only a bubble?
Some times you’ll face this issue; one of the pitas will just pop into a bubble and then cease right there. This may happen due to a number of reasons. Like maybe your oven wasn’t hot under it or maybe the pitas were rolled too thin.
Point is, it happens sometimes until you perfect it. But it is not a problem, you can cut across the pita bread and divide it into half thereby making it into pockets. Using a sharp knife make incisions into the bread close to the bubble. This way you’ll have a pita pocket made manually.
Why doesn’t it raise?
None of your pitas rise up to form pockets? It would be because of the oven temperature or the thickness of the discs. To ensure a successful pita pocket formations, check these:
- Your oven should be really hot. I preheat it for 250 C / 480 F for 20 minutes.
- Your baking tray should be hot as well. Put your baking tray inside the oven while it preheats.
- Do not roll out the disc with a diameter of less than 1/2 inch.
- Try not to apply too much pressure while rolling them out.
Serving Suggestions:
Pitas are great with just about any meat or vegetable-based filling. All you need is diced tomatoes, cucumber, onions, olives, tzatziki sauce and hot sauce.
Here are some ways you can fix a snack or meal with these pita bread:
- Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki sauce
- Falafel Sandwich with fresh veggies and sauce
- Hawashi (Pita Pockets filled with minced spiced meat)
Storage Instructions:
Pita breads taste best when they are made fresh. But if you have leftovers and you wanna store them for the next day, you cover the pitas with aluminum foils and then put into a Ziploc. And then, you can either leave them on your counter or pop them into the refrigerator. I find they stay better when left out at room temperature. The pitas tend to dry out in the refrigerator no matter the number of layers I add.
Diet and Allergen Information:
Pita bread contains flour and hence it is not gluten-free or low-carb or keto-friendly. But these are lactose-free and eggless. And also, nut-free.
Variations and Substitutions:
Kneading the dough: You can use a stand mixer to knead the dough at medium speed for 10-15 minutes.
Sugar: If you don’t want to add granulated sugar, you can substitute it with an equal amount of honey or brown sugar. Actually you can even go with natural sweeteners or artificial sweeteners.
Cooking the pitas: I like to cook 2-3 pitas at one-go in an oven, but you can cook it in a cast-iron skillet on a stovetop too. Heat a cast-iron skillet until nicely hot, place each rolled out pita disc and cook on one side for a few minutes. Flip and cook for a few more minutes and then flip it back again to the original side which you put on the skillet. Let it cook until it puffs up, remove from the skillet and onto a cotton cloth. Repeat until all the other pitas are cooked.
How to make pita bread:
Making pitas is very easy. The only part that will take a bit of your time is the kneading part which will be so worth it when you see those beautiful pockets. Let’s see how to make it!
This easy recipe for pita bread requires the following ingredients:
- All-purpose Flour – 2 cups
- Whole Wheat Flour* – 1/2 cup
- Instant Yeast – 1.5 tsp
- Salt – 1/2 to 1 tsp
- Sugar – 1 tbsp
- Olive Oil – 3 tbsp
- Water – 1 cup (warm)
STEP 1:
- In a clean large mixing bowl, add the sugar, salt, yeast, whole wheat flour and the all-purpose flour. Mix it all thoroughly.
- Drizzle in the olive oil and give it a quick mix. Then pour in the warm water and swiftly mix it through the dry ingredients.
STEP 2:
- Gently mix and bring all the ingredients together until a dough is formed.
- Once the dough is formed, move it to a board or counter and begin kneading the dough by pushing and pulling it.* Continue kneading for 20 minutes. Take rest in between and ensure you cover the dough with a damp cloth while you do.
- The dough will be soft and supple after kneading. Move it back to the slightly oiled mixing bowl. Cover with its lid or a damp cloth. Let it rise for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in volume.
STEP 3:
- Preheat the oven for 20 minutes at 250 C / 480 F.
- Place a baking tray inside while preheating.
See also:
STEP 4:
- Once it had doubled, punch it down and transfer it to a counter. Divide the dough into 6-8 portions. Dust the counter with flour and roll out each portion in a disc with about 1/2-inch thickness.
- Change sides as you roll them out and dust when it is likely to stick to your rolling pin. Do not use too much flour; use it only if it sticks too much.
STEP 5:
- Once you’ve rolled out all the portions arrange the discs in batches on the hot baking tray from the oven.
- Place the tray back inside the oven. Within 5 minutes, the dough will puff up thereby forming the pockets.
- Once all the discs puff up, let the pitas cook for few more minutes. In total, it would take 8-10 minutes.
STEP 6:
- Remove the tray and remove the pitas onto a thick cotton cloth. Keep it covered.
- Repeat the same process with the other discs.
- There! Your pita breads are ready! Keep them covered until you use them.
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Notes:
- Whole Wheat Flour: Using 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour is completely optional. When used in this quantity it doesn’t affect the gluten formation.
- Warm Water: Water shouldn’t be too hot which would kill the yeast. You should be able to put your finger for 10 seconds at least that’ll be the right temperature.
- Kneading Time: 20 minutes seems like a long time to knead but it is important that you knead for that long. Pockets will form even if you knead it for 10 minutes, but it will be too thin to hold your fillings. Take rest as when and needed to finish kneading it.
- Kneading: The usual push and pull method works well. To do that, push the dough with the heel of your hand (below the thumb); this will stretch the dough. Then, fold the stretched dough over to form a dough again. Repeat this process throughout kneading. Initially, the dough won’t stretch much, but you’ll notice the difference before you finish kneading.
- Dividing into portions: Dividing the dough into 8 portions will give you medium-sized pitas which gives medium-sized pockets one that you can fit in on of your palms. Whereas, when you divide it into 6 portions, it will give you big pita pockets where you can fit in 4-5 falafels.
Easy Recipe for Pita Bread | Pita Bread Recipe
Equipment
- Oven or a Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 cups All-purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour*
- 1.5 tsp Instant Yeast
- 1/2 to 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 cup Water , warm
Instructions
- In a clean large mixing bowl, add the sugar, salt, yeast, whole wheat flour and the all-purpose flour. Mix it all thoroughly.
- Drizzle in the olive oil and give it a quick mix. Then pour in the warm water and swiftly mix it through the dry ingredients.
- Gently mix and bring all the ingredients together until a dough is formed.
- Once the dough is formed, move it to a board or counter and begin kneading the dough by pushing and pulling it.* Continue kneading for 20 minutes. Take rest in between and ensure you cover the dough with a damp cloth while you do.
- The dough will be soft and supple after kneading. Move it back to the slighlty oiled mixing bowl. Cover with its lid or a damp cloth. Let it rise for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in volume.
- Preheat the oven for 20 minutes at 250 C / 480 F. Place a baking tray inside while preheating.
- Once it had doubles, punch it down and transfer it to a counter. Divide the dough into 6-8 portions. Dust the counter with flour and roll out each portion in a disc with about 1/2-inch thickness.
- Change sides as you roll them out and dust when it is likely to stick to you rolling pin. Do not use too much flour; use it only if it sticks too much.
- Once you've rolled out all the portions arrange the discs in batches on the hot baking tray from the oven. Place the tray back inside the oven. Within 5 minutes, the dough will puff up thereby forming the pockets. Once all the discs puff up, let the pitas cook for few more minutes. In total, it would take 8-10 minutes.
- Remove the tray and remove the pitas onto a thick cotton cloth. Keep it covered. Repeat the same process with the other discs. Your pita breads are ready!
Notes
- Whole Wheat Flour: Using 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour is completely optional. When used in this quantity it doesn’t affect the gluten formation.
- Warm Water: Water shouldn’t be too hot which would kill the yeast. You should be able to put your finger for 10 seconds at least that’ll be the right temperature.
- Kneading Time: 20 minutes seems like a long time to knead but it is important that you knead for that long. Pockets will form even if you knead it for 10 minutes, but it will be too thin to hold your fillings. Take rest as when and needed to finish kneading it.
- Kneading: The usual push and pull method works well. To do that, push the dough with the heel of your hand (below the thumb); this will stretch the dough. Then, fold the stretched dough over to form a dough again. Repeat this process throughout kneading. Initially, the dough won’t stretch much, but you’ll notice the difference before you finish kneading.
- Dividing into portions: Dividing the dough into 8 portions will give you medium-sized pitas which gives medium-sized pockets one that you can fit in on of your palms. Whereas, when you divide it into 6 portions, it will give you big pita pockets where you can fit in 4-5 falafels.
Made this? Got doubts? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Marp says
The water is hot enough when you can put your finger in it for 10 seconds?!? That differs for every person. How about a temperature?
admingingerskillet says
You’re right. Even though the 10 seconds refers to an approximation, I guess it would be better to set a temperature.
Will update it 🙂
Beverly says
I tried this recipe twice. Got nothing but a sticky mess both times.