Easy Homemade Pita Bread
This homemade pita bread recipe is simple and requires only a few ingredients. It’s soft, fluffy and is a great vessel for making a sandwich. Nothing beats the smell of fresh, warm, golden brown pita bread!
One of my favorite ways to eat sandwiches is when I can stuff all of the ingredients inside pita bread. It’s a great vessel to pack in toppings without them falling out. I also just think eating pita bread sandwiches is fun.
Here’s what you need to know…
Authentic pita bread uses wheat flour in the recipe, hence the small amount of wheat flour in this recipe. I personally can’t taste the wheat flour, but if you prefer to use just all-purpose flour, you can do so.
I recommend making pita bread in the oven. I have not had as great of luck making it in the skillet, but when you do get one to work in the skillet it’s fun to watch it puff up! You can equally watch it puff up in the oven. Just turn on the oven light :). The oven creates a hot environment which completely surrounds the bread, as opposed to only the underside of the bread being exposed in a skillet.
The biggest tip for how to make pita bread is making sure your sheet pan and oven are hot. It is important to heat up your baking sheet in the hot oven for 20 minutes before hand. This will create the heat needed to puff up the bread. Sometimes the bread may not puff up entirely. That is okay. You can still create the rest of the pocket by using a knife to gently split the layers.
If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love hearing your feedback! Also, make sure you find me on instagram, where you can see more fun behind the scenes and the full baking video for these.
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Easy Homemade Pita Bread
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
Description
This homemade pita bread recipe is simple and requires only a few ingredients. This authentic pita bread is soft, fluffy and is a great vessel for making a sandwich.
Ingredients
1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons or 1/4 ounce) instant yeast
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 cup water (warmed to 110F)
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add yeast, sugar, water, flour, salt and olive oil. Mix on low speed until the ingredients come together, then turn up to medium speed and knead for 8 minutes.
2. Transfer dough to lightly greased bowl. Spray the top of the dough with nonstick spray, then cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 500F. Place a baking sheet in the oven for 20 minutes to get hot.
4. Punch down dough and turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Divide into 8 pieces. Roll into an 8 inch wide circle, roughly ¼ inch thick.
*If baking these in the oven (I recommend using the oven), cut a piece of parchment paper to fit a sheet pan. Place rolled out pita dough on parchment paper. You may need 2-3 pieces of parchment paper and may have to bake in batches. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
*If baking these on the stove top in a skillet, cut 8 inch squares of parchment paper. Place the rolled out pita bread on the parchment paper squares. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
5. Oven: Slide parchment paper sheet with rolled-out pitas on hot baking sheet, then place back in oven. Bake 2 to 2 ½ minutes, or until puffed. Transfer pitas to a cooling rack and cover with a kitchen towel to keep pitas from drying out.
Skillet: Preheat cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Brush the skillet lightly with olive oil. Grab the corners of the parchment paper square, then flip the pita onto the hot skillet for 15 seconds. Flip the pita and cook for 1 minute. The pita should puff up. Flip over once more and cook additional 30 seconds.
6. You may freeze these for up to 3 months.
- Prep Time: 60
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Bread
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
