Homemade Pita Bread

On our last vacation, we had the opportunity to taste the Arabic Pita Breads in their original place. They were fluffy, tender, swollen, with a pocket where you could have any filling you wanted which wouldn't run when you were trying to eat them. We appreciated them a lot with a fantastic falafel, raw or grilled vegetables and as much sauce as possible.

When I got home, I quickly made them and they were just wonderful. I really recommend the recipe and the method. Carefully follow the steps and recommendations for a pita with a perfectly swollen pocket, not cracked and not torn.

Ingredients
Warm water
360 ml
Active dry yeast
7 g
Sugar
1 tsp
Salt
1 tsp
White flour
500 g
and a little more, for dusting the work space
Vegetable oil
2 tbsp
Step by step
Step 1

In a large bowl, combine 360ml of warm water with 1 teaspoon of sugar and 7g of dry yeast. Stir and leave to sit for 10 minutes until the yeast starts to foam.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 1
Step 2

Mix in 1 teaspoon of salt and 500g of flour, use a spatula or a spoon.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 2
Step 3

At the end, add 2 tablespoons of oil and start kneading the dough with your hands.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 3
Step 4

This recipe can be worked in a bowl or even on the table. It will be a bit more sticky and soft (especially in the beginning), but under no circumstances should more flour be added. Use a knife or a dough scraper if it sticks to the table.

Stop kneading when the dough is uniform, elastic and no longer sticks to your hands.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 4
Step 5

Grease the bowl with a little oil and place the ball of dough back in it. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise for 1 hour at room temperature.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 5
Step 6

After 1 hour, heat the oven first. Set it to 240 C, upper and lower heat program. Place the baking tray upside-down on the middle shelf of the oven.

This is how we improvise a hot hearth, on which we will bake our Arabic breads.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 6
Step 7

While the oven is heating up, remove the leavened dough from the bowl and divide it into 8 equal parts.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 7
Step 8

Shape into 8 uniform balls, dust the table with a little flour, if needed.

Let the balls rest for 10 minutes.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 8
Step 9

After 10 minutes, take one ball and flatten into a disc, pressing it with your fingers. Pass it through flour.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 9
Step 10

With the rolling pin, roll out into an even circle, about 6mm thick. Dust with flour, if needed, so that the pita won't stick to the table.

My recommendation is not rolling them too thin, otherwise you risk not forming the swollen pocket or cracking when baking.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 10
Step 11

Move the circle on a small cutting board, mine is round and with a handle, but a classic one also works.

Sprinkle with flour before placing the pita on it.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 11
Step 12

With firm movements, shake/move the cutting board to transfer the pita to the hot tray in the oven, our improvised hot hearth.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 12
Step 13

Close the oven. It would be good to set the timer every 3-4 minutes, so you won't keep it in the oven for too long.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 13
Step 14

If you look through the oven window, in about a minute, the pita will start to puff up and this is how the wonderful pocket forms.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 14
Step 15

The pita is ready when it has puffed up and begins to brown on the edges.

Carefully remove with a spatula and place another one, after repeating the procedure as described in the steps above.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 15
Step 16

As soon as you remove the pita from the oven, insert a toothpick in the middle to make a small hole. Carefully press to let the hot air come out, but not all of it.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 16
Step 17

As the pitas are baking, arrange them on top of each other and cover with a towel, to keep them soft and warm.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 17
Step 18

Finally, cut them in half and serve with any filling you like.

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 18
Step 19

We filled them with falafel, vegetables, yogurt and tahini sauce. You can improvise with any meat you like, meatballs or vegan balls, ketchup, cabbage salad, grilled vegetables etc.

Enjoy!

Homemade Pita Bread - Step 19
Quantity: 8 pcs ()
Prep time:
45 min
Difficulty: intermediate
Ready in: 90 min