Make your own puffy pita bread! Follow my easy and basic step-by-step guide to enjoy this staple at home.
Homemade Pita Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 3 cups bread flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the water and the yeast together. Let sit for about five minutes, or until the yeast has dissolved. Add in 2 ½ cups of the flour, salt, and olive oil. Using a spatula, stir until a shaggy dough is formed.
- Transfer dough to a stand mixer and knead on low speed using the dough hook for about 5-10 minutes. As needed, add more flour to keep the dough from sticking, but try not to use too much.
- Clean the original bowl and film it with a little olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it until it’s completely coated with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until it has doubled, about 1-2 hours.
- Deflate the dough and turn it onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and flatten them into thick disks. Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Using a floured rolling pin, roll each piece into a circle about 8 inches wide and a quarter-inch thick. Make sure to lift and turn the dough as you roll to make sure it doesn’t stick. Let rest for about 20 minutes. As the dough rests, preheat oven to 500°F, place your baking sheet on the middle rack to heat.
- Once the oven is preheated, place the pitas (as many will fit) directly on the baking sheet. Bake for about 3-4 minutes. The pita will start to puff up after about a minute or two and is done when it has fully puffed up. While cooking remaining pitas, cover baked pitas with a clean dishtowel. Note: Some pitas will not puff up but will still be just as tasty.
Notes
Enjoy with hummus or your favorite dip! Store leftover pitas in a ziplock bag
Did you make this recipe?Leave a comment below and tag @theurbenlife on social!
Pam L. says
Winner, winner!!! I followed the directions, but I did tweak the recipe a bit. I used all purpose flour. I measured 2 1/2 cups AP flour and 2 1/2 tsp. vital wheat gluten onto a paper plate. I guess the vital wheat gluten make AP flour act more like bread flour. I measured 1/2 cup AP flour and 1/2 tsp. vital wheat gluten onto a small paper plate. I use instant yeast for all my bread baking. I added 1 tablespoon honey to the yeast and water mixture. The other ingredients as shown in the recipe. When I transferred the dough to my stand mixture fitted with dough hook, I only added about a tablespoon of the reserved 1/2 cup flour. I only got 6 pitas out of the recipe weighing approx. 3.75 oz. each. Five of the 6 puffed up beautifully (which was way better than I got with another recipe I tried). I did bake 3 at a time on my very heavy duty baking sheet and they went for the full 4 minutes. It sounds complicated, but this was the easiest recipe that I've tried lately.
Jenna | The Urben Life says
Thank you so much for sharing your experience and tips! Sometimes I'll keep my pitas in the oven for longer (with a close eye on them) to see if they'll puff up with a couple extra minutes. Next time I make them I'm going to add some honey 🙂 Sounds delicious
elliebleu says
Wow! They turned out perfect. Next time I make pita bread I'm trying your recipe. -Ellie
theurbenlife says
Thank you!! I love making these 🙂 I've found I have better luck with them puffing up when I let them rest and when I use bread flour. Let me know how yours turn out!
elliebleu says
I think I'm impatient when making them. Thanks for all the tips. Hope you have a wonderful day.
mylifeasishan says
Looks delicious
theurbenlife says
Thank you! I love pita bread with hummus.