How to make Arabic pita bread. Pita bread: preparing a tender “Piece of the Middle East. Pita recipes

Some people have tried flat cakes baked from wheat or wallpaper flour. In the Middle East it has a special name - pita. The recipe for making this pastry came to us from time immemorial. The first mentions of such bread can be found in the Old Testament. In Hebrew, the name of the flatbread is “pat of bread,” which means “large bread pita.”

Flatbread with a "pocket"

A distinctive feature of traditional Arabic pita bread is the water vapor that is created in the dough when making the flatbread. It accumulates in the center of the baked goods in a bubble, separating the layers of dough. Thus, a large cavity is formed inside the baked goods, which chefs call a “pocket.” It can be opened with a sharp knife by cutting the edge of the cake. Meat, salads and other delicious fillings are placed in the “pocket”.

The average Arab pita has a diameter of approximately twenty centimeters. The recipe for making this flatbread will be outlined below. In the meantime, we’ll talk about analogues of this delicious bread. There are many varieties of pita in the world. For example, in Georgia they bake lavash, which is a large fluffy loaf without a “pocket”. In Iraq they make a very thin flatbread - lafa, and in India they prepare chapatis. In our article we will talk about how traditional Arabic pita is baked. A cooking recipe with a photo will help you master the technology of making this dish in a matter of minutes.

Pita without yeast. Ingredients

It’s quite easy to bake healthy and tasty pita. The cooking recipe (without yeast) states that the following products are needed to create this flatbread:

wheat flour - 550 grams;
milk (sour) - 50 milliliters;
water - 225 milliliters;
salt - 1 teaspoon.

Pita without yeast. Preparing sourdough

First of all, you should prepare the starter. To do this, you need to knead the dough from 200 grams of flour, 50 milliliters of milk and 50 milliliters of water. After this, it must be placed in a warm place for three days. By this time, bubbles will form on the surface of the dough. In addition, the product will have a sour odor, characteristic of the fermentation process. This means that the starter is ready for use, it can be stored in the refrigerator, and then reused as needed.

The product must be refreshed before use. To do this, you need to take 100 grams of starter from the refrigerator, mix it with 100 grams of flour and 50 milliliters of water and put it back in a warm place. After a couple of hours, the dough should have increased by half. It happens that fermentation takes longer than the specified time. If the process is delayed, then the starter should be refreshed again.

The main microorganisms of this product are acetic acid and Bread baked with such leaven does not spoil for a long time. In addition, when it is regularly consumed as food, a favorable environment is created in the human body for the development of beneficial microflora and the destruction of pathogenic ones. From time immemorial, our ancestors baked bread not with yeast, but with sourdough. This time-tested product will come in very handy today.

Pita without yeast. Cooking method

Now you can start making the cakes. First of all, you need to take 125 grams of starter, 125 milliliters of water and 250 grams of flour. Often different varieties are used when preparing pita. The cooking recipe allows for mixing ¾ white flour and ¼ rye flour. To knead the dough, you must first add warm water to the starter and stir everything thoroughly. Next, you need to dissolve the salt in the liquid and only then add flour to it.
Then you should knead the dough and set it aside for an hour and a half so that it has time to rise.
After this, you need to turn on the oven and leave it to warm up to 250-270 degrees.
Now the finished dough can be placed on a floured cutting board. Then you need to divide it into several small balls.
Then you need to form the pieces into round cakes and carefully place them on the wire rack.
It only takes three minutes to prepare the pita. As soon as the cakes puff up and rise, they need to be removed from the oven and wrapped in a towel to absorb excess moisture.
The bread should not be kept on the fire for a long time, otherwise it will brown and become crispy. If you bake the cake at too low a temperature, it will turn out pale and too dry. So the correct temperature is of great importance.
Now the Arabic pita is ready. The recipe for making it at home is very simple. All family members will be glad that a new unusual dish has appeared on the table. However, in the Middle East this flatbread is not perceived as a separate dish. It is more of a “packaging” for a variety of fillings. We’ll talk about what you can put in the pita “pocket” below.
Filling
Juicy falafel balls, smeared with a mixture of shredded lettuce, hummus and tahini, with hot sauce and unleavened flatbread dough create the perfect Mediterranean flavor ensemble that many tourists love. It is quite difficult to recreate this culinary masterpiece at home. However, you can make a lot of delicious dishes in which the main ingredient is pita. The filling recipe involves the use of simple and affordable products.
For example, you can make pita fried bread. To do this, you need to cut the flatbread into two circles, place one of them in a frying pan with butter, break an egg on top so that the yolk is not damaged, and bake like an ordinary scrambled egg. Or you can create pita toast. Everything is very simple here too. You need to cut the edge of the flatbread, place slices of tomatoes and pieces of cheese in it, place it in a toaster with a grooved surface and keep it until done. The end result should be crispy fried bread with melted cheese inside. This is how you prepare a simple and very tasty pita. The recipe and filling of this dish will not cause any difficulties even for a novice cook.
Pita with yeast
Arabic flatbread can also be made in a frying pan. True, then it is better to cook pita with the addition of yeast. The ingredients are as follows:
- water - 1 glass;
- white flour - 500 grams;
- vegetable (preferably olive) oil - 2 tablespoons;
- dry yeast - 10 grams;
- salt - 1 teaspoon.
Cooking method

This is how Arabic pita is made with the addition of yeast. The recipe for cooking in a frying pan does not require much time.
Garlic bread
This delicacy is now served in many restaurants, but you can also make it at home. To do this, the finished pita must be cut in half lengthwise and thoroughly rubbed inside with garlic. Then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with za'atar (a Middle Eastern spice blend). After this, the bread should be placed in the oven for about five to seven minutes. The garlic pita is no worse than in any restaurant. A recipe for cooking a dish can take pride of place in a cookbook.
Now you know the secrets of making flavorful Arabic flatbread. This pastry will be an excellent alternative to traditional bread. Bon appetit!

Let's prepare traditional Arabic bread - pita bread. This is a very simple homemade baking, which uses only the most affordable products. The peculiarity of pita is its round flat shape, as well as the emptiness in the middle. Thanks to the water vapor that forms inside the cake during baking, the dough swells like a ball and separates. It turns out to be a kind of pocket in which you can easily place absolutely any filling of your choice.

Pitas are usually prepared from wallpaper flour, but I prefer to use premium wheat flour. Of course, the finished flatbreads will not be golden brown, but this does not at all affect the taste and aroma of this unleavened bread. In a city apartment, the preparations are baked in a well-heated oven at high temperature directly on a dry baking sheet. I hope that the recipe will be useful to you and that you will often spoil your homemade Arabic pitas.

Ingredients:

Cooking the dish step by step with photos:

To prepare these unleavened Arabic flatbreads, we will take such simple and affordable ingredients as wheat flour (premium or first grade), water, refined vegetable oil (I use sunflower oil), salt and yeast. I used instant yeast, which does not require pre-activation in liquid, but is added directly to the flour. If you just have dry yeast (also 1.5 teaspoons) or compressed/fresh yeast (15 grams), you need to dissolve it in warm water and let it stand for 10-15 minutes.

Add 1.5 teaspoons of instant yeast and 1 teaspoon of salt (preferably fine). If the salt is coarse, it is advisable to dissolve it in warm water in advance. Mix the flour and yeast with your hand or a spoon until the mixture becomes relatively homogeneous.

We knead a fairly soft dough that holds its shape perfectly and practically does not stick to your hands. You need to knead long enough (with your hands - at least 10 minutes) so that the dough becomes completely homogeneous and smooth. Cover the bowl with cling film or cover with a towel and leave warm for 2 hours. After 1 hour of fermentation, do a light knead to release the gas, round the dough and return to heat for another 1 hour.

After 2 hours of fermentation, the yeast dough for flatbreads will work very well and will increase in volume by at least 3-3.5 times.

Divide it into small pieces of the same size, rounding each one into a ball shape. Leave on a work surface lightly dusted with flour, cover with film or a towel and let the workpieces rest at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

Then roll out each piece of dough into a flat cake (no more than 5 millimeters thick), remembering to sprinkle the dough with flour (lightly) so that it does not stick to the rolling pin. In this way we roll out all the blanks. Let them rest for 10 minutes on the table.

In advance (30 minutes before baking), turn on the oven to warm up to 220 degrees along with the baking sheet - it should be red-hot. When the oven is properly heated, take out a hot baking sheet (you don’t have to take it out, just pull it out) and quickly place several pieces on it.

Immediately close the oven door and cook the pitas on medium level for about 7-8 minutes. During this time they will puff up like balls and be completely baked. When the first batch is ready, remove the cakes from the baking sheet and immediately bake the rest.

Pita is a round, hollow flatbread traditionally baked in the Middle East and Mediterranean countries. As a result of baking, a “pocket” is formed in the pita, making it convenient to fill it with various fillings – salads, meat, hummus. It is very convenient and tasty, which is why this bread has gained wide popularity in many countries around the world. Is it possible to bake pita bread at home? Can! The main rule when baking these flatbreads is a very hot oven. Try it, you will succeed!

Required:

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon yeast

300 ml water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation:

Knead soft dough. I do this in a bread maker on the “Pizza” mode. In this case, the dough is kneaded well and rises slightly.

To knead by hand, combine the dry ingredients and the liquid ingredients separately. Then combine both mixtures together and knead into a soft dough. Next, the preparation will be described as the same for both dough from a bread machine and kneading by hand. Place the dough in a large bowl. Cover with cling film or cover with a damp towel.

Leave the dough at room temperature for about an hour. The yeast began to work and on my glass lid you can see how the dough “breathes”, perspiration appeared. In an hour it will approximately double in size.

Then punch down the risen dough by folding it into an envelope. Or just remember. Place back in the bowl, cover and leave to rise for another 20 minutes.

This is how it increased after the second rise.

Now divide the dough into eight equal parts. You can do this by eye, or you can weigh all the dough on a scale and divide the weight by eight. You will find out how much one piece of pita dough will weigh.

Roll each part into a ball. Cover with film or a towel and leave on a floured counter for 10 minutes.

After this time, observing the order, roll each ball into a thin cake measuring 15 cm. While you are rolling out the dough, turn on the oven at 250 * convection mode. This is my maximum power. If you do not have convection, then bake in the “top/bottom” mode. In this case, the pita will turn out white. This does not affect the taste in any way, only the rosy appearance. Convection adds plus 20*. Baking pita requires a very high temperature, the higher the better.

Transfer the pitas to a cold or hot baking tray lined with baking paper. I tried baking on baking sheets at different temperatures and didn’t notice any difference except that when you bake on a hot baking sheet, the bottom of the pita bread browns more and that’s it. So, put it on a baking sheet. Mine fits four. I will bake it twice, first one pan, then the other. But not two at once! This absolutely cannot be done. Bake for 5-6 minutes no more, otherwise these cakes will simply dry out.

Pita bread is popular in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries. Outwardly, it resembles a small cake, hollow inside. This crumpet can rightfully be one of the most ancient dishes, since mentions of it are found in the Old Testament. Today it is not only served with the main meal, but also prepared as an independent dish, stuffing the flatbread with all kinds of fillings.

Arabic pita bread can be made from yeast and unleavened dough. Let's look at several recipes for this dish that can be prepared at home.

Yeast dough pita

Despite the intriguing name of this bread, the process of making it is relatively simple. Anyone can bake delicious pita bread. In addition, preparing a dish involves a set of products that are almost always available in every home.

Ingredients for preparing pita (recipes in all cases indicate tablespoons):

500 g flour;
300 ml water;
½ tablespoon each of salt, dry yeast, sugar;
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil.

Arabic pita bread is prepared like any other baked product, namely, it begins with the process of kneading the dough. For this recipe, there is also a rule of mandatory sifting of flour (in order to saturate it with oxygen and remove lumps and impurities).

The flour is sifted into a container in which the dough will be kneaded later. Then, using a mixer at minimum speed, mix the flour, to which salt and sugar are added. When the bulk is evenly distributed in the mixture, add the yeast and again everything is brought to homogeneity.
The amount of warm water specified in the recipe is poured into the container with bulk products with continuous stirring.
Without turning off the mixer (also on minimum mode), knead the mass until it becomes homogeneous. Then, while stirring, vegetable oil is added in several stages. Knead everything together for about 10 minutes.
To properly prepare pita bread, you need to let the dough “grow.” That is, the finished mass is transferred to a larger container and covered with cling film (can be replaced with a clean, damp, thin towel). In this form, the dough should stand at room temperature until it doubles in volume (about 1-1.5 hours).
After the specified time, the dough is kneaded (instead, you can fold it several times). Then cover again with film/towel and leave for about another half hour (but not less than 20 minutes).
The finished mass is kneaded again and divided into equal pieces, which are rolled into balls (you should get 8 pieces). The dough, divided into portions, is again left to rise.
After 10 minutes, the pieces are rolled into balls again, each of which is rolled out into a small cake (15 cm in diameter).
Before baking the pita bread, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 250 degrees. With this heating of the oven, the cakes are baked for no more than 6 minutes. Finished products should not be ruddy. Properly prepared pita bread, as the instructions say, should be pale but soft.
The baked crumpets are removed from the oven, transferred to a wooden stand (or on a clean wooden cutting board), covered with a towel and left to cool completely.

As you can see, preparing pita bread is not difficult and you do not need to have any special knowledge or abilities. Pita flatbreads are served with meat dishes and salads.

Unleavened Pita

The bread prepared according to this recipe is not inferior in taste to the first option and in appearance it is no less appetizing, as can be seen in the photo showing the finished product.

Ingredients for making pita:

3 full glasses of flour;
¼ cup sour milk;
1 glass of water;
½ spoon of salt.

This pita bread recipe involves making sourdough starter. To do this, milk, water and flour are mixed in a ratio of 1:1:4, where 1 equals 50 grams. Then the mixture is placed in a warm place for three days. The finished sourdough has a sour smell, when it appears it can be moved to the refrigerator for storage and used as needed. But in the future it will need to be refreshed, that is, dilute a 100-gram portion of the starter with water (¼ cup) and flour (a heaping glass) and leave in a warm place for two hours (sometimes it will take a little more time).

Now let's look step by step at how to prepare this unleavened pita bread. Cooking diagram:

Sourdough, water and flour are mixed in proportions 1:1:2 (where 1 equals 125 grams). First, warm water is added to the starter, mixed until smooth, salt and the specified amount of flour are added. The dough is kneaded.
The finished dough is left to proof for 1.5 hours, after which it is necessary to preheat the oven to 250 (or up to 270) degrees.
While the oven is warming up, the finished mass is laid out on a board or table sprinkled with flour and divided into portions. Small balls are formed from the pieces, which are rolled out and placed on a wire rack.
This unleavened bread takes no more than 3 minutes to bake. The finished cakes should rise well and increase in volume. The baked donuts are removed from the oven and wrapped in a clean towel.

You should not keep the bread in the oven for a long time, as it will become browned and crispy. Compliance with the specified temperature regime is also of great importance.
As for flour, in the version with unleavened dough it is permissible to mix rye and white flour in a ratio of 1:4.

Regardless of the fact that pita bread recipes are different, the finished products turn out tasty and unusual. At home they are served separately, but in most cases they are used not as ordinary bread, but as a “pocket” for all kinds of fillings.

Video: Yeast-free lean pita bread - step-by-step home recipe

A simple and very tasty food - Arabic pita bread, you can serve it for lunch or for a snack, adding your favorite filling to the pita.

This is a very simple homemade baking, which uses only the most affordable products. The peculiarity of pita is its round flat shape, as well as the emptiness in the middle. Thanks to the water vapor that forms inside the cake during baking, the dough swells like a ball and separates. It turns out to be a kind of pocket in which you can easily place absolutely any filling of your choice.

wheat flour - 500 gr
water - 300 ml
vegetable oil - 50 ml
instant yeast - 1.5 tsp.
salt - 1 tsp.

After 2 hours of fermentation, the yeast dough for flatbreads will work very well and will increase in volume by at least 3-3.5 times.

The finished pitas, if you did everything correctly, will inflate well, but will not tear - all the air will remain inside.

Serve the pitas warm, although once cooled they will remain fresh for several days when stored in an airtight container or tightly sealed bag. These cakes, by the way, can be frozen.

Arabic pita breads are soft, tender, aromatic and very tasty. They are hollow inside and are great for filling with a variety of fillings. Try it, you will love this simple but delicious homemade bread.

Recipe 2: Yeast Pita Flatbread (step by step)

Under normal household conditions, it is difficult to repeat the traditional technological process, but nevertheless, our housewives were able to adapt the recipe for making this amazing bread, and now pita bread can appear on every table. You will need very high temperature and knowledge of some secrets. During short baking, the pita flatbread puffs up greatly and forms a pocket inside, which can be filled with any filling after cooking. Pita is perfect for first and second courses; it is convenient to take with you on the road or to work. Any recipe for pita bread at home is simple, because you use products that are in any kitchen.

water 200 ml
salt 1 tsp
sugar 1 tsp
dry yeast 2 tsp.
olive oil 2 tbsp.
wheat flour 350 g.

Before making pita bread at home, prepare the basic ingredients. Pour room temperature water into a deep bowl. Add salt and granulated sugar. Stir until dissolved.

Sift the wheat flour into another bowl with high sides. Add dry yeast. Use a hand whisk and stir until the yeast is evenly distributed throughout the flour.

Pour liquid into flour mixture. Start mixing with a spoon until a thick dough forms. Continue kneading on a dusted board until a soft dough forms.

Transfer the ball of dough back to the bowl. Pour in olive oil. Knead until the butter is absorbed into the dough ball.

Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about 40-60 minutes. If the room is very warm, the dough will rise faster.

Punch down the rested dough. If necessary, add a little flour. Divide into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Cover the pieces with a towel and work with each one separately.

Roll out into a round layer 5-7 mm high.

Turn on the oven in advance. Line a baking sheet with parchment and place in the oven to preheat. Set the temperature to 260-270 degrees. Place the rolled out pieces immediately into the oven on a hot baking sheet.

Bake the bread cake for 5-7 minutes. Pita should remain white.

Unusual flatbreads are ready. Serve warm without anything or stuff it. Absolutely any filling for pita bread is easy to prepare. Bon appetit!

Recipe 3: puffed pita at home

Flour – 1 kilogram
Salt – 2 teaspoons
Sugar – 2 teaspoons
Dry yeast – 1.5 teaspoon
Vegetable oil – 4 tablespoons
Water – 600 milliliters

Sift one kilogram of flour into a mixer bowl and, mixing at low speed, add two teaspoons of salt and two teaspoons of sugar. When the flour is well mixed with sugar and salt, add 1.5 teaspoons of dry yeast and mix well again.

Gradually, while continuing to stir, pour approximately 600 milliliters of warm water into the flour.

Knead at low speed until a homogeneous dough is obtained and gradually, while continuing to knead, pour in 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Knead the dough for about 10 more minutes.

Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover with cling film or a slightly damp towel and leave at room temperature to rise for about an hour and a half, the dough should double in volume.

Punch down the risen dough or fold it several times. And once again put it in a bowl, cover with film or a towel and leave for 20-30 minutes.

After 20 minutes, knead the dough and divide it into four parts. Roll each part into a ball and divide it into four parts again.

We got 16 identical pieces of dough, cover them with a towel and leave for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, roll each piece of dough into a ball and, observing the order, roll each ball into a flat cake with a diameter of 15 centimeters.

Place the pitas on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven at 250 degrees Celsius for 5-6 minutes. The pitas should be soft and not brown.

Remove the finished pitas from the oven, place them on a wooden board, cover with a towel and let cool slightly.

Serve pitas warm with meat and salads.

Recipe 4: Hollow Pita Flatbread (step by step photos)

Flour - 750 g
Fresh yeast - 25 g
Sugar - 2 tsp.
Water - 450 ml.
Sunflower oil - 2 tbsp.
Salt - 1 tsp.

First of all, dissolve sugar in warm water, add yeast, mix well. Cover with a napkin and leave for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes the liquid should begin to bubble.

Meanwhile, sift the flour into a bowl and add salt. Don't pour out all the flour at once. It’s better later, when kneading the dough, to add more if necessary (it may be needed and vice versa - more)

Add the yeast mixture to the flour and knead the dough. The dough should not be “clogged” with flour, it should be quite soft. Knead for at least 10 minutes, the dough becomes smoother and softer with every minute. And the best thing is to entrust this task to a bread maker!

Lightly sprinkle the bowl with flour and place the dough here, after rolling it into a ball. Cover with film and leave in a warm place for 1-1.5 hours until the volume doubles. Now the best place for this is the oven with the light on.

After the specified time, take out the dough and knead it.

Cut it into 12-15 approximately equal parts. Roll each part into a ball. Don't forget to cover the balls with a napkin to avoid chapping. Leave them alone for 15 minutes, covering them with a napkin and protecting them from drafts.

Meanwhile, prepare the baking sheets. To save time, I use 3 (but ONLY bake one at a time!). Place parchment paper on them and sprinkle with a little flour. Turn on the oven to preheat to 250 degrees.

After 15 minutes, take the ball that we formed first and roll it out. The thickness should be approximately 6-8 mm. Place on a baking sheet. We will do the same with the second, third, etc. balls.

I prefer to prepare all the ingredients at once, since we will proceed very quickly and they will be baked instantly. Having preheated the oven to 250 degrees, quickly put the first batch in there, trying not to keep the oven door open for a long time. Bake for about 8 minutes.

This is how they puff up in the oven at the 6 minute mark, but you should always use your oven as a guide!

The pitas should not brown too much, otherwise they will be dry. 2-3 minutes after “blowing” is enough (again, remember the nature of your oven).

We bake only one baking sheet at a time in the “bottom” or “bottom + top” mode (not letting them brown too much).

When the first batch is ready, quickly take it out, let the oven warm up again to 250 degrees, and repeat the process.

I usually bake one batch at 180 degrees, which produces ordinary but very tasty bread cakes.

Recipe 5, simple: pita without yeast

This easy recipe will help everyone who wants to make Arabic pita bread without yeast. The flatbread is easy and simple to prepare; it can also be baked in the oven at 250 degrees. Be sure to try making it at home and you won’t regret it!

Wheat flour - 2 Cups
Salt - 1 teaspoon
Vegetable oil - 4 tbsp. spoons
Water - To taste (How much dough will take)

In a separate container, mix wheat flour and salt, add oil and mix everything thoroughly with your hands. Gradually add water to the mixture and begin to knead the dough. We do this until the dough becomes elastic and sticky enough. Cover the dough with a towel and leave in a warm place for 10 minutes.

After the time has passed, we begin to roll out the dough on a work surface previously sprinkled with flour. Roll out a thin piece of dough and place it in a frying pan without oil. Bake over high heat, turning over. Each side will take approximately 30 seconds. Now transfer the cake to a grill over the fire and bake until bubbly. Pita without yeast is ready, bon appetit!

Recipe 6: Crispy filled pita bread

Wheat flour / Flour - 150 g
Water - 100 ml
Yeast (dry) - 5 g
Salt - 1 pinch.
Sugar - 1 tsp.
Vegetable oil - 1 tsp.

Cucumber - 1 piece
Lettuce leaves / Lettuce - 6 pcs.
Chicken (boiled) - 100 g
Champignons (fried) - 3 pcs.
Green onion - 2 sprigs.
Mayonnaise - 2 tbsp. l.
Black pepper (to taste) - 1 pinch.

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Then add salt, sugar and butter. Leave alone for 5 minutes.

Then add flour and knead the dough. Let it rise for 40-50 minutes.

Divide the dough into 6 parts. Roll each thinly into a circle. Bake on a wire rack, or in the microwave, in a preheated oven at 250C. While we are rolling out the next one, the first one is already ready.