Soft and fluffy homemade Greek pockless pita bread. Great served with mezze foods or brushed with garlic and parsley butter.
Many of the recipes I bake for my blog are influenced by my travels. This Tomato Parmesan Focaccia is inspired by focaccia I ate on holiday in Tuscany and Puglia. This Lemon Herb Rice and Halloumi and Roasted Vegetable Couscous with Tzatziki is similar to a couple of dishes I first tried in Cyprus and the Greek Islands I’ve travelled to.
I’m very passionate about Italian cuisine, but I am equally obsessed with Cypriot and Greek food. The same as a lot of people, we all haven’t been able to get away abroad on holiday for quite some time now due to the ongoing situation. Though, that doesn’t mean we can’t experience the same food and bring our summer holiday home.
On the topic of bread and world cuisines: different countries all have their own bread recipes. France has the classic baguette greatly enjoyed with butter and French cheese, India has chapatis and naan bread used to scoop up flavourful curries, Italy has focaccia and pizza and Mexico has the tortilla. For Greece and Cyprus (and other destinations around the Mediterranean and Middle East), they have the pita.
This homemade flatbread is ultra soft and fluffy, it’s more bread-like and substantial than pita bread you can buy readymade. It’s so incredibly tasty torn into pieces and dunked into a bowl of hummus or tzatziki.
The pita bread is prepared the same way as the majority of breads are. Start by mixing warm milk (use dairy or plant milk depending on your dietary requirements) and warm water with yeast and sugar, then leave it for 5 minutes until it’s frothy. After that you’ll add the bread flour and salt to a large mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture and mix until a dough forms. Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes, then pop the dough into a well oiled bowl and leave it until doubled in size.
The reason I prefer making my own pita is because the pita bread you get from the supermarket is rather dry and cardboard like quite frankly, nowhere near as fluffy and moreish as homemade.
The pita I’m sharing today is made is plain, I’ve made this recipe and added 1-2 tablespoons of nigella seeds to make naan bread to serve with this Chickpea Tikka Masala. The recipe is so versatile, you can also add herbs (dried or fresh) and other seasonings to the dough to flavour it. Pictured below is a batch of naan bread I made using this recipe.
Follow the recipe but swap the oil in the dough for melted vegan butter, then once cooked brush each naan bread with melted garlic and parsley butter. So delicious!
So here’s the most important part, below is this super easy recipe for making the best and FLUFFIEST Greek Pita Bread, by Akis Petretzikis.
Greek Pita Bread
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons dried yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 160 ml milk (or plant based alternative)
- 80 ml water (lukewarm)
- 320 g strong white bread flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl or jug, combine the yeast, sugar, milk and water. Stir well and then set aside for 5 minutes until the mixture starts to froth.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour and salt and give a quick mix together. Add the yeast mixture to the dry ingredients along with the olive oil. Mix again until a dough has formed.
- Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes until you are left with a smooth dough - it will be quite sticky. If the dough is difficult to handle add a little extra flour.
- Add a drizzle of oil to another bowl and transfer the dough to this bowl, coating it well with the oil. Cover and leave the dough to rise at room temperature for 40-60 minutes or until it's doubled in size.
- Place a frying pan on medium heat. Divide the dough up into 6 equally sized pieces (I weigh mine to be accurate). Dust a work surface with some flour and roll each piece of dough out into an oval shape about 20cm long and 10cm wide. They don't have to exact, so don't worry if not every pita looks the same that's the beauty in these being homemade.
- Cook each pita 1-2 minutes on each side until they puff up and are lightly golden. Serve the pita warm or at room temperature. Once cooled, they will keep for up to 2 days. They can be frozen, just keep in a ziplock bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature and eat within a day.
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