Greek-Style Pita Bread Recipe

All cultures have their own style of bread, and Greece is no stranger to the rule. Wellness coach Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe for Greek-style pita bread, and says that "Most people assume all pita bread has a pocket, but in Greece, they go pocket-less with their pita bread, and it's also known for being soft and pliable." This type of bread is great to eat alongside a delicious spread like hummus, and we love dipping it into this simple spiced lentils recipe. "There's just something about pita bread made at home that's so much better than store-bought," Hahn shares. "I like to serve it right after making it when it's still warm — that's when it's the most delicious, and the family goes crazy over it." 

Homemade breads of all kinds do have several steps and some sitting-around "rest" time, but Hahn tells us that you can do half of the job the day before. After the dough has rested, and you have divided it into sections, you can wrap those individually in plastic wrap, and do the rolling and cooking right before serving. "I often do the labor-intensive part on the weekend, and then I can pull off delicious pita bread for a weeknight meal," Hahn remarks.

For this recipe, you will need some warm water, sugar, active dry yeast, all-purpose flour, salt, and oil. Hahn says, "These are pretty basic ingredients, which makes it handy to whip up a batch on a whim. If you happen to only have bread flour in the house, you can swap that in, and any type of neutral oil like avocado or olive works well in this recipe."

First things first, mix the yeast with the warm water and sugar to activate it. Hahn says, "Just stir to combine, and make sure you don't have any yeast clumps. Then, leave it alone for about 10 minutes, and you will notice bubbles appear on the surface." At this point, whisk the flour and salt together in another bowl, then add the flour mixture into the yeast mixture, 1 cup at a time. When the dough has formed, place it onto a large board or work surface, and knead for 5 minutes until you have a smooth ball of dough. Coat the inside of a large bowl with 1 tablespoon of oil, place the dough in the bowl, cover it, and set it in a warm location for 1 hour.

After resting, the dough should have doubled in size. Remove it from the bowl, and divide it into 8 equal parts. Then, roll each part into a 6-inch circle. Keep the dough portions covered under a damp dishtowel as you roll each one, so they don't dry out.

Once you have the dough circles ready, add some of the remaining oil to a medium, non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Working one at a time, place each pita into the pan, and cook for 3 minutes on each side. You will notice they will have bumpy spots that brown up, and that is your cue to flip. Hahn says, "The first one that you do always takes longer, but once you get going they cook up pretty quickly. Keep the cooked pitas under a towel to keep them warm until serving. For leftovers, Hahn says to seal them up in a Ziploc or reusable silicone bag, and then warm up [the pitas] in the oven for a few minutes when ready to eat. You may never put packaged Greek pita bread in your cart again.