Homemade Pita Bread (5-Ingredients)

May 14, 2018

Appetizers and Sides

By: Jasmine Briones 

A step-by-step guide to making pita bread at home! This recipe is easy and requires just 5 simple ingredients. After making pita bread at home, you won’t ever want store-bought pita ever again!

straight forward image of pita bread stacked on a bowl with grey background.

This homemade pita bread is seriously going to change your life. I know that is a bold statement, but TRUST ME, this stuff is ridiculous. I can confidently say that after making pita bread at home, you won’t ever want store-bought pita again.

Image of falafel, hummus, and pita with hands grabbing food.

I was initially nervous about making pita bread at home, but it turns out that it is pretty simple and requires just 5-ingredients. The longest part of the recipe is the rising time!This recipe was inspired by a vegan food tour I attended with Vibe Israel this past March. I was introduced to so many new flavors, cuisines, and cultures on my trip, and I absolutely fell in LOVE with the food.

image of rebel recipes, sweet simple vegan, from my bowl, and the Buddhist Chef in Israel.
A step by step image of the pita bread dough being mixed.

One of my absolute favorite parts of the trip was the seemingly never-ending supply of hummus and pita. The pita was SOOOO fluffy and unlike anything that I had in the United States growing up. Not only was I inspired to make pita bread at home, but I also wanted to create a step-by-step guide so that you could experience it yourself, too! It definitely took a bit of trial and error (3 failed attempts, to say the least) but it was totally worth it in the end. I think I nailed it!I also wantes to pop this in here because the three people pictured above helped make the trip what it was for me– Jean-Phillipe of The Buddhist Chef, Niki of Rebel Recipes and my already bff Caitlin of From My Bowl. We built new friendships that will last a lifetime and made memories that will definitely never be forgotten. They are all vegan food bloggers as well and I highly recommend you check them out! 🙂

Anyways, let’s make some pita bread!First up, add the warm water, sugar, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1 cup of flour. Whisk everything together until uniform and set it aside for 15 minutes. The mixture should bubble and foam (as seen in photo 1).

Add olive oil and salt, along with 1 1/2 cups of flour, and mix on low speed using a dough hook attachment until the dough is soft and no longer stick to the sides of the bowl. If it does stick, add an additional 1/4 cup of flour at a time– we added 1/2 cup more.

Knead the dough on low for 5 to 6 minutes. Turn it out onto a floured work surface and form it into a ball.

step by step image of pitas bread dough rising.

If you don’t have a standing mixer, no need to worry. You can make this recipe with a bowl and a good ol‘ wooden spoon, it will just take a bit more time with manual mixing and kneading. Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover it with a clean towel. Allow for it to rise for 2 hours or until about doubled in size.

step by step of pita bread dough being rolled out.

I’m not sure about you, but punching down risen dough has got to be one of my favorite things to do! I just had to document it and include it in the images above because I think it is a sexy shot! Divide the dough into 8 pieces. We just roughly estimated the dough balls but if you would like for them to be perfectly even, simply use a food scale to be sure the weights of the balls are all the same.

Image of dough being flatted with rolling pin.

Form each piece of dough into a small ball, pulling dough from the sides and tucking the ends underneath the bottom. Place the balls about 1-inch apart onto the floured work surface and cover them with a lightly oiled piece of plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.Once rested, roll the dough balls out into flat and round pitas, about 1/4-inch thick.

If you do not have a rolling pin you can simply use your hands to pat the dough flat as best you can.

image of pita cooking in cast iron skillet.
image of pita puffing in cast iron skillet.

Allow the dough to rest for 10-30 minutes. From our experience, the longer the better! The longer the dough sits, the more likely it will form a pocket in the pita when cooking.Brush a cast-iron skillet with a tiny bit of olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the pita bread dough into the skillet and cook until bread begins to puff up and the bottom has browned, about 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook for 2 minutes more. Although it is ideal that the pita bread will begin to puff up and fill with hot air to get the perfect “pockets”, it is not necessary or always expected. Wrap the cooked bread in a clean dish towel as you continue cooking the rest of the pita to keep them warm.The pita bread is best if served immediately; if not, the pita will last in the airtight container at room temperature for about 5-7 days.

If you are looking for more bread recipes, we have a few on the blog that we think you will love:

If you make this recipe, let us know what you think in the comments below! + If you post any photos on Instagram, make sure you tag us @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris so that we don’t miss it, we love seeing your photos!

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A step-by-step guide to making pita bread at home! This recipe is easy and requires just 5 simple ingredients. After making pita bread at home, you won't ever want store-bought pita ever again! #pita #bread #homemade #5ingredients #fresh #vegan #easy #mediterranean #food #recipe #side #lunch #breads #wrap #sandwich #meal #sweetsimplevegan

Homemade Pita Bread {Just 5-Ingredients}


  • Author: Jasmine @ Sweet Simple Vegan
  • Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
  • Yield: 8 pitas

Description

A step-by-step guide to making pita bread at home! This recipe is easy and requires just 5 simple ingredients. After making pita bread at home, you won’t ever want store-bought pita ever again!


Ingredients

  • 1 cup (8 oz.) lukewarm warm water (about 105–110°F)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) active dry active yeast
  • ~3 cups all-purpose flour (or enough to form a soft and slightly sticky dough)
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 3/4 teaspoons salt

Instructions

  1. Add the warm water, sugar, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1 cup of flour. Whisk everything together until uniform and set it aside for 15 minutes. The mixture should bubble and foam.
  2. Add the olive oil and salt, along with 1 1/2 cups of flour. Mix on low speed, using a dough hook attachment, until the dough is soft and no longer stick to the sides of the bowl. If it does stick, add an additional 1/4 cup of flour at a time (we added 1/2 cup more for a total of 2 cups).
  3. Knead on low for 5 to 6 minutes.* Remove the dough from the bowl, turn it out onto a floured work surface and form it into a ball.
  4. Lightly oil a large bowl and place the dough inside. Turn it over to coat it with oil, and cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a warm area for 2 hours or until doubled in size.
  5. Remove the dough from the bowl and place onto a floured work surface. Form the dough into a large ball and cut it into 8 pieces using a sharp knife. We roughly estimate here but if you would like everything to be even, use a food scale to weight out each dough piece to ensure they are equal.
  6. Form each piece of dough into a small ball, pulling dough from the sides and tucking the ends underneath the bottom. Place the balls about 1-inch apart onto the floured work surface and cover them with a lightly oiled piece of plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.
  7. Once rested, roll the dough balls out into flat and round pitas, about 1/4-inch thick. If you do not have a rolling pin, you can simply use your hands to pat the dough flat as best you can. Allow the dough to rest for 10-30 minutes. From our experience, the longer the better! The longer the dough sits, the more likely it will form a pocket in the pita when cooking.
  8. Brush a cast-iron skillet with a tiny bit of olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the pita bread dough into the skillet and cook until bread begins to puff up and the bottom has browned, about 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook for 2 minutes more. Although it is ideal that the pita bread will begin to puff up and fill with hot air to get the perfect “pockets”, it is not necessary or always expected. Wrap the cooked bread in a clean dish towel as you continue cooking the rest of the pita to keep them warm.
  9. Best if served immediately; if not, the pita will last in the airtight container at room temperature for about 5-7 days.

Notes

  • Recipe adapted from Food Wishes.
  • If you don’t have a standing mixer, no worries! You can simply use a large bowl and a wooden spoon, it will just take a bit more time to mix everything together by hand.
  • If kneading by hand, increase kneading time to about 10 minutes.
  • If the pita does not form pockets, try increasing the heat of your pan.
  • Prep Time: 3 hours
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Category: Bread, Side
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Mediterranean, Vegan

Nutrition facts label provided by Nutri Fox.

 

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Recipe rating

  1. Stacy Olsen says:

    Thanks for sharing! I LOVE Pita Bread and am excited to try making it at home myself.

  2. Jenny says:

    Is there a way to make these with whole wheat flour? or at least partially whole wheat?

  3. Lately I have been REALLY invested in making my own baguettes! As a result, I’m obsessed with bread-making. I don’t think I can buy store-bought baguettes ever again! Anyways, I seriously do want to branch out to other varieties of bread such as roti, pita, and sourdough! This pita recipe looks to die for. I love how you stuck with the authentic ingredients and procedure to really capture the Israel culture!

  4. An Meersschaut says:

    Thank you for sharing your pita bread recipe.
    I am a Belgian living in Thailand. My husband and I missed a good vegan falafel sandwich.
    Today I made your recipe for pita bread in combination with The Buddhist Chef’s falafel…. WAAW!
    Very easy to make and so soft and tasty. It is now one of our favourite dishes.
    Thanks!

    • Hi An! Thank you so much for your feedback, this made us so happy to hear 🙂 Enjoy!

      • Kelly says:

        This pita bread is soooooo good! I made it to go with a big pot of chili (I know, not vegan) and this is such a perfect pita bread. My pockets formed perfectly and I love it is only 5 ingredients. If you can let the dough sit for longer than a half hour, it is worth it!

  5. […] and sides that can be added to this lentil stew is as varied as the soup itself. Try naan bread, pita or even homemade flour tortillas on the side for dipping. Or serve this stew over rice pilaf with […]

  6. P says:

    Delicious Ihust made these in my RV and shared with camping friends who all loved them.

  7. K Council says:

    Made these! The best Pita recipe I have found yet! Thank you

    • We are so happy to hear that you liked it! 🙂

    • Janice Glinka says:

      I have had best success with electric skillet where I can make 2 at a time. I tried a recipe that called for baking in oven at 500 degrees but pitas did not puff. Freezing was successful and seemed easier to open pockets once thawed.

    • Ummie says:

      First time making pita, have always been intimidated, but you made look easy enough. It was a succeas, they came out perfect looking, but the taste was a little sour. Where did I go wrong? Thanks again foe the easy steps and photos.

  8. Briana rich says:

    Can you freeze these?

  9. Laura says:

    Brilliant recipe. Did mine on my pizza stone rather than on the stove top. The first three puffed slightly and were a bit dense so I popped a pan of water on the bottom of the oven underneath the stone and put the fan on and the last four I made puffed up spectacularly. Will be using this recipe again.

  10. Audrey says:

    This recipe is the best thing that has happened to me in a while. I don’t want to say that I only eat pita now but I will say its a staple lately, I really cant get enough of how light, fluffy and fresh it is. I made it for the first time when my mom was visiting and she asked me for the recipe, then it was so good my brother asked her for the recipe. I don’t want to say its fool proof but I have messed it up in several ways now just by being distracted or some laissez faire measuring (Oh and one time my partner set something on them and flattened them all because he didn’t know they were under the towel proofing right before I was going to cook them) and it doesn’t matter.. every time they are amazing. I mix/kneed it in my food processor with the dough blade and then proof it on a clean floured counter top so it is a one dish (two with the pan) recipe. Since its so hot now I love making these and stuffing them with cold vegan salads like chickpea greek “chicken” salad, Spicy black bean watermelon and jicama salad, tabbouleh, or chickpea “tuna” salad. So good, the possibilities are endless. Thanks for this fantastic recipe!!
    Also for some reason I am not able to mark the stars, I would definitely give this recipe 5 stars.

  11. Jen says:

    Is the sugar a necessity?

  12. […] first is the Pita Bread! We used this linked recipe from Sweet Simple Vegan. The recipe is very simple and we followed it almost exactly. I really recommend this recipe […]

  13. Kay says:

    Does it have a sweet taste? If so, can the sugar be reduced?

  14. Abdusamikovna says:

    looking forward to trying 🙂 will update my post soon
    Thanks for an awesome recipe

  15. marcia says:

    I made these for the first time last night.. Nice and tender..Made on top of stove in cast iron frying pan..DId not puff but before serving, I sliced them in half and made a small pocket in them… Will try in oven next time to compare.. Thanks for the recipe…Made my own gyro meat out of lamb and ground beef and also a chicken one,too….Yum!!!

  16. Flavi says:

    This was the first time I tried making pita. And it was brilliant. Thank you

  17. Molly says:

    Can you mix the dough in a bread machine? These look amazing but I don’t have a mixer strong enough for bread dough.

  18. james says:

    Hi thanks for the recipe!! Can’t wait to try it out! How long will it last if you freeze it after cooking?

  19. Rathie says:

    Hi , wow!

    thank you. Could you please help to make pizza?

  20. I love this recipe! Made it with my greek chicken salad and it was delicious. The kids were fighting over the bread.

  21. Caryn Thompson says:

    Just tried these and they turned out surprisingly well for a first attempt- who knew it was so easy to make pita bread!

  22. Raegan says:

    Made this today, so simple but so flavourful! Thanks for sharing!!????

  23. E says:

    I made these and they were fabulous along with a veggie curry stew.

  24. Karen says:

    Can this be made with gluten free flour ? Can it be made with a quinoa flour ?

    • We have not tested this with gluten-free or quinoa flour, so we cannot say whether or not it will work. Based on our experience with gluten-free baking, it isn’t always a 1:1 swap. I think if you do make them gluten-free, they might be dense. It might be best to just look for a tested gluten-free pita recipe elsewhere for better results.

  25. Mags says:

    This recipe makes THE BEST pitas I’ve ever tasted! Thank you!!

  26. Donna says:

    First attempt at pita… some puffing in pan but not a full pocket but they are delish. Used a cast iron griddle on top of stove and got some “char” which adds to the flavor. Texture nice and a little chewy – going to try baking next time like Laura said above. Thanks for a great recipe!

  27. Michelle says:

    Holy Batman is those pita good! It was so easy to follow and fun to make. I will definitely make it over and over again. I can’t stop eating it and I’m not even using any hummus! Thank you!

  28. Kelly says:

    I am so disappointed! I don’t know what I did wrong – none of my breads puffed up. On the bright side, they were still very delicious!

  29. Pepe Lopez Waldron says:

    I find they puff much better when baked at 230c in the oven for about 5 minutes. Perfect pockets every time.

  30. Kristi Couveau says:

    Thanks for sharing this recipe and for such detailed instructions. This was the first time I’ve worked with yeast or made anytime of bread-like item. They didn’t puff up but they did have a pocket. They tasted amazing. I need more practice but great for my first try. Will make again. Thank you!

  31. Alexa says:

    These pitas are AMAZING! I can’t believe how delicious they turned out! I don’t have a stand mixer so I was nervous it wouldn’t work as well but they were still incredible. 10/10! Amazing!

  32. Shelby says:

    Making my second batch today to take to my mother in laws. She’s making fresh hummus to go with it. Gonna be a great meal!

  33. Anna Greer says:

    Can you make this with almond flour instead?

    • Chris Petrellese says:

      Unfortunately, almond flour would not work for this recipe. Since it’s not a 1:1 replacement for all-purpose flour, it’s not recommended.

  34. Jen says:

    Best.Pita.Ever!! It’s so fluffy and tasty, we can’t stop eating them with your roasted garlic hummus recipe!! Another win from your website!! Thank you!

  35. Lucy says:

    I made these today, they didn’t puff with cooking but came GREAT. I also made a second batch mixing wheat and white flour, adding some flax seeds and wheat germ. I love this recipe and would recommend it..

  36. La says:

    Um, thanks for the pita recipe. It looks really nice. But that picture, man! I want that full table! Making me hungry and I just ate! LOL

  37. Lisa says:

    Pita bread cane out so yummy but what did I do wrong as it did not blow up like a Bible.

    • Chris Petrellese says:

      Haha we have had the same issue with ours sometimes too! When we use our cast iron skillet we have found that it really helps!

  38. Katie says:

    Can you use a regular pan or is cast iron a must?

  39. clarisse says:

    Hi, does this freeze well?

  40. Leenie says:

    Can this recipe be doubled?

  41. Barbie says:

    Thank u for the simple and clear explaination . I will surely try this later this morning..

  42. Emily Watts says:

    I was looking for a new dish for breakfast. I find it. Thanks for sharing this. I am excited to make it this Sunday.
    Thanks again!

  43. Carol says:

    These were fun! I messed up a bit but they were so good. I think I didn’t roll them thin enough, but they were so soft and puffy we ate them un-slit with grilled peppers, onions, chicken seitan and tofu tsatsiki. Great recipe. Off to share on Instagram

  44. Nikki says:

    Holy Goddesses, this is good!!

  45. María del mar says:

    It did not puff when it was on the stove like it should i was expecting 1 big bubble instead of multiple bubbles what i do wrong?

  46. lilley says:

    This recipe was so good will be making this a lot

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