Pita Bread 2 Recipes

HOMEMADE PITA BREAD

Steps:

• Make sponge: Put 1 cup lukewarm water in a large mixing bowl. Add yeast and sugar. Stir to dissolve. Add the whole-wheat flour and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour and whisk together. Put bowl in a warm (not hot) place, uncovered, until mixture is frothy and bubbling, about 15 minutes.
• Add salt, olive oil and nearly all remaining all-purpose flour (reserve 1/2 cup). With a wooden spoon or a pair of chopsticks, stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass. Dust with a little reserved flour, then knead in bowl for 1 minute, incorporating any stray bits of dry dough.
• Turn dough onto work surface. Knead lightly for 2 minutes, until smooth. Cover and let rest 10 minutes, then knead again for 2 minutes. Try not to add too much reserved flour; the dough should be soft and a bit moist. (At this point, dough may refrigerated in a large zippered plastic bag for several hours or overnight. Bring dough back to room temperature, knead into a ball and proceed with recipe.)
• Clean the mixing bowl and put dough back in it. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap, then cover with a towel. Put bowl in a warm (not hot) place. Leave until dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Heat oven to 475 degrees. On bottom shelf of oven, place a heavy-duty baking sheet, large cast-iron pan or ceramic baking tile. Punch down dough and divide into 8 pieces of equal size. Form each piece into a little ball. Place dough balls on work surface, cover with a damp towel and leave for 10 minutes.
• Remove 1 ball (keeping others covered) and press into a flat diskc with rolling pin. Roll to a 6-inch circle, then to an 8-inch diameter, about 1/8 inch thick, dusting with flour if necessary. (The dough will shrink a bit while baking.)
• Carefully lift the dough circle and place quickly on hot baking sheet. After 2 minutes the dough should be nicely puffed. Turn over with tongs or spatula and bake 1 minute more. The pita should be pale, with only a few brown speckles. Transfer warm pita to a napkin-lined basket and cover so bread stays soft. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls.

FRESH HOMEMADE PITA BREAD RECIPE (EASY!)

Steps:

• Mix the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and instant yeast. Add the water and oil. Stir with a spatula until a shaggy dough forms - the mixture will appear dry and unevenly mixed. Use your hands to knead the dough briefly in the bowl just until the flour is absorbed and you have a sticky ball, about 30 seconds. Drizzle a little olive oil over top, turn the dough to coat, cover bowl with a tea towel, and transfer to a warm place (see notes above) to rise for 1.5 hours.
• Heat oven with a Baking Steel or stone inside at 550ºF. Cut a sheet of parchment paper into 6 small pieces about 6-inches square, see notes above.
• Portion the dough: Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead briefly to form a ball. Use a bench scraper to divide the dough into 6 equal portions - each ball should roughly weigh 73 g. Using flour as needed to prevent sticking, ball up each portion, using the pinky edges of your fingers to create tension (see video for guidance). Let rest 30 minutes.
• Roll out each ball: Flatten one ball, and, using flour as needed, gently roll out with a rolling pin until you have a 6-inch round - the key is to not roll too aggressively in order to prevent the air pockets from being forced out. If a round is resisting, set it aside, begin rolling out another one, and return to the stubborn one at the end. Transfer each 6-inch round to a sheet of parchment paper. Let rest 15 minutes.
• Bake the pita: When oven has preheated, use a pizza peel to shimmy one round at a time, parchment paper and all, onto the preheated Baking Steel. I like to cook 3 at a time. Set timer for 2 minutes. If the pita is lightly golden, it's done. Remove pita, transfer to a tea towel-lined bowl, and close the towel. Repeat with the remaining 3 rounds of pita.
• Store pita at room temperature in an airtight bag or container for 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat before serving.

PITA PIZZA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the pita breads on baking sheets.
• Spoon 2 Tbsp of the Pizza Sauce on each pita.
• Then place 1/2 cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese on each pita.
• The top with 6 pieces of pepperonis on each pita.
• Bake uncovered for 10-12 minutes until the pita is browned slightly and the cheese is melted.
• Cool on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, slice and enjoy!

PITTA BREAD

Steps:

• Mix the yeast with 300ml warm water in a large bowl. Leave to sit for 5 mins until the yeast is super bubbly then tip in the flour, salt and olive oil. Bring the mixture together into a soft dough. Don't worry if it looks a little rough round the edges.
• Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead for 5-10 mins until you have a soft, smooth and elastic dough. Try to knead using as little extra flour as possible, just enough so that the dough doesn't stick - this will keep the pittas light and airy. Once kneaded, place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave to double in size, approximately 1 hour.
• Heat oven as high as it will go (ideally 250C/230C fan/gas 9) and put a large baking tray on the middle shelf of the oven to get searingly hot. Divide the dough into eight balls then flatten each into a disc with the palm of your hand. On a lightly floured surface, roll each disc into an oval, around 20cm long, 15cm wide and 3-5mm thick.
• Carefully remove the hot tray from the oven. Dust with flour then place your pittas directly onto it - you may have to do this in batches. Return swiftly to the oven and bake for 4-5 mins, or until the pittas have puffed up and are a pale golden colour. Wrap each hot pitta in a clean tea towel once it's baked to keep it soft while the others cook.

THE BEST AND SOFTEST HOMEMADE POCKET PITA BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a tabletop mixer that is fitted with the dough hook attachment, add all of the wet ingredients except for the olive oil. Allow the yeast to activate for 8 minutes. As soon as a puffy cloud forms at the top of the mixture, the yeast is active.
• Add the olive oil along with all of the dry ingredients and knead on low speed for 12 minutes.
• Lightly grease a large bowl with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and transfer the dough to the bowl. Toss to coat in oil and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside in the warmest room of your home to rise until doubled in volume. About 1 hour.
• Cut the dough into 10 equal portions.
• Lightly flour your work surface and roll each portion of dough out into about 6-7-inch circles. Keep their thickness even. Use as much flour as needed to roll them out evenly.
• Sprinkle some semolina flour onto the work surface and place each rolled out piece of dough on it.
• Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel and allow it to rise for 30 minutes.
• Warm a cast-iron pan over medium heat.
• Cook each pita 20-30 seconds per side and continue cooking until it puffs, and the pita is fully cooked (see video).
• If the pita is not puffing up, increase the heat a little bit.
• Transfer the pitas to a plate and serve immediately.
• Leftover pitas can be stored in an airtight bag or container and kept in the freezer or the refrigerator until ready to use.

THE EASIEST HOMEMADE PITA BREAD RECIPE!

Steps:

• To prepare this pitta bread recipe add in a mixer's bowl the yeast, sugar and water and blend to dissolve the yeast. Set aside for 5-10 minutes until yeast froths.
• Add the flour and salt and mix using the dough hook for 6-8 minutes. Alternatively you could mix the ingredients by hand.
• Depending on the flour used, the dough may need a little bit less or more flour than this pita bread recipe calls for. After mixing for a while the dough for your pita bread should become an elastic ball and a bit sticky.
• When ready, coat the dough with olive oil, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let it sit in a warm place, for at least 20 minutes or until it doubles its size. This is an important step for this pita bread recipe. The first proof makes the pita bread fluffy and soft. If it is winter, turn the oven on for a minute or two, until it's a little warm, switch it off and then let the dough rise in it.
• Take the dough out of the bowl and gently deflate with your hands. Use just a tiny bit of flour to help you if it is too sticky. Split into 6 evenly sized balls around145g/ 5 oz. each.
• Let the pita bread balls rest for 15 minutes before shaping. This is the second proof and will allow your dough to relax and become easier to shape.
• To form the pita bread, you can either use a rolling pin, or stretch it with your hands, about 20cm in diameter. A rolling pin will make a crunchier pita, while hand stretching a softer, fluffier one. If the dough springs back, set it aside for a few minutes to rest and then continue rolling again.
• For a more traditional look on your pita bread, press the dough firmly with your fingertips forming dimples or use a fork to make some holes on top.
• , heat a non-sticking frying pan to medium heat and add just a little bit of olive oil and wipe off any excess. Bake each pita bread for about 3 minutes on each side, until slightly coloured and still soft. If your pan has a lid, place the lid on while baking them to keep the moisture in.
• use the steam method. Cut a piece of aluminium foil to the size of your pan. Generously sprinkle and spread some olive oil on it. Shape and place your pita on the foil. Pour a large glug of water in your plan over medium low heat - it should start steaming immediately! Place your pita immediately in it and cover with the lid. Let it steam for 12-15 minutes. Take it out, flip it over and cook for another 2-3 minutes on the foil.
• To give it more colour, when you flip your pita bread, push it lightly with a wooden spoon on the pan.

CHEF JOHN'S PITA BREAD

Steps:

• Place yeast into the work bowl of a stand mixer and add 1 cup warm water and 1 cup flour. Whisk together and let stand 15 to 20 minutes for mixture to rise and make a loose sponge. Mixture will bubble and foam.
• Pour 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and salt into sponge; add 1 3/4 cup flour. Mix at low speed, using a dough hook attachment, until dough is soft, supple, and slightly sticky. If dough sticks to the sides of the bowl, add up to 1/4 cup more flour, a little at a time.
• Knead dough with machine on low speed until slightly springy and still soft, 5 to 6 minutes. Turn dough out onto a floured work surface and form into a ball.
• Wipe inside of bowl with 1/4 teaspoon olive oil. Turn dough around in bowl to cover with a thin film of oil; cover bowl with foil and let sit until dough has doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Remove dough from bowl and place onto a floured work surface. Lightly pat into a flat shape about 1 inch thick. Use a knife to cut dough into 8 pieces.
• Form each piece into a small round ball with a smooth top, pulling dough from the sides and tucking the ends underneath the bottom.
• Cover dough balls with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle a small amount of flour on a work surface and top of a dough ball; gently pat dough ball flat with your fingers, forming a flat, round bread about 1/4 inch thick. Let dough round rest for 5 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough balls.
• Brush a cast-iron skillet with remaining 3/4 teaspoon olive oil and place over medium-high heat. Lay pita bread into hot skillet and cook until bread begins to puff up and bottom has brown spots and blisters, about 3 minutes. Flip, cook 2 more minutes, and flip back onto original side to cook for about 30 more seconds. Pita bread will begin to puff up and fill with hot air. Stack cooked breads on a plate; when cool enough to handle, break breads in half and open the pocket inside for stuffing.

QUICK AND EASY HOMEMADE PITA BREAD

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Pour yeast into 1/4 cup of the warm water. Add sugar, mix well, and let stand for 10 minutes.
• Sift the flour along with the salt into a bowl.
• Form a well in the center. Pour in the yeast mixture, the remaining cup of warm water, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
• Begin to mix with your hand, a wooden spoon, or the dough hook of a standing mixer to form a dough.
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 10 to 15 minutes, or use the stand mixer and dough hook, until the dough is smooth and soft but not sticky. If needed, add more flour until the dough comes together nicely.
• Oil a large bowl and place the dough in the bowl. Turn to coat the entire surface with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and put the dough in a warm, draft-free place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.
• Preheat the oven to 475 F. Place a heavy baking sheet or baking stone on the lowest rack of the oven. With the help of a rolling pin, roll the dough out, then fold and roll again. Close like a book, roll again, and close again, repeating the process a few times to get the air bubbles out of the dough. Shape the dough in a rectangle of about 9 x 12 inches and about 1/2 inch thick.
• Divide the dough into 10 pieces and cover with a dampened towel.
• Flour your work surface and rolling pin. Roll and turn each ball as you would shape a pie crust. Each pita should be about 1/4 inch thick and about 7 inches in diameter.
• Sandwich each dough circle between floured cloths and let them rest while you roll the remaining dough balls.
• Lightly sprinkle the hot baking sheet or baking stone with flour. Place as many pitas as will comfortably fit.
• Bake for about 5 minutes or until they just begin to show some color, carefully flipping them about halfway through.
• Remove from the oven and cover with a clean kitchen towel until cooled. Repeat the baking process with the remaining dough. Serve with your favorites dishes, and store in a bread bag for up to three days.
• Enjoy!