The history of flat bread starts around the year 4,000 BC in Egypt. And at this point in history, some six thousand years later, it is possible to find a variety of Middle Eastern flat breads in the U.S., from the Arab thin pita pockets at most chain supermarkets, to Persian Barber style flatbreads at Middle Eastern stores.

But there’s one thing that’s hard to find, and that’s Israeli style pita bread. This type of flat bread is about ½ inch thick, fluffy and chewy. For me, it’s the preferred type of bread to have with my homemade hummus, stuffed with labneh and sliced tomato and salt, with avocado salad (think of it as an Israeli avocado toast) or even with a chocolate spread, Israeli kids’ favorite.

So we’re left with no choice but to make it ourselves at home. The good news is that it’s really easy to make, as far as breads go. It also freezes really well, so you can freeze your leftover pita for later.

Just like pizza, pita baking works best over a pizza stone in the oven set to the highest heat. But it can work well on a regular baking sheet as well.

Israeli style pita bread

Recipe by Vered GuttmanCourse: breadsCuisine: Israeli, Jewish, ArabDifficulty: Medium

Yields

pita breads

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Dough rising time

hours

Total time

hours

Israeli style pita is a very thick flat bread that’s fluffy and chewy.

I highly recommend using SAF Instant yeast (it’s available online and can keep for months in the fridge.)
When using instant yeast, you should skip the process of proofing the yeast.
If you’re using active dry yeast, start the recipe by proofing the yeast and continue as usual.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. (450 grams) all purpose flour
1 tablespoons (9 grams) instant yeast (or active dry yeast, see note above)
1 tablespoons sugar
1½ cups minus 2 tablespoons (325 milliliter) lukewarm water
2 tablespoons olive oil
1½ teaspoon kosher salt

DIRECTIONS

If you’re using DRY ACTIVE YEAST, skip to instruction number 2.
If you’re using INSTANT YEAST, put flour, dry yeast and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook and use a spoon to mix well. With mixer on medium-low speed, add water and knead for 2 minutes. Add oil and salt and knead for 8 minutes longer.
Skip to instruction number 3.
If you’re using DRY ACTIVE YEAST you need to proof it first. Put ½ cup warm water, the yeast and a teaspoon of sugar in a glass and stir briefly. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes until it visibly foams.
Put flour, yeast mixture, the rest of the sugar and the rest of the water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook and knead for 2 minutes on medium-low speed. Add oil and salt and knead for 8 minutes longer.
Spray or brush very little oil in a large bowl and transfer the dough into it. Cover with plastic wrap, put in a warm place in the kitchen (as in above the stove. If the kitchen is cold, you can turn on the stove for a few minutes then turn it off again. It will heat the area around it a little.) Let dough rise for 1 hour until it doubles in size. Punch the dough to deflate it, then cover again and let it rise again for another hour. Deflate dough again.
Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface, roll it to a thick log and cut to 7 or 8 equal parts (it will yield 8 medium size pita breads or 7 slightly larger ones.) If you’re using a scale, each pita should weight 4 oz. (110 grams) if you’re making 7 of them, or 3.5 oz. (100 grams) if you’re making 8.)
Roll each dough slice into a ball, Put on a lightly greased pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise for 30 minutes.
At this point you should start heating your oven to 500 F degrees (260 C). If you have a pizza stone, put it in the oven and let the oven preheat for a full hour. Otherwise, you will bake the pita on regular baking sheets.
When the dough has doubled in size again, lightly flour a working surface and a rolling pin. Have 2 greased baking sheets ready. Put a ball of dough on the floured surface, sprinkle it with a little flour, then roll into a a round flat ¼ inch thick pita and transfer to the greased baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the balls.
If you’re using a pizza stone, have a baker’s peel floured. Transfer 2 pitas at a time into the peel and use the peel to transfer into the oven. Bake on the pizza stone for 4 minutes, until the pitas have puffed up. Transfer to a tray and cover with kitchen towel. Continue with the rest of the pitas.
If you do not use a pizza stone, simply transfer one tray at a time into the oven (each with 4 pitas) and bake for 4-5 minutes, until the pitas have puffed up.
Serve the pitas immediately or keep covered in towel for a couple of hours before you serve. If you’re not planning on using them all the same day, freeze the pitas in a freezer bag as soon as they cool down.