This homemade pita bread recipe is easy to make and requires a few ingredients you may already have on hand!  Mix up the very simple dough, let it rise, and experience the magic of fresh, warm, perfectly puffy homemade pita bread. Baking and skillet instructions included! 

Pita bread is freezer friendly. And you can even prepare the dough ahead. Be sure to read through for tips and my step-by-step tutorial. 

Baked pita bread in kitchen towel

Many ways to use pita bread!

Whether we’re talking falafel, shawarma, hummus or even deli meat, pita pockets are my go-to.

In fact, a basket of warm pita is almost always on the dinner table next to anything from soups and stews to saucy meatballs requiring something to sop up the delicious goodness.

I’ve turned pita into chips and churro chips! And when the kids need a good snack to hold them over until a late dinner, I serve up some pita with a little dish of za’atar and some extra virgin olive oil for dipping.

Is it worth it to make your own homemade pita bread? 

YES! As someone who grew up on authentic fresh pita bread from Egyptian bakeries, I can tell you this: pita bread we buy at  grocery stores here in the U.S. is simply not the same.  Like store-bought sandwich bread, store-bought pita has typically been sitting on the shelf for a few days.

Don’t get me wrong, I have bought pita at the store many times. It must be warmed up and used pretty quickly.

But what I’m after here is: Fresh. Warm. Fragrant. Perfectly puffy pita bread. Making it takes me back to the streets of Egypt where I grew up.

Making pita bread at home is straightforward and takes just a few ingredients you probably already have on hand. 

This recipe will make 8 pitas. And you can bake them in the oven or cook them stovetop in a hot skillet.

Ingredients

  • Water
  • Yeast
  • Pinch sugar
  • All-purpose flour (or a combination of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour)
  • Kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal kosher salt)
  • Extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil)

Do I need a stand mixer to make pita bread? 

No! In fact, I prefer to knead the dough by hand for my pita bread. You will not be doing too much kneading, and the result is almost better than using a stand mixer. Here’s all the equipment you need to make this pita bread recipe:

  • Large mixing bowl like this one (affiliate link)
  • Wooden spoon or anything to stir the dough
  • A rolling pin (affiliate link) to flatten the pita like

How to Make Pita Bread: Step-by-Step

Step 1: Make sponge

Combine 1 cup lukewarm water in a large mixing bowl with yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Add 1/2 cup flour and whisk together. Place the mixing bowl in a warm (not hot) place, uncovered. Wait about 15 minutes or until mixture is frothy and bubbling a bit

Tip: If you don’t see some bubbles, your yeast is dead. Start over with new yeast.

Bread sponge bubbling in a mixing bowl

Step 2: Form the pita dough

Now add salt, olive oil, and the remaining flour (keep about 1/2 cup of the flour for dusting later). Stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass.

(What’s a shaggy mass? Basically, at this point, the dough has little to no gluten development and just looks like a sticky mess and you can easily pull bits off).

Dust with a little flour, then knead the mixture inside the bowl for about 1 minute incorporating any stray bits.

shaggy pita dough

Step: 3 Knead the dough

Dust a clean working surface with just a little bit of flour. Knead lightly for 2 minutes or so until smooth. Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for a couple more minutes. The dough should be soft and a little bit moist, you can help it with a little dusting flour, but try not to add too much.

pita dough kneaded briefly in the bowl to incorporate stray pieces

Step: 4 Let the pita dough rise

Clean the mixing bowl and give it a light coating of extra virgin olive oil. Put the dough back in the bowl and turn it a couple times just to coat it a bit with the olive oil.

kneaded dough in a clean mixing bowl before rising

Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap, then cover it with a kitchen towel. Put the bowl in a warm (not hot) place. Leave it for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its size.

Pita dough risen to double its size

Step 5: Divide the dough

Gently deflate the dough and place it on a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 7 to 8 equal pieces and shape them into balls. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes or so.

dough divided into 8 balls

Step 6: Shape the pitas

Using a floured rolling pin, roll one of the pieces into a circle that’s 8-9 inches wide and about a quarter inch thick. It helps to lift and turn the dough frequently as you roll so that dough doesn’t stick to your counter too much. (If dough starts to stick, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour). If the dough starts to spring back, set it aside to rest for a few minutes, then continue rolling. Repeat with the other pieces of dough.

Tip: Once you get going, you can be cooking one pita while rolling another, if you like.

dough flattened into pita round disc

You have two options for baking the pita from here.

Step 7: Bake in the oven OR on stovetop

To bake pita in the oven: Heat the oven to 475 degrees F and place a heavy-duty baking pan or large cast iron skillet on the middle rack to heat. Working in batches, place the rolled-out pitas directly on the hot baking baking sheet (I was only able to fit 2 at a time).

Bake for 2 minutes on one side, and then, using a pair of tongs, carefully turn pita over to bake for 1 minute on the other side.  The pita will puff nicely and should be ready. Remove from the oven and cover the baked pitas with a clean towel while you work on the rest of the pitas.

To cook pita in a skillet (stovetop): Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. (Test by adding a couple drops of water to the skillet, the skillet is ready when the beads of water sizzle immediately). Drizzle a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil and wipe off any excess. Working with one pita at a time, lay a rolled-out pita on the skillet and bake for 30 seconds, until bubbles start to form.

Using a spatula, flip the pita over and cook for 1-2 minutes on  the other side, until large toasted spots appear on the underside. Flip again and cook another 1-2 minutes to toast the other side. The pita is ready when it puffs up forming a pocket

Tip: Sometimes, with this stovetop method, the pita may not puff or may only form a small pocket. Try pressing the surface of the pita gently with a clean towel. Keep baked pita covered with a clean towel while you work on the rest.

baked pita loaves on a kitchen towel

Can the dough be prepared ahead?

Yes, you can prepare the dough ahead of time. Once it has risen, you can store it in the fridge until you need it!

If you don’t want to bake all 8 pitas on a given day, you can bake 1, 2 or however many you need at a time. Save the rest of the dough in the fridge for later (if stored properly, the dough will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week).

Can I make gluten free pita bread using this recipe?

Many of you have asked if this recipe can be made with gluten free flour. YES!

You can simply replace the flour here with the same amount of an all-purpose gluten free flour. Bob’s Red Mill all-purpose gluten free flour or Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 baking flour  (<–affiliate link) will work in this recipe.

Why won’t my pita puff? 

Note that pita will not stay puffy once it sits out of the oven for a bit. We want it to puff during the baking process so that it forms a pocket  to hold all sorts of tasty items.  But let’s just agree that even pitas that don’t puff and end up more like a flatbread without a pocket are still delicious.

That said, the main reason pita won’t puff has to do with baking temperature–the oven or the skillet aren’t hot enough. Make sure both are well-heated before cooking.

Stack of pita bread over a kitchen towel

Storage and freezer instructions

Baked pita bread is best enjoyed fresh and hot-out-of the oven. But, you likely won’t finish 8 loaves of pita in one sitting unless you’re hosting a big dinner party. Good news is, pita bread will store well for a few days in an air-tight bag. Warm it up in your oven or toaster oven or even over open flame.

You can freeze pita bread for later use! Here’s what you do: 

  • Cool pita bread completely
  • Store in zip-top bags. Make sure to push all the air out. Layer wax paper between the pitas, this makes it easy to pull just one pita at a time, if you like.
  • Freeze for up to 3 months
  • Warm frozen pitas up in a medium-heated oven. No need to thaw.

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Stack of pita bread over a kitchen towel

Homemade Pita Bread Recipe


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4.8 from 212 reviews

  • Author: Suzy Karadsheh
  • Total Time: 1 hour 48 minutes
  • Yield: 8 whole pitas 1x

Description

My family’s authentic, fool-proof pita bread recipe is easy to make and requires a few ingredients you may already have on hand! Mix up the very simple dough, let it rise, and experience the magic of fresh, warm, perfectly puffy homemade pita bread. Baking and stovetop instructions included!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup lukewarm water
  • 2 tsp active dry yeast
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided (or 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
  • 1 to 2 tsp kosher salt (I used Diamond Crystal kosher salt)
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil), more for the bowl

Instructions

  1. Make sponge: In a large mixing bowl add the lukewarm water and stir in yeast and sugar until dissolved. Add 1/2 cup flour and whisk together. Place the mixing bowl in a warm place, uncovered to form a lose sponge. Give it 15 minutes or so, the mixture should bubble.
  2. Form the pita dough: Now add salt, olive oil and almost all the remaining flour (keep about 1/2 cup of the flour for dusting later). Stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass (at this point, the dough has little to no gluten development and just looks like a sticky mess and you can easily pull bits off). Dust with a little flour, then knead the mixture inside the bowl for about a minute to incorporate any stray bits.
  3. Knead the dough: Dust a clean working surface with just a little bit of flour. Knead lightly for a couple minutes or so until smooth. Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for a couple more minutes. The dough should be a little bit moist, you can help it with a little dusting of flour, but be careful not to add too much flour.
  4. Let the dough rise. Clean the mixing bowl and coat it lightly with extra virgin olive oil and put the dough back in the bowl. Turn the dough a couple times in the bowl to coat with the olive oil. Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap then lay a kitchen towel over. Put the bowl in a warm place. Leave it alone for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its size.
  5. Divide the dough. Deflate the dough and place it on a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 7 to 8 equal pieces and shape them into balls. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes or so to rest.
  6. Shape the pitas. Using a floured rolling pin, roll one of the pieces into a circle that’s 8-9 inches wide and about a quarter inch thick. It helps to lift and turn the dough frequently as you roll so that dough doesn’t stick to your counter too much. (If dough starts to stick, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour). If the dough starts to spring back, set it aside to rest for a few minutes, then continue rolling. Repeat with the other pieces of dough. (Once you get going, you can be cooking one pita while rolling another, if you like). You have two options for baking the pita from here.
  7. To bake pita in the oven: Heat the oven to 475 degrees F and place a heavy-duty baking pan or large cast iron skillet on the middle rack to heat. Working in batches, place the rolled-out pitas directly on the hot baking baking sheet (I was only able to fit 2 at a time). Bake for 2 minutes on one side, and then, using a pair of tongs, carefully turn pita over to bake for 1 minute on the other side.  The pita will puff nicely and should be ready. Remove from the oven and cover the baked pitas with a clean towel while you work on the rest of the pitas.
  8. To cook pita on stovetop: Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. (Test by adding a couple drops of water to the skillet, the skillet is ready when the beads of water sizzle immediately). Drizzle a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil and wipe off any excess. Working with one pita at a time, lay a rolled-out pita on the skillet and bake for 30 seconds, until bubbles start to form. Using a spatula, flip the pita over and cook for 1-2 minutes on  the other side, until large toasted spots appear on the underside. Flip again and cook another 1-2 minutes to toast the other side. The pita is ready when it puffs up forming a pocket (sometimes, with this method, the pita may not puff or may only form a small pocket. Try pressing the surface of the pita gently with a clean towel). Keep baked pita covered with a clean towel while you work on the rest.

Notes

  • Make ahead note: You can prepare the dough ahead of time. Once it has risen, you can store it in the fridge until you need it! If you don’t want to bake all 8 pitas on a given day, you can bake 1, 2 or however many you need at a time. Save the rest of the dough in the fridge for later (if stored properly, the dough will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week).
  • For Whole Wheat Pita: Use 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • For Gluten Free Pita: Replace the flour here with the same amount of an all-purpose gluten free flour. Bob’s Red Mill all-purpose gluten free flour or Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 baking flour  (<–affiliate link) will work in this recipe.
  • Leftover storage and freezing instructions: Baked pita bread is best enjoyed fresh and hot-out-of the oven. But, baked pita bread will store well for a few days in an air-tight bag. Warm it up in your oven or toaster oven or even over open flame. You can also freeze baked pita for up to 3 months; warm up in a medium-heated oven from frozen.
  • Visit our online shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients, including extra virgin olive oils and all-natural and organic spices
  • Prep Time: 1 hour 45 mins
  • Cook Time: 3 mins
  • Category: Pita Bread
  • Method: Baked
  • Cuisine: Mediterranean

*This post first appeared on The Mediterranean Dish in 2014 and had recently been updated with new information and media for readers’ benefit. Enjoy!

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I’m Suzy; born and bred right on the shores of the Mediterranean. I’m all about easy, healthy recipes with big Mediterranean flavors. Three values guide my cooking: eat with the seasons; use whole foods; and above all, share! So happy you’re here…
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Comments

  1. Elle says:

    Can you prep the dough using a bread machine instead of by hand?

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Elle. We have never tried that, but another reader has with success. Here is what he had to say: “I just added the ingredients and let it do its thing. When it finished, I followed your instructions to shape and cook them. They came out great!”

  2. Jaslyn says:

    A perfect consistency recipe along with a great taste, I didn’t change a thing.

    Tried both cooking methods and preferred the cooktop for it’s ease even though they rose amazingly in the oven.

    Thank you for sharing and making my first try a success.






    1. TMD Team says:

      Oh, wonderful, Jaslyn! So glad you had such great results on your first try!

  3. Kate says:

    Used this recipe for the first time a few weeks ago and it went down amazingly with the whole fam. I’m not very experienced baking bread and this was so easy to follow and really boasted my confidence. Going to double the recipe today. Thank you for sharing it!!






  4. Lissette says:

    Will this work if I half the recipe? I only want to make around 3-4.

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Lissette. That may work, but it’s not something we’ve actually tested. Typically, we recommend just making a whole batch, and freeze whatever pita you will not be eating at the moment (it freezes and defrosts very well!).

  5. Sharon says:

    I’m so happy I found your recipe for pita bread. Your directions were clear and easy to follow. Came out great! My fear of making homemade pita bread has been mastered, lol. Thank you!

    1. TMD Team says:

      Yay! Happy to hear that, Sharon!

  6. Joe says:

    Oh my God, these are SO good! Puffed up perfectly. Filled mine with falafel and tahini sauce, also from your recipes. Amazing! I’m definitely going to make some more of your recipes after this. Thank you so much!






    1. TMD Team says:

      Yay! So glad to hear it, Joe!

  7. Caleigh says:

    Easy to make delicious pita recipe. They turned out great, thank you!






    1. TMD Team says:

      Thanks so much, Caleigh!

  8. Eddy Walker says:

    Hole Suzy,

    We made your pita bread yesterday and used the stove top method and saw the bread didn’t rise much. I noticed today you mentioned they may not so we are trying the oven method.
    I do have a question on the amount of yeast though. We live a sea level and are using instant yeast. How much should we use when making the pita bread.

    Thank you

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Eddy. It’s our understanding that you would just use the same amount of instant yeast as the active dry yeast, but we have never tested this recipe with instant yeast ourselves, so it’s hard to be 100% certain. If you do a little experiments, we’d love to hear your thoughts!

  9. Steve D Canada says:

    Hi Suzy! Just wondering how to adjust the recipe for whole wheat flour only. All-purpose flour is too easily digested and is bad for your microbiome (“A Silent Fire”-Shilpa Ravella) and hence your overall health. I have a recipe for whole wheat bread that uses skim milk powder and gluten flour. Would these ingredients be useful for these pitas? I have made the recipe as written with AP flour and they are super easy and so tasty! Any ideas?

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Steve. Kate here, from the TMD team. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to come up with a fully whole wheat pita recipe we’re happy with quite yet. We’re continuing to test using different ingredients and methods and will share results when we feel we have it just right :). Suzy has made pitas with this recipe using 50% AP flour & 50% whole wheat flour with success, though. Not totally what you’re looking for, but it’s a start for now.

      1. Steve M D'Hondt says:

        Thanks for the reply Kate. I tried using whole wheat flour only and while tasty the pitas are slightly tough. Next batch I’m going to try 1tbsp of skim milk powder and 2tsp of gluten flour and see if that makes a difference.

      2. TMD Team says:

        That was our experience, too, using all whole wheat flour. Please keep us posted on your experimenting!!

      3. Steve says:

        It worked! The pitas puffed very nicely (stovetop) and were just the right amount of chewy. I used 1 tbsp skim milk powder and 3 tsp of gluten flour btw.

      4. TMD Team says:

        Yay!!!

    2. Eddy Walker says:

      Just wondering if anyone can answer my question above

  10. Cat Walker says:

    If you triple the recipe, how much water do you use? The water amount never changed…

    1. TMD Team says:

      Thanks for the heads up, Cat. We were finally able to fix this. Please note, though, the ingredients will only double, triple, etc. in the ingredient list, but not in the instructions, unfortunately.

  11. Marci Dondershine says:

    When you scale up the recipe, the water amount doesn’t change. It still says 1 cup of water even though I am doubling the flour. Do I assume to double the water?

    1. TMD Team says:

      Thanks for the heads up, Marci. We were finally able to fix this. Please note, though, the ingredients will only double, triple, etc. in the ingredient list, but not in the instructions, unfortunately.

  12. Nishanthi Ross says:

    Such a good recipe.

  13. Monique says:

    I have tried this recipe a few times and i just can’t get it to rise at all. I follow it to the t and my dough just wont rise. I have even tried to leave it for 3 hours and still it stays exactly the same as when i put it in the bowl

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Monique. I’m thinking maybe your yeast is old or dead. I would suggest two things: 1) buy new yeast, and 2) use an instant read thermometer to measure the water temp. You’ll want the water to be between 85-105 degrees F. If the water is too hot, you’ll kill the yeast when you add it and your bread won’t rise.

  14. Eileen says:

    Delicious and easy to make. I didn’t get any pockets, but the texture and flavor were lovely. I am happy to have some in the freezer.

  15. Margare says:

    OMG, These are so good! So easy to make, too. I made the dough yesterday and just rolled out all the pitas and stuck them in the fridge between sheets of parchment on a plate. Last night I baked two in the oven and served them with your cauliflower shawarma with all of the suggested toppings. This morning, we decided to grill them on the Blackstone (worked like a charm) and serve them with some of your leftover ratatouille that we had from earlier this week. Totally delicious and satisfying (if unconventional) breakfast. I had never made pita bread before and this is so easy and so much better than store bought. I think I might try to make some of these in mini size and serve as appetizers with multiple dips. Yum! Thank you for another winner

  16. Jo says:

    What is the correct way to store the dough in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it thank you

    1. TMD Team says:

      Hi, Jo. You just want to keep it tightly covered in a bowl/container.