- Get ready.
I'm gonna show you how to make homemade pita bread,
and I'm sharing my secrets
for how to get that perfect little puff
and pocket in the center, just like this.
(upbeat music)
Hey, everybody. It's Natasha from NatashasKitchen.com.
I'm so excited.
Homemade pita bread is totally worth making at home
because the texture and the flavor is so much better
than store-bought.
There's nothing like a warm pita coming out of the oven.
Mmm, mmm.
And, by the way, before I forget, if you haven't already,
make sure to subscribe to our channel
if you like recipes that work, you know.
All right. I want some homemade pita, so let's get started.
(hands tapping)
Okay.
It's important to have the right temperature
when you're working with any kind of yeast dough,
so you wanna make sure
that your water is about 110 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
We're gonna test that with a thermometer.
This is my favorite thermometer.
We use this all the time.
Okay. This is 110 about ish.
Perfect.
Now, we're gonna add just half a teaspoon of sugar.
This'll help jump-start things.
Now, for the yeast.
You want to use one that's a rapid-rise, quick-rise,
sometimes they say instant yeast or fast-acting.
All of those will work.
So add one packet,
which is about two and a quarter teaspoons,
and make sure it's not expired, okay?
If you stocked up on things during the lockdown,
you wanna check the dates, the expiration dates.
Otherwise, your baking is likely going to fail.
That's my public service announcement. (laughs)
All right. Now we're gonna add some flour.
And I do love combining whole wheat flour
and all-purpose flour.
If you don't have whole wheat,
you don't have to use it or go out and buy it
if you don't want to,
but I do think it gives the pita a better flavor,
and it just tastes kind of nutty, more depth of flavor.
So, also, super important.
You have to measure correctly.
So if you have a kitchen scale like this one...
I will link it in the notes...
use that, 'cause you have to get the right proportion
of the liquids to dry ingredients.
But here's another way that works every time.
You start by fluffing up the flour a little bit
with a spoon.
Then you just spoon it into your measuring cup,
and you level off the top.
Vroop.
There. We're just gonna add that to the bowl.
Whisk it up.
Then just leave it there for about 15 minutes
or until you see the top looks puffy.
(upbeat music)
Now, add two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
and two and a half cups of all-purpose flour.
Now, add one and a half teaspoons of salt,
and stir that together with a wooden spoon
until the dough looks shaggy.
Turn the dough out onto a clean, smooth work surface.
Now, use your hands
to vigorously knead the dough together for five minutes.
The dough should initially feel sticky to your hands,
but it will get less sticky as you knead it,
and it should not be sticking to the counter.
If the dough seems too sticky to knead it,
you can sprinkle it with a little bit of flour
and continue kneading.
When the dough is ready, it should be soft
and still slightly tacky or sticky to the touch.
(upbeat music)
Wash and dry your mixing bowl
and grease the inside of the bowl
with one teaspoon of olive oil.
Place the dough into the bowl and turn it to coat in oil.
Now, cover that bowl tightly with plastic wrap
and keep it in a warm place about 100 degrees Fahrenheit
for 45 minutes, or you can keep the bowl at room temperature
for about 90 minutes
or until the dough has doubled in volume.
You can see that dough has puffed up beautifully.
We're gonna take off the plastic wrap
and punch down the dough.
Now, transfer the dough onto a clean work surface
and divide it into eight even pieces.
You can use a bench scraper like this one
or a pizza cutter for even pieces.
Next, we're gonna roll these into balls.
Cup your hand around each dough ball and roll it
until you no longer see a dimple or a seam underneath.
I use the same method to make dinner rolls.
Just cup your hand around the dough
and roll it on the countertop
to make perfect round dough balls.
Once all of your dough balls are ready,
cover them with a damp kitchen towel
and let them rest for 15 minutes.
This allows the gluten to relax,
and they'll be much easier to roll out.
And you want to use just a lightly damp kitchen towel.
If you get it wet,
make sure to wring out as much water as you can.
While the dough is resting, we're gonna preheat the oven.
A baking stone or pizza stone works best,
but you can also use an inverted baking sheet.
Place that on the bottom rack of the oven.
Now, preheat the baking stone in the oven
to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
It's very important that the oven and stone
are fully preheated before you start baking your pitas.
If your oven takes longer to preheat,
you might start that earlier.
Generously dust your work surface with flour,
and once your dough balls have rested for 15 minutes,
you can roll them out one at a time.
Make sure to use enough flour,
so your dough doesn't stick to the surface
or to your rolling pin.
Use your fingertips to gently press the dough
into a small disc.
Then, use a rolling pin to roll it
into about a seven-inch-diameter disc
that's less than one-fourth-inch thick.
You'll want to move the disc a couple of times while rolling
to ensure that it's not sticking to the countertop.
Continue rolling until your disc is about seven inches wide.
You'll also want to keep those rolled discs of dough covered
with a damp kitchen towel to ensure they don't dry out.
Continue rolling the rest of your dough pieces,
keeping them covered as you go,
and once they're all rolled out,
you want to let them rest for about 10 minutes.
Letting them rest will allow them
to puff up better in the oven.
(upbeat music)
Usually, by the time I'm done rolling these,
those first couple of discs are ready for baking.
I like to bake these two at a time.
Place your dough onto the preheated pizza stone
and bake at 500 degrees Fahrenheit
for about two to two and a half minutes,
or until they're puffed.
Once they're puffed, take them out of the oven
and transfer them to a wire rack
and let them rest for five minutes.
After five minutes,
make sure to cover them with a dry kitchen towel
to keep the pitas from drying out.
If you have a cast-iron skillet,
you can also cook pitas on the stovetop.
Fully preheat the skillet over medium-high heat
and lightly brush with olive oil.
Once you see it bubbling, flip and cook for one minute.
You should see it puff up.
Flip and continue cooking for another minute.
I find the stovetop pitas puff up just as nicely,
but I also like that they have that beautiful browning
on the outside.
Once they're ready, place them on that same wire rack,
keeping them covered so they don't dry out.
Ho ho ho ho!
All right. Who's excited?
It's pita time.
Okay, and you can see the difference here
between the ones that were baked in the oven...
they're lighter in color...
versus the ones that were sauteed on the skillet.
They've got those lovely brown and gold spots,
which I think have a little bit extra flavor.
It might be in my head, I don't know,
but they also smell better.
You know my preference.
I like the skillet version, but they both work great.
All right, it is time for the taste test,
and I want to show you guys what's inside of these pitas
because they have that beautiful pocket.
The texture is so nice. Check this out.
All right. Ooh, they're still warm.
Oh, look at that. Soft, soft.
They have that beautiful pocket inside,
so you can stuff these and make like a pita sandwich.
Oh my goodness. Yummy yum.
And look at the soft texture inside.
This is so good.
I like these better than dinner rolls.
Just slather 'em up with butter.
Okay. I'm gonna try this because it is calling my name.
Mmm.
Soft and chewy.
Mmm.
And these are so simple, such simple ingredients.
But using the extra virgin olive oil and that amount of salt
adds great flavor, so don't skimp on those two.
You can also...
my husband used to work in Chili's,
and they made fajita pitas, which I thought was so clever.
So you take the pita and you just fold it on itself
and stuff it with fajita ingredients,
like steak or chicken fajitas.
Yum.
Or you can cut them into triangle wedges
and serve them with hummus or any dip or tzatziki sauce,
which we have a great recipe for tzatziki.
I will link that in the notes.
Make sure you try that.
These are so good, so simple to make,
and definitely worth making these at home
because they're just way better than store-bought.
Oh, I hope you guys love this recipe,
and we'll see you in our next video.