Homemade Pita Bread

Versión en español

My go-to recipe for bread during the summer here in Houston, no oven required!

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Homemade Pita Bread

• 454 grams of flour without baking powder (3 ¼ cups)
• 2 teaspoons fine salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 ¼ cup warm water

1. In mixer: Mix all ingredients until the flour is incorporated about 2 minutes. Work with the kneading hook the dough medium speed for 10 minutes. You should get a soft dough and sticky.
2. By hand: In a large bowl combine all ingredients with a wooden spoon or your hand, mix everything, then knead in the bowl until the ingredients come together into a ball. On a lightly floured counter knead for 5 minutes, use as little flour as possible, let rest 20 minutes covered with a cloth. Knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth.
3. In a clean bowl and lightly oiled, leave the dough covered with plastic wrap in a warm place free from drafts, when doubled in size (1 to 2 hours), deflated using the knuckles to flatten the dough gently. If not to be used immediately refrigerated the dough and continue deflating every 1 hour for the first 4 hours, the idea is to redistribute the air bubbles in the dough.
4. Or divide dough into 12 equal balls, cover with a damp cloth, working with one ball at a time on a floured counter roll the dough until a thickness of 8 mm approximately. Repeat with the other dough balls, cover everything with a cloth and let stand 20 minutes.
5. Preheat the pan to be used, cast iron works well, use medium-low heat.
6. This is the tedious part for the pita to inflate during cooking must have trapped water, water to become steam causes the bread to inflate. Working no more than four pieces of bread at a time, spray water on the dough, may use a spray bottle or your wet hand, wet all surfaces of the discs and fold in half, re-roll and shape, you want a thickness 8 mm. Let stand 10 minutes.
7. Place 1 disk of dough in the pan, turn after 20 seconds and cook for 1 minute 30 seconds, should now begin to swell, turn and cook for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Cool on a wire rack. Use tongs to turn.
8. During the cooling will deflate a bit, they remain as in the picture; these were already cooked and cold.
9. What I did was made four pitas every day, can have up to 3 days refrigerated dough.
10. The pitas can be frozen or refrigerate.