Pita Bread

It has been thundery and rainy most of the day and that is scheduled to last over the weekend. So what better use of your time than to learn to make pita bread! The muggy weather is perfect for getting the dough to rise, too.

This couldn’t be simpler! Even if you don’t regularly bake bread, this is still very achievable. The method for making the dough is fairly standard – add wet to dry, kneed a bit, allow to rise, knock back, shape and bake.

The cavity in the centre - a perfect curry receptacle!

I like the seeded aspect – Nigella seeds would be scrummy, but I only had poppyseeds to hand. Next time I might make them with sesame seeds and a little sesame oil. Pita breads are amazing dipped in curry, but you could also fill one with honey sesame chicken for a delicious lunch.

Makes 4-6 pita breads

Ingredients

• 250g white bread flour
• 1 sachet (7g) instant yeast
• 1 tbsp seeds – I went with poppyseeds
• 1 tsp salt
• 160ml lukewarm water
• 2 tsp olive oil

Method

Mix together the dry ingredients –flour, yeast, seeds and salt.

Make a well in the middle and add most of the water and half of the oil. Mix well, adding more water until you have a soft, workable dough.

Pour some oil into the bowl and continue to kneed for a few more minutes.

Cover the bowl with cling film and allow to rise until doubled, in a warm place.

Preheat the oven to 225 Celsius. Place a baking tray inside.

Knock back the dough on a floured work surface, divide into 4-6 equally sized balls and roll each into an oval shape.

Place on some greaseproof paper.

Remove the tray from the oven, place the greaseproof-containing pita breads on top and immediately put back in the oven.  Allow to bake for 7-10 minutes.

Remove and eat when slightly cooled.