Go Back
Print

Pita Bread With Whole Wheat

Recipe whivh will give you perfect pockets every time

Course Main Course
Cuisine Baked
Keyword How to Make Pita Bread, Pita Bread Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Proofing Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings 6
Author Samira

Ingredients

  • 2 Cups (250 g) Wheat flour (Atta)
  • 1 Cup (200 g) Fine semolina
  • 1 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Teaspoon Honey
  • 3/4 Teaspoon Instant Yeast
  • 4 Teaspoon Oil
  • 1 and 3/4 Cup Lukewarm Water

Instructions

  1. In a big bowl, take both the flours, salt, and instant yeast. Whisk it nicely.

  2. Add honey to lukewarm water and Knead flour with it.

  3. It will be very sticky. Add about 2 teaspoon oil and just keep on pressing the dough with the back of your hand (knuckles) and after about 7 to 8 minutes it will stop sticking.

  4. Put the dough on your kitchen counter and knead for another 4 to 5 minutes. Stretch the dough using the heel of your hands, fold it, then again stretch. Soon the dough will be smooth and shiny.

  5. Grease the bowl liberally, put the dough in it, invert the dough so that the top also gets oily. Cover it with a plate or lid and let it rise for an hour or so till doubles in volume. Time is just a rough guide and will depend on the weather. If too cold then it may take even longer. So, instead of time, watch your dough

  6. Once proofed, deflate it and knead very lightly just for around 20 seconds only. Be gentle with the dough as we dont want to destroy the gluten developed therein.

  7. Divide it into 2 parts and using one part further divide it into 6 to 7 parts. You may eye ball it or use a weighing scale. For the first timers, the ball should weigh around 60 to 70 gms. This much dough will give you 12 to 14 Pitas. Make all the balls, cover them with a kitchen towel and leave them for second proofing for about 15 minutes. 

  8. Start preheating oven along with the baking tray. Preheat it at the highest temperature in your oven, generally, 225 degrees C, for 15 minutes.

  9. You may even heat a skillet side by side if want to bake on both.

  10. Now, start rolling each ball just like your chapati, using dry flour.

  11. When the oven is well preheated, sprinkle little flour on the hot baking tray and put the rolled Pita on it. Flour is sprinkled so that the Pita doesn't stick to it.

  12. After few minutes, you will see the Pita puffing up. When it is fully puffed up and changes colour slightly then take it out. Serve immediately or let it cool on a wire rack. Similarly make all other Pitas.

  13. Once out of the oven, stack them and wrap in a kitchen towel. Heat trapped in it will keep the pitas soft. Once cooled completely then you can wrap these in aluminium foil or a ziplock bag and keep in the refrigerator too.

  14. At the time of serving, reheat it in microwave or on a hot skillet. Cut it from the centre, you will see the hollow pocket. Fill it with filling of your choice, preferably hummus, falafel and raw veggies like lettuce, onion etc.

Recipe Notes

  1. Use warm water only for kneading otherwise yeast will not activate and consequently, your dough will not rise.
  2. To replace instant yeast with active dry yeast, use 2/3 tsp. As 1 TSP INSTANT YEAST   =  1.25  TSP ACTIVE DRY YEAST.
  3. You can use the same quantity of sugar in place of honey.
  4. In case, you end up adding too much water then add a little flour, as required.
  5. Rising time depends on the quantity of yeast and on the weather conditions. During summers it may rise in 45 minutes to 1 hour. Whereas in winters it may take even up to  2 hours.
  6. When dividing the dough into 2 parts, it’s better to roll a log and cut with a pizza cutter. Do not tear it with hands as it may destroy the gluten developed during rising. If you want to use just half the dough, then after deflating and dividing,  pack the remaining half in cling film, place it in an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
  7. You can make it with refined flour too or a combination of all the 3 flours.