Thick & Fluffy Grilled Pita Bread
Super-soft and fluffy, this tasty thick pita bread is delightful and unabashedly unauthentic. This pita bread has a dough similar to Indian naan, but being so thick, the result is more like a pita. The result is absolutely fantastic. This pita bread is grilled on the outside and stays soft and fluffy on the inside. They work great for stuffing or sopping up extra sauce!
This recipe has undergone several revisions at our house, and this is finally the perfected version that I’m happy to share with you! It started as a quest to make naan at home, but not having a 480 °C tandoor oven, it was a little complicated. Rolled thin, it was good, but easily overcooked and dry. Rolled thick and with some key ingredients for flavor, it was scrumptious. It has since been adopted at our house as the go-to pita recipe.
Three key ingredients for soft and fluffy pita bread:
Melted butter. To ensure the result can be called super soft, I add a bit of melted butter along with whole milk yogurt. Most recipes call for neutral oil, which works well, too, but I like the little flavor boost from the butter. The added fat will lubricate the protein in the flour, softening the dough and limiting its drying out while cooking.
Whole milk yogurt. Why use yogurt? Yogurt helps soften the bread dough without compromising its ability to rise. Yogurt breaks down the gluten proteins a little, loosening up the structure and softening the dough along with the melted butter. The acidity from the yogurt also rounds out the flavor nicely.
Egg yolk. This is also not a traditional ingredient in either pitas or naan, but I like how it makes my bread extra fluffy and soft. The yolk also adds a pinch of indulgence to the flavor.
How to make ahead:
After the rising step, the dough may be place in the refrigerator, covered, for a few hours. Alternatively, you can make the pitas the day before and just them back heat up in a skillet or toaster the day of. Like most breads, pitas also freeze very well!
Thick & Fluffy Grilled Pita Bread
Ingredients
- 60 ml warm water about 43 °C/110 °F
- 1 sachet active dry yeast 5 g
- 2 tsp sugar
- 450 g flour (3 ¼ cup)
- 1 tsp salt
- 250 g yogurt (1 cup)
- 45 g melted butter (3 tbsp)
- 1 egg yolk
Instructions
- Proof the yeast. In a medium bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let sit for about 5 minutes until bubbly.
- Mix. Whisk the flour and salt in a large bowl. Mix the yogurt, melted butter, and egg yolk into the yeast mixture. Stir the yogurt mixture into the flour until mostly combined. Using an electric mixer with dough hooks (or a stand mixer), knead on medium-high speed for 5 minutes. The dough may be slightly sticky but smooth.
- Let rise. In a warm location, let rise for an hour.
- Divide the dough into 4 balls.
- Roll out. On a well-floured surface, roll out the dough balls to 6 mm (1/4 inch) thickness. You can stack the rolled-out dough on a plate, with wax paper or parchment paper between each piece if your dough is still sticky.
- Grill. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. If you do not have a lid for your pan, prepare some aluminum foil to place loosely over the pan. Place your pita dough in the pan, however many fit without touching, and cover either with a lid or foil. Cook until puffy and nicely browned on each side, about 1 ½ minutes per side. (See note for outdoor grill)
- Stack the pitas while cooking the remaining breads.
Notes
- If using a barbecue grill, with the grill hot, lay each pita directly on the grate and cook until nicely browned on each side, about 1 ½ minutes per side. Keep the grill covered as much as possible.