Sourdough Pita Bread

Sourdough Pita Bread is actually quite easy to make. Using sourdough starter instead of yeast extends the time, but it’s mostly hands-off. The payoff is a big boost in flavor and an amazing texture.

Have you ever made pita bread at home? It’s so much fun to watch the rounds of dough puff up in the oven. I think you’ll be surprised how easy it is to make this delicious bread.

If you don’t already have one, I can show you how to make a sourdough starter and how to feed a sourdough starter. In the meantime you can make Homemade Pita Bread with commercial yeast.

Ingredients for Sourdough Pita Bread

• Active Sourdough Starter – Your starter should be at 100% hydration, recently fed and active.
• Water – Warm water will keep your yeast growning.
• Bread Flour – High protein bread flour will develop enough gluten to allow the pita to puff up in the heat of the oven.
• Salt – For flavor.
• Sugar – For flavor and browning.
• Olive Oil – To enrich the bread and add flavor.

How to make Sourdough Pita Bread:

• After a night in the refrigerator, the dough is active and elastic.

• Divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll each piece into a ball.

• Roll each ball to a 6-7″ round. If the dough springs back, let it rest and re-roll.

• Bake the pitas on a dark colored pre-heated sheet pan, baking steel or baking stone.
• They’ll puff as they bake.

• Wrap the warm pitas in a clean kitchen towel as they come out of the oven.
• They will deflate as they cool.

A timeline for making Sourdough Pita Bread:

• If your starter needs feeding, do that the night before or early in the morning of the day you want to make the dough.
• Mix the dough in the afternoon. Allow it to ferment at room temperature during the day.
• Refrigerate the dough in the evening before going to bed.
• The dough can stay in the refrigerator for 2-3 days at this point.
• Take the dough out first thing in the morning and let it come to room temperature.
• Roll and bake the pita rounds once the dough is at room temperature.
• You should have fresh bread by lunch time.

FAQs about making Sourdough Pita Bread:

I know you hate to throw away that sourdough discard. Check out these recipes that use sourdough discard.

More recipes to try:

• Basic Sourdough Bread
• Sourdough Pizza Crust
• Sourdough Baguette
• Sourdough Soft Sandwich Bread
• Sourdough Rye Bread
• Sourdough Whole Wheat Bread
• Sourdough Cracked Wheat Bread
• Sourdough Pretzel Rolls
• Sourdough Potato Buns
• Sourdough Hoagie Rolls
• Sourdough Brioche
• Sourdough Semolina Bread.

If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.

Print Recipe

4.61 from 204 reviews

Sourdough Pita Bread Recipe

By: Eileen Gray

If you’ve never baked Pita Bread at home, you’ll probably be surprised how easy it is. The addition of sourdough starter extends the time, but it's mostly hands off. The flavor upgrade from the starter makes it totally worth the time.

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Bake Time20 minutes mins

Rising Time12 hours hrs

Total Time12 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

8 breads

US CustomaryMetric

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• 8 oz active sourdough starter (1 cup (100% hydration))
• 8 oz warm water (1 cup)
• 13 ¾ oz bread flour (2 ¾ cups (see note))
• 1 oz olive oil (2 tablespoons)
• ½ oz granulated sugar (1 tablespoon)
• 1 ½ teaspoons table salt

Instructions

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, or in a large mixing bowl, combine the starter, water, and 1 ½ cups (7.5 oz or 210g) of the flour. Mix until it forms a thick batter. Cover the bowl and set aside for 30-60 minutes.
  8 oz active sourdough starter, 8 oz warm water
• If using a stand mixer, switch to the dough hook. Add the olive oil, sugar and salt then mix to combine. With the mixer running on low, add the remaining flour. Mix until the dough begins to clean the bottom of the bowl and form a ball around the hook. If mixing by hand add flour until you can no longer stir, then turn the dough out onto a floured surface to finish by hand. Knead 5 minutes. Form the dough into a smooth ball.
  1 oz olive oil, ½ oz granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
• Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover the bowl and set it aside at room temperature.
• After 30 minutes uncover the bowl, lift one side of the dough and fold it into the middle of the dough. Repeat with the other three sides of the dough then flip the dough over. You're basically turning the dough inside-out to redistribute the yeast.
• Cover the bowl and after 30 minutes repeat the procedure. Cover the bowl and after 60 minutes repeat the procedure again. Cover the bowl and after 60 minutes the dough should be ready.  By now the dough should be lively, elastic and airy. If the dough is still sluggish give it another hour or two at room temperature. 
• Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate overnight (see note). Remove the bowl from the refrigerator in the morning and allow the dough to come to room temperature.
• Preheat the oven to 450 °F. If you have a baking steel place it in the oven. If you don’t have a baking steel, place a baking sheet in the middle rack of the oven to preheat. If you have a dark colored baking sheet use that. A dark pan will absorb heat better than a light-colored pan, so the bread will bake faster and puff better.
• Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes. Use a rolling pin to roll two pitas to ¼” thick and 6” around. If the dough springs back too much let it rest for 5 minutes and continue rolling.
• Immediately place the rounds on the preheated baking stone or baking sheet in the oven. Bake until they are puffed and the bottom is nicely browned, about 3-5 minutes. You don’t need to flip the bread. Remove the baked breads and wrap in a clean kitchen towel while you continue rolling and baking the pitas.
• The pitas are best the day they are made, but they also freeze very well.
  

Equipment

My Book

KA Stand Mixer

Pizza Steel

Pizza peel

Rolling Pin

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Notes

If measuring the flour by volume use the “dip & sweep” method. That is, dip the measuring cup into the flour bin, overfill it, then sweep away the excess.

To make whole wheat pita bread, use 1 cup of whole wheat flour in place of the bread flour.

The dough benefits from a long, cool rise overnight. But you can skip the night in the refrigerator to mix and bake the pitas in one day.

Nutrition

Calories: 240kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 438mg | Potassium: 49mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 0.5mg

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @eileen.bakingsense or tag #bakingsense!