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- 375 g
strong white bread flour, plus extra to dust
- 7 g
sachet fast-action dried yeast
- 1 tsp.
caster sugar
- 2 tsp.
olive oil, plus extra if kneading by hand
- Step 1In the bowl of a freestanding mixer fitted with a dough hook, or in a large bowl, mix the flour, yeast, sugar and 1tsp fine salt. Add the oil and 225-250ml tepid water and mix to make a soft but not sticky dough – adding a little extra water if the mixture looks dry.
- Step 2If making by hand, empty on to a greased work surface and knead for 5-10min, until smooth and elastic. If using a freestanding mixer, knead for 5min.
- Step 3Cover bowl with clingfilm or a clean tea towel and set aside in a warm place and leave to rise for 1hr, until doubled in volume.
- Step 4Preheat oven to 250°C (230°C fan) mark 10, or as high as your oven will go if it doesn’t go to 250°C. Put a baking stone or sturdy baking tray on the middle shelf to heat up for at least 10min.
- Step 5Scrape the dough on to a work surface and knead a couple of times to knock out the air. Cut into 8 equal portions, see GH Tips. Working one portion at a time, roll out to an 11.5 x 18cm oval. If your dough is bouncing back, leave it to relax for a few min while you start rolling out another portion.
- Step 6Lightly dust the hot baking stone/tray in the oven and add 1 dough oval. Bake for 3-5min, until puffed and golden. Remove from oven and wrap in a clean tea towel (See GH Tips). Repeat rolling and baking remaining pittas (making sure the baking stone/tray is hot before baking). Cool completely in the tea towel. Serve.
To store
Once cool, store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To reheat, pop into a toaster until warm.
GH Tips
• To make larger pittas, cut into 6 equal pieces and roll each piece into a rough 15 x 23cm oval.
•Wrapping in a tea towel catches the steam, which softens the bread again. Leave this stage out if you want crisp pittas.
Per pitta (if making 8):
- Calories: 182
- Protein: 6g
- Total fat: 1g
- Saturates: <1g
- Carbs: 36g
- Total sugars: 1g
- Fibre: 2g
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
