How Strained Yogurt Led Me to Homemade Pita Bread (Easy Recipe)

Over the past month, I've basically been eating pita bread to an almost ridiculous degree.

No, I'm exaggerating. But I've still been eating pita almost every single day.

That's because of three things:

• 1I've been making a lot of strained yogurt
• 2I hate throwing food away
• 3I'm living on a tight budget

I can already hear you thinking: what do 1 and 2 have to do with eating pita bread every day?

I'm going to explain that now, of course.

But I'll start with number 3 first.

Makes sense, right? 😉

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Starting with number 3: a tight budget

So, I'm living on a tight budget.

Because I find yogurt in Italy ridiculously expensive, I started making my own once the temperatures began to rise.

I'm used to Dutch prices. And in the Netherlands, yogurt costs less than half of what it does here.

But I really like thick, creamy yogurt.

And that brings me to number 1.

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Number 1: strained yogurt — and the whey it leaves behind

Because I like thick, creamy yogurt, I started making strained yogurt.

But that leaves you with a pretty large amount of whey.

On to number 2…

I'm definitely not throwing that whey away!

It's actually packed with nutrients, including healthy proteins and minerals like calcium, potassium, phosphorus, and magnesium.

So what did I do?

I started using the whey in pizza dough.

And especially in pita bread!

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The economics of homemade pita

Because flour in Italy, on the other hand, is about half the price compared to the Netherlands.

From half a kilo of whole wheat flour (which costs less than €0.50 here in Italy), I can easily make a batch of 8 pita breads. More than enough for an entire week!

And you can easily freeze the dough balls. Every time I baked one, I would already take the next one out of the freezer and let it thaw overnight in the fridge for the next day.

And you don't even need to turn on the oven if you don't want to.

I usually just cook the pita in a skillet with a lid on it. A couple of minutes and it's done!

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How versatile is a pita?

A pita bread is, of course, extremely versatile.

You can use it for:

• 1.Mediterranean or Middle Eastern dishes

• 2.With a simple dipping sauce
• 3.As a quick sandwich: mayo, crisp lettuce, cheese, egg, and maybe a pickle, tomato, and/or olive

• 4.Split open lengthwise and turned into a quick pizza base

I'll give you the recipe, so you can decide whether it's something for you.

Super easy!

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Pita Bread

For about 8 medium pita breads

Ingredients

• 500 g all-purpose flour (or bread flour)
• 325 g lukewarm water (*)
• 7 g dry yeast (or 20 g fresh yeast)
• 10 g salt
• 15 g olive oil (optional, for slightly softer pita)

Method

1. Make the dough

   Mix flour, yeast, and water. Add salt and knead for 8–10 minutes until you get a smooth, elastic dough. Optionally knead in the olive oil.

2. First rise

   Cover and let rise for 1–1.5 hours, until roughly doubled in size.

3. Divide (**)

   Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces (about 105 g each). Shape into tight dough balls.

4. Rest

   Let the dough balls rest, covered, for 15–20 minutes.

5. Roll out

   Roll each ball into a disk about 15–18 cm (6–7 inches) wide and 5–8 mm thick. Try to keep the thickness even—this helps them puff up.

6. Second rest (***)

   Let the disks rest again, covered, for 15–30 minutes.

7. Bake (****)

   In a very hot Dutch oven or skillet: about 1–2 minutes per side.
   In an oven at 250–275°C (480–525°F): 3–5 minutes on a hot baking sheet or pizza stone.

For the best pita "pocket"

Don't roll them too thin

Make sure your cooking surface is very hot

Don't let the dough dry out during the final rest

Cook them one at a time if needed

(*) Sometimes I replace part or all of the water with yogurt whey.

(**) At this point, I usually put each dough ball into a small freezer bag and freeze them.

(***) I've found this step isn't strictly necessary—maybe even better to skip it, because otherwise they're more likely to dry out.

(****) This also works perfectly in a skillet with a lid.

So… what do you think? Could this be something for you too?

Personally, I prefer whole wheat flour. A bit more fiber never hurts.

And one more thing: when you make it yourself, you actually know what's in it. No preservatives.

If you give it a try, I'd love to hear about it. And if you know someone who enjoys baking or simple budget cooking, feel free to pass the recipe along.

Photos: top, 1a, 1b, 2