Flatbread

At a glance

What stands out: Similar to naan, pita, or chapati, this leavened flatbread recipe is straightforward to mix and so versatile. Use as a wrap, pizza crust, or just eat warm from the pan! The ingredients for from-scratch flatbread are simple, with no additives or preservatives.

How long it takes: just under 2 hours (includes time for the dough to rest)
Equipment you’ll need: large bowl, heavy skillet
Servings: makes 8 flatbreads

Different types of flatbread can be found around the world, from many cultures. Flatbread is a simple bread that’s been made for centuries. Pita, focaccia, lavash, tortillas, roti, chepati, matzah, and naan are examples of flatbreads.

Not all flatbread doughs are the same; some contain yeast (leavened) and some recipes do not contain yeast (unleavened). Our recipe contains yeast and requires a short time to rest, just 15 minutes. This allows time for the gluten to relax enough so that you can roll out the dough.

From-scratch Flatbread

So versatile. Much more interesting than a plain tortilla wrap or a slice of bread, flatbreads just make whatever you put on or in them much more appealing.

Goes with everything. What meal isn’t made more reliable with the addition of freshly made yeasty bread? It’s rich with this roasted romaine salad with crispy chicken and tomatoes. With from-scratch hummus, flatbread is a reliable dipper, too. Or wrap dill chicken salad in a from-scratch flatbread. Yum! It’s great with beef stew or chili, too, or anything with a little extra gravy or sauce.

Makes an awesome pizza crust. Is your family as crazy about from-scratch pizza as ours?! Often we buy frozen balls of dough from the grocery store, but these flatbreads are a great alternative. Just add pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella cheese, and favorite toppings for a rich from-scratch pizza. Our kids love the fact that each flatbread can be made into a personal pizza with exactly the toppings they like.

Fun to make. Our friend Megan shared this flatbread recipe from King Arthur Flour and we love it! It takes a little time to make but it’s mostly hands off time. Your kids will enjoy participating in the bread making process and it tastes so good when it’s fresh and hot off the griddle. (If you’re liking this idea, be sure to try from-scratch flour tortillas, too!)

How it comes together

Hydrate the flour. With this flatbread recipe, you’ll be using the autolyse method. Mix part of the flour with boiling water and let it rest for half an hour. Why? This method fully hydrates the flour and activates the gluten. It reduces kneading time and results in more volume and a better crumb structure. Bread making is such a science! We are learning all the time.

Knead and let it rise. After this first step, you’ll add the remaining ingredients, knead the dough, and let it rise for an hour.

Roll the dough out. You’re up to the fun part! This is the part that kids love to help with. Divide the dough into 8 balls. After the dough has another brief rest, you flatten each ball into a roundish shape. Irregular shapes are just fine; like our daughter learned in art class, these shapes are called “organic” shapes.

Bake on the stovetop. You don’t even have to turn the oven on to bake this bread so there’s no need to heat up your kitchen. You bake it on a griddle or hot skillet, about 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until it’s flecked with brown and slightly puffed up. How fun is that!

How To Serve Flatbread

• Naan, pita, wraps, or chapati. From-scratch flatbreads would work just like any of those commonly used breads, only better, because you make them yourself. It doesn’t get much fresher or wholesome than that!
• “Grilled cheese”. Flatbreads are rich with cheese sprinkled on it and popped under the broiler for a minute or two, kind of an open-faced grilled cheese. Go fancy with this ricotta flatbread with bacon, squash, apples, and maple pepitas!
• Breakfast. Try buttering a warm flatbread and sprinkling a little cinnamon sugar on it for a breakfast treat. We love to pile scrambled eggs and bacon on toasted flatbread.
• Pizza. Use individual flatbreads as pizza crust with all of your favorite toppings piled on. Bake at 400°F for 5 to 10 minutes depending on how high you piled your toppings.
• Sandwiches. Fill it with your favorite sandwich filling, whether it’s deli meat and cheese, or curry chicken salad. Fold it in half and enjoy. One of our favorite sandwiches is Greek meatballs and from-scratch tzatziki wrapped up in a warm flatbread!

Keeping leftovers

Storing: From-scratch flatbread will keep for two to three days at room temperature. Be sure it is completely cool before storing it in an airtight container or bag. It freezes well, too, and will keep for up to a month.

Reheating: Flatbread can be reheated in your toaster, toaster oven, or regular oven. Wrap it in foil if you like it to be soft; for a crisper bread, leave it unwrapped.

• Yield: 8 flatbreads
• Prep: 15 minutes
• Cook: 6 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 51 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 ¼ cups ( 10 ounces) boiling water
• ½ cup instant potato flakes
• 1 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast (see note)

Method

1. Place 2 cups of the flour into a bowl. Pour the boiling water over the flour, and stir till smooth. Cover the bowl and set the mixture aside for 30 minutes.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the instant potato flakes and remaining flour ( 1 cup ) with the salt, oil and yeast. Add this to the cooled flour/water mixture, stir, then knead for 5 to 7 minutes (by hand, or stand mixer) to form a soft dough. Add more water, if needed. We added 1 tablespoon. Add additional flour only if necessary. If kneading by hand, keep your hands and work surface lightly oiled.
3. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 hour.
4. Divide the dough into 8 pieces, cover, and let rest for 15 to 30 minutes.
5. Roll each piece into a 7- to 8-inch circle, and fry them without oil over medium heat for about 2 to 3 minutes per side. They will be puffed and flecked with brown spots. Adjust the heat if they seem to be cooking either too quickly, or too slowly; cooking too quickly means they may be raw in the center, while too slowly will dry them out. Transfer the cooked breads to a wire rack, stacking them to keep them soft.
6. Serve immediately, or cool before storing in a plastic bag.

Notes

Using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast: This recipe works best with instant yeast because it dissolves during the kneading process, so you don’t have to knead liquid into the dough. If you prefer to use active dry yeast, use only 1 cup boiling water for the initial dough, dissolve the yeast in ¼ cup warm water, and add this mixture to the dough along with the potato flour mixture. It’ll be somewhat “slippery” at first, but will knead in and eventually become smooth.