Easy Sourdough Pita Bread Recipe

Sourdough pita bread incorporates sourdough discard into traditional pita bread for a subtle, tangy zing. Pita bread is a Middle Eastern bread that puffs up while baking, developing an air pocket in its center. This pocket makes homemade pita bread an ideal bread to stuff with fillings.

If you already make sourdough bread at home, you may have two types of starter on hand: fresh active starter and starter discard. Fresh starter is full of bubbling yeast and bacteria, ready to leaven loaves like this rye bread recipe by baker Apollonia Poîlane. However, the yeast in unfed discard is relatively inert, having run out of fresh flour to consume. Sourdough discard is what gets removed from the levain before you “feed” the starter its next round of fresh flour. This discard is full of flavor that you can add to pitas and other dishes, like sourdough crêpes.

Pita bread generally has a gentle, neutral taste; the fermented flavor of the sourdough discard adds an extra punch. When you’re ready to serve, just spread your favorite filling—falafel, hummus, et cetera—onto this versatile sandwich bread or slice it up and dip it into condiments.

1. 1. Start with a homemade starter. “Sourdough” is another term for naturally leavened bread and baked goods. Harnessing its flavor is as simple as mixing equal parts flour and water and leaving the mixture in a warm location. (Apollonia Poilâne’s sourdough starter recipe explains how to make one from scratch.) Once your sourdough starter develops yeast and lactic acid bacteria, you’ll start to notice signs of fermentation. Regularly removing half of the dough and feeding flour to the remaining half keeps it happy and bubbly. Instead of throwing away the discard, use it to make pita bread.
2. 2. Get creative. Pita pockets are the traditional vehicle for falafel sandwiches. They’re also a great bread for classic sandwiches like chicken or tuna salad or a veggie sandwich loaded with avocado, sprouts, tomatoes, and tahini dressing. (Try Chef Yotam Ottolenghi’s tahini recipe.) They travel well, making pita sandwiches a great lunch option to take on a picnic or to the office or school.
3. 3. Leftovers are delicious. Get a second life out of your pita after it goes stale. Slice any remaining pitas into quarters, brush them with olive oil, sprinkle on some za’atar (or some Mediterranean dried spices), and toast them on a baking sheet at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for fifteen minutes. Dip the pita chips into hummus, baba ganoush, or Yotam Ottolenghi’s smoky red pepper muhammara. Or prepare homemade fattoush, a Lebanese salad consisting of toasted pita that soaks up juicy tomatoes, cucumbers, and more seasonal vegetables.
4. 4. Make flatbread. Making pita dough into flatbread is an alternative to baking it in the oven. Home cooks traditionally bake flatbreads like naan in a tandoor oven at high heat. However, you can also bake flatbreads in a cast-iron skillet or on a griddle. Just make sure the heat is screaming hot, so each piece of dough cooks quickly and evenly.