Greek Food Bread
Greek Pita Bread: Soft, Fluffy Pita for Gyros and Souvlaki
Soft, pocketless Greek pita that folds around gyros and souvlaki without cracking. Cooked in a dry pan or the air fryer, no oven needed.
Serves
8 pieces
Calories
270 kcal
Cuisine
Greek
On this page: What is it · History · What you need · Step by step · Air fryer · Serving & storage · Recipe card
Greek pita bread is soft, thick and pocketless, made to wrap around gyros and souvlaki without cracking. This version is cooked in a dry frying pan, so you don’t need an oven, and it stays soft for hours.
Shop-bought Greek-style pitas are useful, but fresh ones are a different thing: warm, slightly chewy and lightly charred in spots.
The dough is a simple yeast dough with a little yoghurt and olive oil for softness. It needs about an hour to rise and twenty minutes at the stove. No free hob, or would you rather not stand over a pan? There is an air fryer method too.
What Is It?
Greek pita for souvlaki and gyros is a round, soft flatbread about 1 cm thick. Unlike the thinner Middle Eastern pocket pita, it does not puff into a hollow pocket. It is folded around the filling rather than stuffed.
In Greek, the word pita (πίτα) also means pie, as in spanakopita or tiropita. The bread is often called pita for souvlaki to tell the two apart.
In Greece, the pitas are usually brushed with oil and warmed on the grill before being wrapped around the meat.
A Little History
Flatbreads are among the oldest breads in the Mediterranean, and versions of them have been baked around the region for thousands of years.
The thick, soft pita most people know today became widespread in Greece with the rise of souvlaki and gyros as street food in the second half of the 20th century, when the wrap with meat, tomato, onion, tzatziki and chips became a staple.
Today most Greek souvlaki shops buy their pitas from bakeries, but homemade pita has a softness the packaged kind rarely matches.
At a glance
Serves
8 pieces
Calories
270 kcal
Protein
8 g
Course
Bread, Side
Why it works
01 Soft enough to fold without cracking
02 Frying pan or air fryer, no oven
03 Freezes well for quick gyros nights
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What You Need
Exact amounts are in the recipe card
For the Dough
- plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- instant dried yeast, 1 sachet
- sugar
- fine sea salt, 1 1/2 tsp
- lukewarm water
- Greek yoghurt
- olive oil
To Cook
- olive oil, for brushing
Step-by-Step Instructions
Mix, knead, let it rise, then roll and cook one pita at a time. Stacking them under a towel is what keeps them soft.
1. Make the dough
Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the water, yoghurt and olive oil and bring together into a shaggy dough.
2. Knead
Knead for 8 to 10 minutes by hand, or 5 minutes in a stand mixer with a dough hook, until smooth and elastic. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky.
Tip: Resist adding lots of extra flour. A soft dough gives soft pitas.
3. Let it rise
Cover the bowl and leave in a warm place for 60 to 75 minutes until doubled in size.
4. Divide and roll
Divide the dough into 8 pieces of about 105 g and shape into balls. Rest for 10 minutes, then roll each one into a round about 18 cm wide and 5 mm thick.
5. Cook in a dry pan
Heat a heavy frying pan over medium-high heat with no oil. Cook each pita for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side until it puffs in places and has light brown spots.
Tip: If the pita browns too fast before it puffs, lower the heat a little.
6. Brush and stack
Brush each hot pita lightly with olive oil and stack them inside a clean tea towel. The steam keeps them soft and foldable.
How to Make Greek Pita Bread in the Air Fryer
Yes, you can cook Greek pita bread in an air fryer. Make the dough exactly the same way, then cook the pitas one at a time, flat in the basket. They puff and freckle like they do in the pan, with no need to watch the heat.
The one thing to check is the size of your basket. Each pita needs to lie flat without curling up the sides, so roll them to fit, usually about 16 cm. With a smaller basket, divide the dough into 10 pieces instead of 8.
Air fryer method
- Make, knead and rise the dough as in steps 1 to 3. Divide it into 8 pieces (or 10 for a small basket) and rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat the air fryer to 200 °C for 3 to 5 minutes. Roll one ball into a round that fits flat in the basket, about 16 cm wide and 5 mm thick.
- Lay the pita in the basket with no oil. Air fry for 2 minutes, turn it over with tongs and cook for another 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, until it puffs in places and has light golden spots.
- Brush with olive oil straight away and stack inside a clean tea towel. Roll the next pita while one is cooking.
Tip: Air fryers vary in power, and air-fried pitas dry out faster than pan-cooked ones. Check the first one after 1 1/2 minutes per side and take it out as soon as it has colour. Overcooked, it turns crisp instead of foldable.
Serving & Storage
Serving
Use the pitas for gyros and chicken souvlaki with tzatziki, tomato and red onion, or serve them warm with dips like tzatziki and htipiti.
Cut leftover pita into wedges, brush with olive oil and oregano and bake until crisp for pita chips.
Storing Leftovers
Once cool, keep the pitas wrapped or in a bag at room temperature.
| Room temperature, wrapped | up to 2 days |
| Freezer | up to 3 months |
| Reheat | 1 minute per side in a hot pan, or 1 to 2 minutes in the air fryer at 180 °C |
Freeze with baking paper between the pitas so you can take out one at a time. Reheat straight from frozen in a dry pan.
Greek Pita Bread (Pan or Air Fryer)
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl or stand mixer
- Large heavy frying pan or cast-iron pan for the pan method
- Clean tea towel
- Air fryer optional, basket at least 16 cm wide
Ingredients
Dough
- 500 g plain flour plus extra for dusting
- 7 g instant dried yeast 1 sachet
- 1 tsp sugar
- 9 g fine sea salt 1 1/2 tsp
- 250 ml lukewarm water
- 75 g Greek yoghurt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
To Cook
- 2 tbsp olive oil for brushing
Instructions
Pan Method
- Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the water, yoghurt and olive oil and bring together into a shaggy dough.
- Knead for 8 to 10 minutes by hand, or 5 minutes in a stand mixer with a dough hook, until smooth and elastic. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky.
- Cover the bowl and leave in a warm place for 60 to 75 minutes until doubled in size.
- Divide the dough into 8 pieces of about 105 g and shape into balls. Rest for 10 minutes, then roll each one into a round about 18 cm wide and 5 mm thick.
- Heat a heavy frying pan over medium-high heat with no oil. Cook each pita for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side until it puffs in places and has light brown spots.
- Brush each hot pita lightly with olive oil and stack them inside a clean tea towel. The steam keeps them soft and foldable.
Air Fryer Method
- Make, knead and rise the dough as in the pan method. Divide it into 8 pieces (or 10 for a small basket) and rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat the air fryer to 200 °C for 3 to 5 minutes. Roll one ball into a round that fits flat in the basket, about 16 cm wide and 5 mm thick.
- Lay the pita in the basket with no oil. Air fry for 2 minutes, turn it over with tongs and cook for another 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, until it puffs in places and has light golden spots.
- Brush with olive oil straight away and stack inside a clean tea towel. Roll the next pita while one is cooking.
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Products we use
Our kitchen kit for this recipe
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