Whole wheat Sourdough Pita

Whole wheat sourdough pitaLike many others, my sourdough adventures started with COVID 19. Recently my son enquired about Pinocchio (my starter’s age). Well, born in April 2020, he is about 9 months old. Reminding me of how long we have been coping with the pandemic. The latest in my round of sourdough adventures is Sourdough Pita. Whole wheat sourdough Pita to be specific. Once you realize how easy it is to make these beauties, you will never buy readymade pita again. And like all thing’s sourdough, it needs a wee bit of time, but is easy and super flavorful.

My Story About Sourdough Pita

At baseline plan on about 5 hours of rising time, with active starter. However, something quite magical happens if you let the dough rest in the refrigerator for 2 days doing a cold rise. In addition, to having the dough available for you, the flavor deepens and creates something light and fluffy.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Pita

Now, you can use my recipe and add a tablespoon of quick rise yeast. It is not quite as much fun, but, it gets the job done.  Done fresh and fluffy, these whole wheat pita’s are a good substitute for Naan and have the benefit of being vegan. And the whole wheat flour that I use for this recipe is atta, or Indian whole wheat flour. Here is however my recipe for wholewheat sourdough naan.

And for more things to do with your sourdough starter, here is a sourdough pizza

And I cannot believe that the year is truly drawing down to a close. While there are few things to be grateful about, if I am truly being honest it is not the best of years. Just is not. I want to be able to travel to India. I am worried about my mother, who is alone dealing with all the craziness of COVID. There I said it, and now we can get back to business of making soft and puffy pita breads.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Pita

A little Bit about Pocket Formation

A few things that I found that helps with the formation of the pocket.

  • Allow your dough to rise for 2 cycles. As in give it a good knead after 3 hours, and allow it to rise and double again.
  • Make sure your oven in nice and hot, yes, the 425 degrees is essential.
  • Let is rise undisturbed for the 4 minutes, do not open the oven door while it is cooking.
  • Do not roll them out too thin or thick. About 1/2 cm in thickness seems to work.
  • While the unused ones will stay, I just think it is so much fun to actually make them fresh. It is a better idea to have the dough handy.

How to Enjoy Your Whole Wheat Sourdough Pita?

And our new favorite thing to enjoy has been pita bread with this avocado hummus. Pita pockets just seem to be so much work.

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Whole wheat Sourdough Pita

Prep Time: 5 hours, 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 5 hours, 20 minutes

Yield: Serves 6 to 8

Whole wheat Sourdough Pita

An easy to make wholesome take on sourdough pita. You can make with yeast as well.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of whole wheat flour such as atta
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup active sourdough starter (see notes for using yeast)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup water as needed to form the dough

Instructions

  1. Place the whole wheat flour, salt, and active starter in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add in the olive oil and just enough water to form a soft and smooth dough. This should not be wet.
  2. Cover in a large bowl and set aside in a warm place for about 3 hours. Your dough should have risen and doubled by now.
  3. Mix well and set aside to rise again. In about 2 hours, this should have doubled. Alternately, at this point you can refridgerate for at least 8 hours or upto 3 days for a cold rise.
  4. Turn the oven on to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
  5. Break the dough in balls about the size of a small orange. Roll out into 6 inch rounds about 1/2 cm in thickness. Use flour as needed for rolling.
  6. Place on the baking sheet and in the oven for 4 minutes. Your pitas should puff up. Note, not all my pitas puff up completely, but they still taste amazing.

Notes

To use yeast add 1 tablespoon of yeast in warm water or milk with a little sugar and when frothy add to the flour and continue as described.

https://spicechronicles.com/whole-wheat-sourdough-pita/

 

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