“When you make pitas at home, the oven is like a magician’s cave as you watch the dough puff up and transform into bread,” says Paul Hollywood.
And he wants to convince anyone who’s not tried it that this is a bit of magic we can all make.
‘If I can inspire you to make one flatbread at home, this is the one, because it has a very special place in my heart,” says the British baker, author and TV host. Hollywood lived in Cyprus for six years so it’s no surprise that when he devotes an entire episode of his show, Paul Hollywood’s Bread, to flatbreads, a Cypriot-style pita is on the menu. He also cooks up another throwback to his memories of island life: “I associate pita with my favourite lunch, pork souvlaki … I used to have this for lunch, and dinner… and if I could, I would have it for breakfast as well. I just love that meat with the bread,” he says. 
The breads Hollywood remembers were often made in wood-fired ovens, but you can make a great pita pocket in a home oven, too.
Paul Hollywood makes pitta and pork souvlaki Source: Bloomsbury / Paul Hollywood's Bread
"The secret is to roll out the dough as thin as you can and to put the pitas onto a very hot baking tray. This ferocious initial burst of heat helps them puff up and cook properly," he says of.
The basic process is to mix a soft, smooth yeasted dough; turn it onto an oiled bench (this will stop the dough sticking); knead the dough well, for 5-10 minutes, until it's smooth and elastic - "Pummel the dough," says Hollywood in the show. "It’s that rhythm and action that begins to build up the gluten strands that you need inside the flour” – and then allow it to rise.
When pre-heating the oven, put two trays inside so they heat up, too.
Divide the risen dough into balls, flatten out into a pita shape with your hands or a rolling pin, then into the oven they go. That’s when you get to watch the magic happen as the rounds of dough puff up.
As they cool down after baking, the bread will soften and deflate. Wrap the bread in a cloth, "to trap the steam and keep them soft, and leave to cool. They are best eaten the same day, or they can be frozen," Hollywood says of his recipe.
The blast of heat creates a pocket as the breads puff up Source: Bloomsbury / Paul Hollywood's Bread
He's made quite a few versions of these soft, stuffable pockets - you can find his recipe for wholemeal pita , his gluten-free pita , and a campfire pita served with babaganoush that featured The Great British Bake Off .
And as to size, well, that's up to you. You can make big or small pitas, he says, but he likes big ones. "I want a lot of souvlaki in there if I’m honest!”
Recipe and images from Paul Hollywood's Bread by Paul Hollywood , available in )
Source: Bloomsbury / Paul Hollywood's Bread
