An easy, soft flatbread recipe that’s made without yeast, an excellent quick option when you don’t have hours for yeast dough to rise. You’ll love how soft and pliable this flat bread is, making it perfect to use as wraps for Gyros, Shawarma and Doner kebabs. Or as naan to dunk into Tikka Masala or Butter Chicken. The possibilities are endless!
Flatbread recipe
I love fresh homemade bread. And though I bake bread with yeast more frequently nowadays, I still find it easier and a general preference to make bread without yeast.
Maximum taste, most tasty outcome with minimum effort – but without compromising on the end result. That’s my ultimate goal and the ethos that underpins every recipe I share here on RecipeTin Eats.
Over the years, I have tried a lot of flatbread recipes. Flatbreads from many different cuisines, from blogs and cooking sites, by home cooks, from reality cooking shows (yes, Master Chef and My Kitchen Rules!), serious chefs and celebrity chefs.
But I always found they were too doughy (e.g. the ones that only use yoghurt as the wet ingredient) or too crisp to use as a wrap unless they were moistened with lashings of butter. Absolutely delicious, mind you. But not what I was after. So this recipe is my idea of a perfect flatbread recipe.
How to make Flatbread – with NO yeast
This flatbread recipe is made with no yeast. It is very easy to make, requiring just a minute or two of kneading.
And it honestly is beautifully soft and pliable. So soft you can use it as a wrap and it won’t crack.
And of course, it is perfect to be used as pita bread, for things like Greek Gyros and Greek Chicken Souvlaki.
And here I have used it as “naan” as a side for Butter Chicken. When I make it to be like “naan”, I cook it on a slightly higher heat to get larger and more brown bits on it – just like real naan! The crust gets slightly crispier so it’s not as suited to use as a wrap, like in the above photo. (PS If you’ve got the time to make proper naan, try my Naan recipe. It’s just like the real deal!)
If you’ve never tried homemade bread before, this flatbread recipe is a great one to start with because it really is that easy. The worst that can happen with this flatbread recipe is that the heat is too high when you cook it so the exterior ends up a bit too crunchy and cracks when you roll it. If that happens, just spray it with olive oil or brush lightly with oil or butter and it will moisten the surface.
Try this once, and store-bought flatbreads will never be the same again. That I can promise! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
I’ve added oil but it’s not necessary. Please follow your recipe card below.
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Easy Soft Flatbread (No Yeast)
Ingredients
- 2 cups plain flour (all purpose flour) (level cups, unsifted, not packed), + keep 1/4 cup extra for dusting & adjusting dough
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 1/2 tbsp / 50g unsalted butter (1.75 oz)
- 3/4 cup milk
Instructions
- Melt butter in milk: Combine butter and milk and heat until butter is just melted – on stove or in microwave.
- Combine Dry: Combine 2 cups flour, salt, butter and milk in a bowl.
- Knead 2 minutes: Sprinkle work surface with flour then knead for a few minutes until it is smooth – it doesn't need much kneading. Add extra flour if the dough is too sticky.
- Rest 30 minutes: Wrap with cling wrap and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes or so.
- Roll into rounds: Dust bench top with flour, cut dough into 6 pieces, roll into balls, then roll out into 20cm / 8" rounds, 2 – 3 mm thick.
- Heat pan: Heat a non stick pan over high heat (no oil). (Note 1)
- Cook: Place one flatbread in the pan, cook for around 1- 1 1/2 minutes – it should puff up dramatically. Once the underside has nice golden patches on it, flip and cook the other side for 45 seconds to 1 minute until the underside has golden spots and it puffs up again.
- Keep wrapped in tea towel: Stack the cooked bread and keep wrapped with a tea towel – the moisture helps soften the surface, making them even more pliable. Continue to cook with remaining pieces.
- Brush with butter or oil (optional): Brush or spray bread with olive oil or melted butter, for a more luxurious finish. Or even with melted butter mixed with minced garlic for a garlic butter version!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
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The pics looks utterly delicious and mouth watery. I think this is well suited for rolling shawarma. Your video added much detailed information to the making of recipe. Thanks.
You are welcome Emile! I hope you try it!
Could this turn out crispy if I made chicken pesto flatbread in oven? So in other words, make the flatbread like you did, add toppings, then put it on a stone in the oven. Would it crisp up? I would like it to! Thank you!
Hmm! Interesting, I haven’t thought about that. I haven’t tried it myself but in theory it should work because if you roll it a bit thinner (e.g. make 6 instead of 4) and cook on a high heat on the stove then it goes crispy. So in theory that works for the oven too!
I never comment on anything, but I have to give 2 thumbs up on this recipe! I have made these several times over the last couple of months, with amazing results. In a pinch, when I didn’t have milk on hand, i have used milk powder, watered down yogurt, 1/2 and 1/2, and it’s worked out well every time. However, I do find i like them a little better with about 1 tsp of baking powder. I usually make it into at least 6-7 flatbreads, have added all different kinds of fresh or dried herbs/fresh garlic, have added a little multigrain flour on occasion – and all were great. I have done them on a flat top cast iron pan on the stove which works well, but since summer is here, I’ve done them on the bbq, which really adds an amazing flavor. I served that to my guests with a little fresh tomato/pesto/feta topper and got rave reviews. They couldn’t believe I made it from scratch. I have forwarded this recipe to several of my friends. THANK YOU! I have been trying for 2 years, without success, to make pizza dough, so who needs it now?! 🙂
I’m so pleased to hear that Marcia! Thank you for letting me know – N x
Regarding the nutritional information – Is each piece / serving of flatbread actually 370 calories? Or is that amount for the entire amount? Fat girl here has to watch her waistline doesn’t get any bigger AND that it continues to get smaller (with controlled portions of course). 🙂
Thank you for your scrumptious recipes and imparting your knowledge (really appreciate the additional notes).
Hi Eva! Yes it is for one 🙂 They are a decent size. You could definitely roll them out slightly thinner and make 6 to reduce the calories per piece. The reason they are higher in calories is because they have butter in them which keeps them soft, and also because they are slightly thicker than, for example, tortillas. N x
thanks Nagi for your excellent recipe!
i tried it last nite on a campfire and happy to say ill never have to buy flatbread again! (:
That’s fantastic to hear tb! Thank you for letting me know – N xx
Can you replace all propose flour with bread flour
Yes! ❤️
Made these with Butter Chicken after work – rolled them extra thin and cooked them super crisp as that is the boys preference – another awesome recipe Thanks Nagi – Gnocchi is next !!
I’m so happy to hear that Kym! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know – and I do hope you try the gnocchi, it is SO GOOD!!! – N xx
The entire menu was amazing!!! We all loved our “feast”. We don’t eat dairy products with meat…so substituted where necessary with almost great results! We felt the So Delicious yogurt was way too sweet with the shawarma, so quickly whipped up hummus, lemon, cumin and a little water for sauce. Perfect. The grilled veggies, chick peas and cabbage/carrot salad were great accompaniments! Flatbread was a breeze to prepare, I wrapped in plastic to cook the following day. That was the only problem!!! When I removed the plastic, the dough just fell apart before it hit the fry pan. I used almond milk (dairy free) and olive oil. Do you think if I had cooked it as I made it, then it would have held its shape?? Would the cooked bread freeze well? I will definitely be trying this again!!
YES it freezes great! I am SO pleased you enjoyed the whole feast! N xx
Hi Nagi, Am from the Caribbean Trinidad to be more specific.
Here we make the flatbread but we call it “roti”
This is an east indian recipe. There are also different methods of making roti, a very favorite dish back home.
Thank you for sharing
I love hearing all the different names for this! Thanks for sharing Ramdeo! N xx
Yep. Made them. Ate them. Loved them. Grandson enjoyed rolling out his own supper and did a good job. Have a vegan in the family so we did the substitute’s and still turned out great. Thanks. C.
Pleased to hear you enjoyed it C, thanks for letting me know! N xx
This is a chipote, different than flatbread lol
Love hearing the different names for this! 🙂 N x
Tried today for the first time and loved them… super easy.. I rolled really thin and cooked on a high heat and got a lovely crispy flat bread
So fantastic to hear that Andi thanks for letting me know! N xx
Hey nagi, i made this recently and loved how easy it was. My only problem was that it broke when i tried to roll it and was maybe a bit doughy. Do you have any tips on what i might have done wrong?
Hi Sam! What do you mean by “doughy”?? Was it too hard / too soft / too sticky?? N x
Can you use course sea salt for this recope
Hi Lisa, that should work just fine!
Just made these to go with a family barbecue for Father’s Day. Doubled the quantity and made ten of a decent size. They were absolutely delicious and everyone loved them. Thank you so much for this recipe. I am going to try them with curry and for that will use wholemeal flour.
That’s fantastic to hear Nicola! Thanks for letting me know – N xx
Hi I made this today. Turned out great!! I’m excited for my boys to try it when they get home. I’m going to add several savory and sweet ingredients to it. I think it will be great. Thanks for an easy and delicious recipe.
I LOVE HEARING THAT!!!! Thank you for letting me know Heather! N xx
Hi Nagi!! I made the flatbread today and it was amazing!!! I always wanted a good recipe for pita , as I eat souvlaki at leat once a week ( I’m from Greece) . Thank you so much! This is exactly what I had been looking for!
I’m so pleased to hear that Julia! Thank you for letting me know! N xx
Hi Nagi. Thank you so much for this excellent recipe me and my family love so much.
I have a question on recipe notes #2. You say these cooked breads keep well in the freezer. How should these flatbreads be stored in the freezer?
So pleased to hear that Alma! Just freeze them flat, wrapped in cling wrap and/or in an airtight container. ❤️
Hi Nagi, would you defrost the breads before cooking, or cook them straight from frozen? Thanks!
They are so thin you could pan fry them from frozen for sure! But usually I defrost 🙂 N xx
Could I use bread flour to make this? I have an abundance of bread flour at the moment…
Yes yes!!
Can you use Almond Flour instead of flour for a gluten-free version?
HI Jennifer! I am not sure about almond flour, sorry. 🙂 I have recipe testing for this on my schedule and will test out all sorts of flours!
Can this bread be made with either almond or coconut flours?
Hi Sara! Readers have reported that it worked with coconut, I haven’t heard about almond yet. 🙂 Instinct tells me it’s too heavy for this?