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
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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
- 1/2 tbsp oil (for cooking)
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 4 pieces, roll into balls, then roll out into about 1/8" / 0.3cm thick rounds.
- Heat oil: Heat 1/2 tbsp olive oil in a non stick pan over medium heat – or lower if you have a heavy based skillet. (Note 1)
- Cook: Place one flatbread in the pan, cook for around 1- 1 1/2 minutes – it should bubble up (see photo in post)- then flip and cook the other side, pressing down if it puffs up. There should be a smallish golden brown spots on both sides.
- 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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Liked the easy and quick method. I made a little thinner and no-oil fried on a stove top grill plate. Perfect for crispy personal pizzas. May try on outdoor grill next time to experiment.
I LOVE this recipe!! Definitely the simplest bread recipe ever and absolutely yummy 😋
Great flat bread really easy to make and went very will be the Chicken Gyros . Yum Yum Yum
Excellent wraps, cooked up soft and pliable as advertised! I used them for chicken shawarma.. this will forever be my go-to soft-wrap! Thanks much!
I’ve made these twice now. They’re delicious. The perfect wrap for any type of filling or accompaniment to a curry. Definitely one tomsave
These are everything advertised and better. I did end up having to roll thinner than I thought and cook slower but wow these are great!
These are the best! I’ve tried lots of flat bread recipes— yeasted and non-yeasted – and these are by far the easiest and most delicious! If I happen to have any leftover I reheat them on a low flame of my gas stove. yum!
These are the best! I’ve tried lots of flat bread recipes— yeast Ed and in yeast Ed – and these are by far the easiest and most delicious! If I happen to have any leftover I reheat them on a low flame of my gas stove. yum!
Hi Nagi! Can I make these with a non-dairy milk alternative?
Mmmm delish! I made these tonight and they’re all gone, just like that. I LOVE garlic so I fried some in the melting butter before adding the milk. The dough was a little lumpier than yours but tasted scrumptious. This blows my old go-to yoghurt-y naan recipe out of the water!
Hi Nagi! Can I use a combination of all purpose flour and whole wheat flour? If so, what would be the best ratio?
Hi Nagi thanks for this recipe ☺️ I’m hoping you can help me troubleshoot, as I must have done something wrong! when I cooked them, they didn’t bubble like in your video, maybe I made them too thick? My dough also wasn’t as smooth as yours after I kneaded it, could I have over kneaded? I also let it res for prob 2-3 hours 🙈 Can’t wait to try again, I loved how you have added loads of info and help 🙂
Hi Cliona, did you make this based on the metric measurements, could you have mismeasured something here? N x
Can these be made in advance? Say the day before needed?
We’re “spinning” chicken gyros on the rotisserie tomorrow night 🤤
Yes 100% Nicola, just store in an airtight container. N x
Hi! This looks amazing. Could these be frozen??
Yes 100% Heather!! N x
So yummy and bloody easy!! I’ve always thought about making my own wraps but never found a recipe that didn’t look too hard! Until now! 😃 We wrapped up some slow cooked Greek lamb and had an amazing dinner! I’ve made them again with garlic, cheese and nigella seeds for an Indian twist. Delish! Just love all your recipes Nagi!!
Hi Nagi, I absolutely love this recipe, it’s easy to make and tastes great! Thank you for putting this recipe on.
Jacinta