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.
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
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:
Life of Dozer
Summer, autumn, spring and winter. Rain, hail or shine.
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?
Hi Nagi,
This ‘soft flat bread’ is known as Chapati or Chapatis for plural. It is widely cooked in Kenya and Tanzania and a staple in the east African region. I know because I grew up eating it and my sister was renowned in the family for her skills in making it. While you’ve used buttermilk as the liquid of choice the concept is the same. I applaud you for sharing foods from other cultures and showing how food can serve as a cultural bridge. It would have helped to give credit to the culture of origin or just mentioning where this type of bread is commonly made/eaten. Thanks.
Nagi did credit a culture of origin as – Course: Flatbread Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean – at the very top of the recipe, above the list of ingredients.
As she graciously replied, there are about as many cultures that have some type of flatbread as there are cultures.
I will add, there are only so many basic ingredients with which to make them. Many things throughout the course of humanity have been discovered across several, disparate cultures within the same time-frame. It is doubtful anyone knows with absolute certainty all the varieties or discoverers of any basic foodstuff.
Also, this recipe specifies Butter and Milk, not Buttermilk.
Happy cooking!
I’ve been amazed how many cultures have similar recipes! Even Indian flatbreads – I didn’t realise, I thought Indian flatbreads had less ingredients. 🙂 N xx
I am LOVING hearing what people around the world know this flatbread as! I had some people on Facebook saying that this is how they make tortillas. 🙂 N xx
Are flatbread and tortilla the same? Can I use the flatbread for burritos and other Mexican dishes ?
Tortillas are a type of flatbread. 🙂 Many people have reported that they use this recipe for all types of flatbread, including tortillas, wraps etc! And yes this recipe can be used as a tortilla for burritos, and smaller ones I use as soft taco tortillas too!
Hi Nagi–
Just wanted to say thank you for this wonderful recipe. I’ve made it several times (doubling the recipe works very well!) and each time they have been delicious. I love that it can be made quickly with only a 30 minute waiting period. I also love that they are so easy to roll out that my kids can do it. We usually fill our flatbread with gyro meat and tzatziki sauce from Trader Joe’s, although I will definitely have to try making your butter chicken. Thanks again!
High praise!! ❤️ So pleased you enjoyed this Rose, thanks for letting me know! N xx
Hi Nagi I tried your flat bread to have with curry and it was amazing almost as good as some you get at the resteraunts ,thanks for your recipes they have all been a success so far,I like that all your recipes are doable by home cooks you don’t need a diploma or expensive shopping list.Thank you.
Rhonda.
High praise! I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Rhonda, thank you for letting me know! N xx
Made flatbread with your butter chicken recipe. Fabulous! So soft and flavourful. My mom loved it.
WHOOT! What a pairing! 🙂 N xx
Hello. Thanks for the recipe for flat bread: about to make another batch. I really enjoyed it. I can’t stop eating it. I never knew I could enjoy bread like this. Thanks a lot.
That’s terrific Pamela! So pleased you enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know – N xx
Hi Nagi and thank you for this recipe.
Would using buttermilk be OK?
Thank you!
Hi Lorry! I think it’s a bit thick for this, use 3 parts buttermilk and 1 part water (to thin it down a bit 🙂 )
Or use reg milk and add powdered buttermilk
Just made these delish so light n yummy🙂🙂🙂👌👌
Hi Nagi,
I haven’t made any & I have a few questions as I’ll be making this for the charity event to serve 40 people.
1. Do you use unsalted butter?
2. Once cooked, how long can it keep?
3. Recipe makes 4 large. So does it then make 8 medium? 16 small? I’m looking to make small. What’s the size for small do you reckon? If it’s a good size, then I’ll have to do 5 batches =O so that will give me 80 small (so 2 each). 🙂
Sorry Nagi just had time to look at the video Andy it has answered my question .i am going to try this today to go with my lamb curry.thank you.Rhonda
I hope you love it! 🙂 N xx
Hi Nagi can I put this in mixer with dough hook to kneed for a few minutes or will it make it tough.thanks.