Laffa bread is a large, soft Middle Eastern flatbread made for wrapping, tearing, and scooping. My stovetop version cooks in minutes on a hot griddle and comes out chewy, blistered, and perfect with hummus, shawarma, kebabs, or anything with a good sauce.
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Laffa is one of those breads that changes the whole meal. It is bigger and chewier than pita, soft enough to fold around a generous filling, and sturdy enough to drag through a bowl of hummus without falling apart. And because it cooks right on the stovetop, you get those browned, blistered spots in just a couple of minutes. I use my standard grill pan.
I first made this recipe years ago and it immediately became one of my favorite flatbreads. The ingredient list is ridiculously simple ~ flour, yeast, salt, sugar, water, and oil ~ but a very hot pan transforms that basic dough into something completely different from an ordinary pita.
Laffa is the wrap bread ~ pita is the pocket bread
Laffa is an Iraqi flatbread, especially associated with Iraqi Jewish cooking, and today it is a familiar street-food bread in Israel and elsewhere in the region. Traditionally it is baked against the scorching-hot wall of a clay oven such as a tannur or taboon.
The easiest way to understand laffa is to compare it with pita. Pita is smaller and puffs to form a pocket that you split and stuff. Laffa stays flat and pocketless, so you pile food on top and roll or fold the bread around it. That makes it especially good for shawarma, falafel, kebabs, sabich, and any filling with plenty of sauce.
This simple dough needs one good rise
The dough is straightforward: mix it, knead until smooth, then let it rise for about an hour. Divide it into individual pieces and give them another short rest before rolling. That little rest matters because relaxed dough rolls out much more easily and won’t keep springing back.
Laffa doesn’t need to be perfectly round. Roll each piece fairly thin, but not paper-thin ~ you want enough body to get that characteristic chew while keeping the bread flexible enough to wrap.
A very hot pan gives laffa its blisters and chew
Traditional laffa gets intense heat from a clay oven; at home, a hot cast-iron skillet or griddle does a very good job. Preheat the pan thoroughly before the first piece goes in. The dough should start bubbling almost immediately and develop browned spots in about 1–2 minutes.
Flip and cook the second side briefly, just until you get more color and the bread is cooked through. The goal is browned and blistered, not crisp. As each bread comes off the pan, stack it under a clean kitchen towel. The trapped steam keeps the laffa soft and pliable instead of letting the surface dry out.
The best laffa stays soft enough to wrap
That soft, elastic texture is really the point of laffa. It should bend around a filling without cracking, but still have enough chew to stand up to hummus, tahini, meat juices, or a saucy sandwich. Keeping the cooked breads stacked and covered is the easiest way to hold onto that texture.
If you’re making them ahead, let the breads cool, then wrap them well. Rewarm them for a few seconds per side in a hot dry skillet, or wrap a stack in foil and warm gently in the oven. Laffa also freezes well, so this is a good recipe to make in a larger batch.
What to eat with laffa bread
My first choice is still homemade hummus ~ tear off a piece of warm laffa and use it to scoop straight from the bowl. It’s also great with falafel, grilled meats, shawarma-style fillings, chopped salads, and anything with a good tahini sauce. I’ve served it alongside my Moroccan meatballs, too.
If what you’re after is the classic pocket bread, I’ve got that covered, too: How to Make Perfect Pita Bread Every Time.
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Laffa Bread and Hummus
Video
Ingredients
laffa bread
hummus
- 1 clove garlic
- 15 ounces canned chickpeas, drained and well rinsed
- 2-3 Tbsp tahini
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice, juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper, to taste
garnish
- olive oil and toasted pine nuts, for garnish
Instructions
Laffa Bread
- Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the oil and water, then follow instructions below, according to the mixing method you are using. If using a food processor: Process for about 60 seconds until a very smooth, soft, and slightly sticky ball forms. If using a mixer, mix with the dough hook until the dough is very smooth, soft and elastic. If making by hand; after you add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, mix by hand in the bowl for a few moments until well combined and coming together. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about ten minutes until smooth and elastic.
- In all cases, after the kneading, place the dough in an oiled bowl and loosely cover with plastic wrap. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and place it in a draft free, warm corner so the dough may rise. In about an hour, when the dough has doubled in size, punch the dough down. Divide the dough into 10-12 equal sized balls, then roll the balls until smooth. Place the balls on an oiled cookie sheet. Cover them with a damp tea towel and let the dough balls rest for about ten minutes. Resting makes the dough easier to roll out.
- Pre-heat a grill pan to medium. I find that a large non stick grill pan is the easiest to work with. Take a ball of dough in your hands and flatten it out on an oiled wood surface. Roll it out with a rolling pin or use your hands. Make a circle about 12 inches in diameter and place the Laffa on the hot grill surface. When you see the edges looking dry and the bread is poofing up, turn it over. Laffa only takes a few minutes to grill. Place the finished flatbread in between kitchen towels to keep warm.
Hummus
- Put the garlic and chickpeas in a food processor or blender and process for 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as necessary. The mixture will be very dry at this point.
- Add in the tahini and lemon juice and processes until smooth. Add a little bit of cold water to thin the hummus if it is very thick.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper, and add more tahini or lemon if you like. Spoon the hummus into a shallow bowl and top with a drizzle of olive oil and some toasted pine nuts.
Notes
- Nutrition shown is for 1 laffa bread only, and does not include hummus.
Nutrition
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I’m not sure if I didn’t have my grill hot enough or the dough was wrong or what exactly, but I waited and waited for the puffing up and the grill marks that never happened. I eventually just turned the bread over when the edges were dry, but it was still a little doughy in some places. The day was saved by cooking the rest in a hot cast iron pan instead.
The grill should be really hot, Kate, and maybe roll the dough a little thinner?
Thanks Sue I’ll give it a go, love your recipes thanks for sharing
Jennie
Hi Sue
I would like to make these and your pitta bread recipe,
Do you think you could use a bread maker on the dough cycle to make the dough? I don’t have a stand mixer or food processor. Thank you
Jennie
I don’t see why not, and you can certainly make the dough by hand!
Hi Sue
When you say bread flour, do you mean wholemeal? I have 80% wholemeal wheat flour and I wonder if it’s fine for laffa. What do you reckon?
Joanna
I use actual ‘bread flour’ that just has extra gluten which makes it better for bread making. You can use wholemeal flour, I’m sure, it just might not have as stretchy a texture in the end.
This was SO good! It’s a bit of a procedure, but oh was it worth it! They tasted and felt exactly like the ones I had tried in a great hummus bar long ago. Thank you so much Sue!
You’re so welcome Hara, I do love this recipe! We discovered it at a hummus bar, too, and I’m so glad I’m able to make it for myself 🙂 Enjoy!
I’ve used this recipe many times having bookmarked it as suggested. I am doing something wrong as I now can’t find the hummus recipe?
I think I took it out inadvertently when I updated the post, I just put it back in, thanks Gail!
why can I not cut and paste this???? have never had a problem with your recipes before!
finally got it
I’m glad you got it Nancy, that kind of stuff baffles me 😉
Hi Sue,
I’m on a Greek salad kick, because a new “fast food” place opened up at our mall. They serve pita bread with it. I figured out their awesome salad dressing, but now I want to make a bread to go with it. They serve pita bread with it, but this recipe looks like what I’m looking for (plus, it looks easy). Question: You say you freeze half the dough. Since I’m cooking for two, how do you you use it. I assume you thaw it, then shape it, let it rise and continue on? Just wanted to make sure. Great post and thank you in advance! Debby.
Well Debby I’m sorry to say it’s been so long since I’ve made this bread that I don’t clearly remember at what point I froze the dough, but I think your method sounds right. I do remember that the bread is fabulous, though — good luck!
This bread is our go-to for school lunches. We make a double or triple batch (sometimes with half whole-wheat flour) and my kids take them in their lunches with all sorts of fillings; hummus, cream cheese and veggies, even peanut butter!!
I cannot tell you how many times we have made this recipe!
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