This easy garlic flatbread is out of this world. Soft, pillowy and super pliable it's the perfect accompaniment to pastas, stews and curries. Generously slathered with garlic butter it is simply heaven.
As a family we love simple flatbreads as a side to our dinners. My easy flatbread or naan bread (both made without yeast) or even quicker to make easy Indian chapati accompany our meals on regular basis.
They're perfect for mopping up saucy remnants of stews, curries and casseroles. You can also dip them in soups or enjoy with any pasta, risotto and more.
You would think I wouldn't need another flatbread to add to my repertoire and yet here we are with my Easy Garlic Flatbread recipe.
This is my first flatbread recipe where I use yeast. But fret not as they are super quick to make despite a brief resting time required. And the fluffiness, softness and how beautifully pliable they're, definitely compensates for a little extra time. Plus you can still have them made in 1 hour from start to finish.
Garlic flavour comes from the simple butter melted onto the hot flatbreads and it really makes this already delicious flatbread into something else.
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe
- Homemade flatbread without unnecessary ingredients.
- Soft and super pliable.
- Perfect for mopping up sauces, dunking in soups or just enjoying on the side.
- Quick to make despite using yeast.
- Dough itself is really nice to work with, not at all sticky.
- Easily made vegan.
🛒 Ingredients to make Easy Garlic Flatbread
Here's what you will need to make my Easy Garlic Flatbread:
White Flour - You can use either plain (all-purpose) or strong bread flour here. I usually use bread flour to make these as I bake a lot of bread and buy it in bulk.
Wholemeal Flour - Even though you can make these with 100% white flour I like to swap some of it (not much mind you) for wholemeal for that little bit of wholesome fibre boost. Plain wholemeal or strong wholemeal or wholemeal spelt are all good.
Olive Oil - I use extra virgin olive oil here for extra flavour but you can use light olive oil if you prefer. You can also use some cold-pressed rapeseed oil or any oil you like.
***Quick Tip*** The use of oil helps with softness and flexibility of the dough so don't be tempted to skip it.
Yeast - I use and recommend quick/easy/instant yeast that you mix into your flour.
Water - You want your water at around 37°C/100°F so warm enough to get your yeast going quickly. You don't need thermometer just make sure water is not cold or hot but rather warm to touch as we want for the yeast to work quickly.
Fine Salt - Any salt will do. I use pink Himalayan salt.
Garlic Butter - Use your favourite garlic butter here. I usually use homemade garlic butter as per my vegan garlic bread recipe or when wild garlic is in season I make my wild garlic butter. On this occasion I was using shop bought smoked garlic butter.
🍳 How to make Easy Garlic Flatbread
Ingredient quantities & detailed instructions to be found in recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Step 1: In a large bowl mix together flour(s), yeast and salt.
Step 2: Add olive oil and some of the water and start incorporating it into the flour with your hand.
Step 3: Dough will slowly start coming together. Make sure to add water gradually as and when needed, you might not need all of it. You want the dough to come together with all the flour incorporated without being too sticky or too dry.
Step 4: Sprinkle little bit of flour onto work surface and start kneading your dough with a palm of your hand. As you do, your dough will become more and more elastic and really nice to handle, not sticky at all.
Step 5: Give your dough a little check with a finger and if after gently pushing it into the dough it springs back, you've done enough kneading.
Step 6: Pop the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and put somewhere warm for about half an hour. It doesn't have to double in size but it will be visibly puffier.
Step 7: Divide the dough into 8 equal size balls. Roll out each of the balls into a circle roughly 15cm/6inch in diameter.
Step 7: Heat up a non-stick pan or a skillet until hot and gently add one flatbread at a time. Cook for about 1-2 minutes or until bubbles form on the surface (sometimes they can be really small). Flip the flatbread over and cook for another ½ -1 min max.
Transfer to a plate and repeat with all the other flatbreads.
Step 8: Brush flatbreads with melted garlic butter once still hot, sprinkle over some chopped parsley and serve.
🍽 Equipment
Even though there isn't really any special equipment required to make these flatbreads you will need a rolling pin (or you could use a bottle) and a good non-stick pan.
If you are searching for a good quality pan/skillet which is PFAS (forever chemicals) free than look no further that carbon steel. I use my carbon steel pan mostly for pancakes and all of my flatbreads and it's been with me for years now. It does require some looking after and proper seasoning but if treated properly it will serve you well.
The one I've got is 28cm Salter Carbon Steel Pan for Life which unfortunately seems to have been discontinued now. However, this French DeBuyer one or German Merten & Storck one are both great (if not better) alternatives.
🥡 Storing and freezing Easy Garlic Flatbread
Store: As you can imagine, these are best eaten fresh, however you can keep leftovers in the airtight container or reusable silicone bags for a couple of days.
Reheat: To revive them you can pop them in a microwave for 30 seconds or so or in the the air fryer at 170°C/330°F for about a minute. Gentle toasting in a toaster or reheating in a dry pan also work well.
Freeze: They freeze well. When freezing, make sure to wrap them well in aluminium foil or if using silicone bags do make sure they're sealed well to prevent freezer burn. They defrost quickly on kitchen counter, it only takes an hour or so.
💭 Pro tips
Don't use more wholemeal flour than suggested if you're after soft and pliable flatbread. I know it's tempting especially if you'd like to up your fibre but these are best with either 100% white flour or only a little bit of wholemeal.
Use warm water as suggested to get there yeast working quickly.
Don't add all the water at once. The amount of water needed will depend on your flour and whether you use 100% white or some wholemeal as well.
Don't worry if the dough doesn't double in size after half an hour. As long as it's visibly puffed up you're good to go. If, however, you do have more time you can also prove it until doubled in size.
Make sure your pan is really hot before cooking your flatbreads and try keeping it consistently hot throughout although not so hot that you burn the flatbreads.
You won't always have puffed up surface bubbles. I find that my first flatbread hardly ever has them. Take a look underneath and if you see nice brown coloured spots, it's time to flip. First side might take anything from 1-2 minutes.
If you're using well seasoned skillet/pan you shouldn't require any oil. However, you know your pan best and might want to lightly oil it anyway.
To keep your cooked flatbreads soft and warm cover them with clean tea towel as you make your way through all the dough balls.
🍴Serving suggestions
Beside being a fantastic side to soo many dishes, recently we've been enjoying these garlic flatbreads with my Creamy Braised Swede Orzo made all in one pot (see photo below).
Of course they will go hand in hand with any pasta or risotto, it's garlic flatbread after all.
They also make amazing snack with hummus and are great for dunking in soups (like this Creamy Cauliflower Leek and Potato soup).
You can also enjoy them with any curry, stew or casserole.
And of course it goes without saying that they are delicious on their own if you fancy a little "garlic flatbread fix".
Oh, and (as most flatbreads) they work really well as mini pizza bases!
❓ FAQ
Yes you could, however one thing to bear in mind is that oil contributes to the softness of the flatbreads and so flatbreads with butter instead of oil might not be as soft and pliable.
Also as butter contains some water as well as fat yo might need a bit more moisture when mixing the dough.
Yes, they're vegan providing you use vegan garlic butter.
I've never tried making these gluten-free I'm afraid.
Have you tried my Easy Garlic Flatbread?
Please consider giving it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in recipe card below and share your views or tips in the comments.
📋 Recipe
Easy Garlic Flatbread (Soft and Pliable)
Ingredients
- 150 g plain (all-purpose) or strong bread flour
- 50 g plain wholemeal or strong wholemeal flour see notes
- 1 teaspoon quick/instant/easy yeast
- 2 tablespoon olive oil I like extra virgin olive oil for extra flavour
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- 125 ml lukewarm water you might not need it all, see notes
- garlic butter to brush over cooked flatbreads use your favourite garlic butter
- chopped fresh parsley as garnish optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix together flour(s), yeast and salt.150 g plain (all-purpose) or strong bread flour, 50 g plain wholemeal or strong wholemeal flour, 1 teaspoon quick/instant/easy yeast, ½ teaspoon fine salt
- Add olive oil and some of the water and start incorporating it into the flour with your hand.Dough will slowly start coming together. Make sure to add water gradually as and when needed, you might not need all of it. You want the dough to come together with all the flour incorporated without being too sticky or too dry. Initially it's going to be a shaggy ball of dough.2 tablespoon olive oil, 125 ml lukewarm water
- Sprinkle little bit of flour onto work surface and start kneading your dough with a palm of your hand. As you do, your dough will become more and more elastic, smooth and really nice to handle, not sticky at all.Give your dough a little check with a finger and if after gently pushing it into the dough it springs back, you've done enough kneading.
- Pop the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and put somewhere warm for about half an hour. It doesn't have to double in size but it will be visibly puffier.***Top Tip*** If you have more time you can leave it proving for longer.
- Divide the dough into 8 equal size balls. Roll out each of the balls into a circle roughly 15cm/6inch in diameter.
- Heat up a non-stick pan or a skillet until hot and gently add one flatbread at a time. Cook for about 1-2 minutes or until bubbles form on the surface (sometimes they can be really small). Flip the flatbread over and cook for another ½ -1 min max.Transfer to a plate and repeat with all the other flatbreads.
- Brush flatbreads with melted garlic butter once still hot, sprinkle over some chopped parsley and serve.garlic butter to brush over cooked flatbreads, chopped fresh parsley as garnish
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