Pita bread, whole wheat is easier to cook with than it looks. Here's how to choose, use, and store it, what to substitute, and 33 recipes to get you started.

What is pita bread, whole wheat?

Whole wheat pita is a round, flat Middle Eastern bread made with whole-grain wheat flour, so it carries more fiber and a nuttier, earthier flavor than the pale white version. Most rounds puff in a hot oven and split into a hollow pocket; some are baked flat as pocketless pita.

The whole-grain flour is the only real difference from white pita, but it changes how the bread behaves. It is a touch denser, browns faster, and tears more easily at the pocket when you stuff it.

How to Use It

The signature move is the pocket. Slice a round in half, ease it open with a knife, and load the hollow with salad or falafel or grilled meat, the way Tuna & Bean Salad in Pita Pockets and Curried Tofu Salad Sandwich with Whole Wheat Pita both do.

Left whole and pocketless, pita becomes a quick personal pizza or flatbread. Spinach & Feta Pita Bake spreads toppings straight onto the round and bakes it crisp, and Satay Chicken Pizza uses pita as the ready-made crust.

Cut into wedges and toasted or baked, pita turns into sturdy chips for scooping. Red Pepper Hummus with Toasted Pita pairs the warm wedges with a thick dip, and the same crisps stand up in a bread salad like Toasted Pita & Pinto Bean Salad without going soggy.

Warm pita before serving. Thirty seconds in a dry skillet or a few minutes wrapped in foil in a 350°F (175°C) oven brings back the soft, pliable texture and reopens a pocket that has sealed shut.

Pairing and Common Mistakes

Whole wheat pita belongs to the eastern Mediterranean table, so it loves hummus, tahini, feta, olives, cucumber-yogurt sauce, and anything grilled and spiced. The whole-grain flavor stands up to bolder, earthier fillings like curried chickpeas or lamb better than white pita does.

The biggest mistake is tearing the pocket. Whole wheat is less stretchy than white, so a cold, dry round splits when you force it open. Warm it first, then work a knife gently around the seam rather than ripping it.

The second mistake is overfilling. A pocket holds less than it looks, and a packed pita bursts at the bottom seam. Underfill slightly, or skip the pocket entirely and fold the round around the filling like a wrap.

Substitutes

Plain white pita is the obvious swap and behaves almost identically, just milder and a shade more flexible, so it actually tears less. You lose the fiber and the nutty note.

For pockets, a folded flour tortilla or naan stands in for a wrap-style sandwich, though neither gives you the true hollow. Pocketless pita or lavash or any flatbread works wherever the recipe uses pita flat as a pizza base or for dipping.

For the chip role, toasted whole-grain flatbread or bagel crisps cover the same scoop-a-dip job, losing only the pita shape.

Buying and Storage

Read the label closely. Many "wheat" pitas are mostly white flour with a little whole wheat and caramel color for looks, so check that whole wheat flour is the first ingredient if the fiber matters to you.

Fresh rounds should feel soft and flexible, not stiff or cracked at the edges.

At room temperature in their sealed bag, pitas stay good for several days, but whole wheat stales a bit faster than white because of the bran. Squeeze out the air and keep the bag closed.

For longer storage, freeze them. Pita freezes beautifully for a couple of months. Stack with parchment between rounds so you can pull one at a time, then thaw at room temperature or warm straight from frozen.

Avoid the refrigerator, which actually speeds up staling and dries the bread out.

Quick facts

In Chinese

皮塔饼，全麦

British (UK) term

Pita bread, whole wheat

en français

pain pita de blé entier

en español

pan de pita, trigo integral

Recipes using pita bread, whole wheat

There are 33 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 33 recipes