This 3-Ingredient Flatbread recipe makes simple, fluffy, and delicious flatbread in less than 15 minutes with the most basic ingredients.
Because of its simplicity, you can do it at the very last minute as a side to your favorite Indian or Thai curry.
You will love this recipe. It’s not only crazy easy, but it’s also delicious, and since it’s yeast-free and egg-free, it’s to everyone’s taste!
What Are 3-Ingredient Flatbread?
A 3-Ingredient Flatbread is a simple baking recipe that makes delicious naan-like bread with only 3 ingredients.
It’s ridiculously easy to make, and the whole recipe is ready to eat in under 15 minutes.
How To Make 3-Ingredient Flatbread
You’ll need about 5 minutes to get the dough ready and about 10 to cook. It’s actually a fun kid activity that can be done with little ones.
Ingredients
Let’s have a look at the ingredients.
- All-Purpose Flour: Any white wheat flour will do. Gluten-free flour would also work, but you’d need to add an additional teaspoon for baking powder.
- Baking Powder: not baking soda, it has to be baking powder.
- Yogurt of Choice: my favorite option is to use natural Greek yogurt. You can pick a plant-based version, but it has to be very creamy.
Optional Ingredients
For a different flavor, you can add the following optional ingredients:
- Salt: add a pinch of salt for a classic Naan taste.
- Herbs: a couple of teaspoons of herbs (fresh or dried) like oregano, fresh chopped parsley, or cilantro can supercharge the taste of this flatbread.
- Spices: you can couple this bread with your curry by adding a quarter of a teaspoon of similar spices like cumin, paprika, or cinnamon.
Instructions
First, start the 3-Ingredient Flatbread batter by combining the flour and baking powder in a large bowl with a whisk or wooden spoon.
You can then add any optional ingredients and whisk again.
It’s essential to break down all the flour lumps that might still be there, particularly if your flour was exposed to moisture.
Once the dry ingredients are ready, pour your yogurt of choice into the batter and combine it with either a spatula or with your stand mixer.
If you are using a stand mixer, attach the dough hook and work the dough for a couple of minutes.
If the dough becomes too sticky, sprinkle some flour on it until it can be rolled into a large dough ball but keep it soft, not saturated with flour.
Resting The Dough
To make the fluffiest airy dough possible, it needs to rest. So, place the dough into a large, lightly oiled mixing bowl and cover it with a clean, dry hand towel.
Leave the dough at room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling it.
If you are in a hurry, resting the dough is optional. Your 3-ingredient flatbreads will still taste delicious without that.
Rolling The 3-Ingredient Dough
Place the large dough ball on a lightly floured surface like your kitchen benchtop.
Use a kitchen knife to slice the dough ball into six equal parts. Then, roll them into small dough balls.
Flatten the 3-ingredient flatbread dough balls with a rolling pin on your floured surface to a thickness of about 0.5 inches.
Cooking The Flatbreads
Warm a non-stick pancake griddle or a flat cast-iron skillet over high heat.
You can add a touch of high smoke point oil to the pan, but it’s not absolutely necessary. You can instead rely on the thin layer of flour under your flatbread to prevent it from sticking.
Place one of your 3-ingredient flatbreads on the hot non-stick pan and reduce to medium heat.
Cover the pan with a lid to trap the heat, cook the flatbread uniformly on both sides, and make it even fluffier.
When the flatbread starts to have bumps and bubbles and the underside turns golden brown, flip it by sliding a flat spatula under it.
Cook it for another minute or two on the other side with no lid.
To give a naan-like taste and texture to your flatbreads, place them on a naked flame of your gas cooktop for just a few seconds. It makes the same marks as a woodfire oven.
Place the 3-Ingredient Flatbreads on a cooling rack when they are cooked.
You can optionally brush some coconut oil on top of the flatbreads to give them a naan bread look.
Storage
The 3-Ingredient Flatbreads can be kept at room temperature for about a day when wrapped in a dry clean towel.
They will remain moist and fluffy. You can then reheat them for a minute on a pancake pan, or in a toaster.
They will last a few days in the fridge in an airtight container but might lose some of their fluffiness.
It’s also possible to freeze the cooked flatbread in individual zip lock bags where they can be kept safely for up to 3 months.
To reheat them, place them in a hot oven for 10 minutes or on a pancake griddle for 2 minutes.
You can even put the small dough balls in the freezer if you made too many of them. Place them in zip lock bags and thaw them for about 60 minutes before rolling and cooking them.
Allergy Swaps
There are only 3 ingredients in this recipe, but it’s still possible to swap them!
- All-purpose Flour: You can swap it for gluten-free flour. It might also work with sunflower seed flour, but I haven’t tried.
- Yogurt: if you are allergic to dairy or if you are vegan, you can use plant-based Greek yogurt made from coconut cream.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below I listed the most common issues you can encounter with this recipe and how to fix them.
Yes, you can. Use a gluten-free flour blend. Pick a 1:1 replacement to all-purpose flour to make it work.
The best is to store them at room temperature wrapped in a clean hand towel but they can also be frozen for long-term preservation.
Flatbreads are the best on the side of an Indian Curry or a Thai Curry but they can also be used to replace traditional bread with pasta or a fresh salad, or as a tortilla with a Mexican dish.
You can use the flatbread as a wrap and fill it with your favorite fillings.
Another option is to use your cooked flatbread as an easy pizza base.
These flatbreads can get a bit hard if you over-kneaded the dough when combining it or if the dough didn’t rest at all.
It is possible to cook these in the oven (350°F for 5-10 minutes), but they won’t be quite as good.
Yes, it is possible to use plant-based milk instead of Greek yogurt, but you’ll have to use full-fat milk (like Soy Milk), ideally one rich in protein.
Yes, you can use self-rising flour to make these flatbreads, but you’d then have to skip the baking powder.
More 3-Ingredient Recipes
If you’ve enjoyed this recipe, you’ll love these:
3-Ingredient Flatbread
Ingredients
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Yogurt Of Choice
- 3 teaspoons Baking Powder
Optional
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Making The Dough
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt or spices of your choice in a large mixing bowl.
- Stir the dry flatbread ingredients with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to break all the flour lumps.
- Pour the Greek yogurt on the batter and start mixing it with the spatula or with the hook attachment of your stand mixer.
- Adjust the dough with more flour to make it just slightly sticky. You might have to work it with your hands, but don't over-knead it to keep the flatbreads fluffy.
- Optionally let the dough rest in a mixing bowl for 30 minutes for optimal fluffiness.
Rolling The Dough
- Divide the dough into 6 balls of the same size and roll them with a rolling pin on a floured surface like a clean benchtop. Flatten them to about 0.5 inches.
Cooking Flatbreads
- Heat a pancake griddle or cast-iron pan over medium-hot heat. Only use oil if your pan tends to be sticky and wipe it with a paper towel to avoid frying the bread.
- When the pan is hot, add a flatbread into it and cover it with a lid.
- Cook it for about 2 to 3 minutes until the dough starts to form large bubbles or bumps and the underside is crusting.
- Flip the flatbread by sliding a flat spatula under it and cook it on the other side for about a minute with no lid.
- Let the flatbread cool down on a cooling rack while cooking the others.
Storage
- You can store the cooked 3-ingredient flatbread at room temperature wrapped in a clean kitchen towel or in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze the cooked flatbreads once they're called and reheat them in a pan or in a toaster. You can even freeze the uncooked dough balls in individual zip lock bags.
Have you made this with any whole grain flours (full or partial)? I keep white whole wheat, regular whole wheat, whole wheat pastry flour, and spelt flour in my pantry.
Spelt flour and white whole wheat will definitely work with same amount.