If you’re wondering what to eat with flatbread, there’s a world of worthy options. These are some of the best.
Planning a meal around flatbread opens the kitchen door to endless possibilities. Flatbreads are for everyone and any occasion. Nearly every regional cuisine has its own version and at home, flatbread provides the foundation for a quick, easy, and affordable meal that—chances are—you can whip up with whatever you currently have on hand in your pantry and fridge.
You can go as simple or elaborate as you want. Flatbread is crazy versatile used as a base, a vehicle for dips and sauces, a wrap, or as a complement to any meal.
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Related Reading: 6 Ways to Spice Up Your Flatbread Dough
Colleen Allerton-Hollier, co-owner of New Orleans-based catering, private dining, and pop-up company Luncheon, says as for her favorite flatbreads to build snacks and whole meals with, “focaccia and naan rank pretty high up there. Their applications are pretty endless. Whatever flavors you’re craving can work into those guys pretty easily.”
If you’re in need of some inspiration in the kitchen, just look to the wonderful world of flatbreads to guide you through a tour of diverse culinary cultures.
Italian
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Delicious carbs are an important part of the Italian culinary pantheon, so it’s no wonder there are plentiful flatbread options. Focaccia is one of the most satisfying, easy-to-make Italian breads and it’s the perfect option for a pizza crust, sandwich bread, or to have alongside soups and salads.
Check out our focaccia pizza recipe with Italian sausage, artichoke hearts, and black olives, or try this chicken salad sandwich recipe on focaccia.
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“Focaccia is also great for snacking. Drag it through olive oil and za’atar, hummus, whipped goat cheese—really whatever is in your fridge. I’m obsessed with caramelized onions, so I made a dip with them that is outrageously good. Cream cheese, mayo, sour cream, malt vinegar, and an absurd amount of caramelized onions whipped and smeared onto focaccia bites is delightful,” says Allerton-Hollier.
Piadina is an Italian flatbread that’s quick and easy to make, requiring no yeast, and a great option to throw on the grill. Piadina has many functions as a sandwich bread, pizza crust, or charcuterie board companion. It’s great loaded with a ricotta cheese spread, prosciutto, basil or arugula, olive oil and balsamic, or any combination of cheeses, meat, and vegetables.
Middle Eastern
Middle Eastern food is another category that prominently features flatbread, primarily pita and lavash. Pita is the soft, pillowy, round flatbread that is the leading choice for hummus, baba ganoush, and labneh dips. Pita is also popular for wraps, a.k.a. gyros, often best procured from a street food cart, filled with crispy falafel and tzatziki sauce or grilled lamb or chicken.
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For a quick and easy weeknight pita dinner, Allerton-Hollier says “marinated beets and yogurt with lots of dill and parsley take minutes to assemble.”
For some of the best snacks and meals that feature pita, check out these recipes for baba ganoush, lamb pitas with cucumbers and yogurt sauce, breakfast pita pizza, and roasted red pepper feta dip.
Lavash is the thinner, Armenian version of pita used in similar ways. Lavash and pita both make great contenders for salad wraps if you want to turn your Greek salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, and feta into a sandwich.
“Lavash plus literally any dip is so delicious. We make our own and it’s super easy. Camille, my business partner, has been playing with a different mixture of flours for our lavash. Whole wheat gives it a beautiful color and everything bagel seasoning really sets it off. Crispy lavash and our smoked drum dip or baba ganoush is such a satisfying snack,” says Allerton-Hollier.
Check out our falafel lavash wrap recipe with tahini dressing, hummus, red onions, and cucumber.
Indian
Naan is the Indian cousin of pita, used to scoop up curries and lentils or for sandwich rolls. You can be assured that anything wrapped in naan on a menu is guaranteed delicious with bold flavors, including grilled paneer, lamb, chicken, and vegetables with aromatic spices, usually accompanied with a chutney and topped with cilantro.
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Some great recipes to serve with, alongside, on top of, or wrapped up in naan include curried cauliflower, chickpeas and tofu, chole masala, and easy spinach dal. For fall, pumpkin naan is a fun twist.
Indian roti or chapati is another type of flatbread to add to your rotation.
Ethiopian
Ethiopian fare is the ultimate finger food. Literally—utensils are not used to eat Ethiopian dishes. Instead, injera is the Ethiopian flatbread that doubles as an eating instrument so you can have your fork and eat it, too.
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Injera is undoubtedly the most unique flatbread on the list. It’s thin, spongy, and porous, made from a sourdough batter. It’s malleable for easy and effective food acquisition. It not only takes the place of a utensil, but also the plate.
The platter of stews, meats, and vegetables typically eaten with injera are served directly on top of a large piece of it. Some common Ethiopian foods to eat with injera include doro wat, a signature Ethiopian spicy chicken stew, sega wat (the beef version), and shiro wat, a rich legume stew with chickpeas.
Try your hand at Ethiopian cooking at home with these recipes for daro wat, sega wat, and shiro wat.
Thai
Tasting Thai roti for the first time is a revelation. It’s soft, crispy, and salty with just the right amount of grease. Served with a Thai curry, it’s the ultimate comfort food. Depending on the area of Thailand, roti is also served as a dessert topped with sweetened condensed milk, sugar, banana, and sometimes chocolate.
Indulge your roti cravings with these recipes for Thai green curry chicken thighs, tofu and broccolini pad see ew, eggplant curry with lemongrass and coconut milk, and sweet banana roti.
Latin America
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Perhaps the most familiar flatbread, at least to North, Central, and South Americans, is the humble tortilla. It’s so simple and delicious and integrated in some of the tastiest foods. Tortillas are essential ingredients in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, enchiladas, and fajitas, made from flour for a soft style and corn for a crunchy version.
“If you’re sick of tacos, I can’t relate, but tortillas are for so much more than just tacos! You can fry them in a little canola oil or crisp them up in the oven and pile on some delicious shredded achiote pork with vinegary cabbage slaw or tuna poke with herbs and thinly shaved jalapeños,” says Allerton-Hollier.
Some of the many dishes to make with tortillas you should check out are tequila shrimp and asadero quesadillas, pulled pork enchiladas, and cauliflower tacos, just to name a few.
This All-Purpose Option Is Good with Almost All of the Above
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