What’s Italian fast food? Definitely piadina, a rustic Italian flatbread. It is a true street food, cooked to order in small sidewalk booths and filled with cheeses, grilled vegetables, greens, prosciutto or ham, even jams. It’s like an Italian version of soft tacos. You could fill it with anything really. I like pairing it with warm salads such as roasted fennel and cannellini bean salad for a quick lunch.
When we think of flatbreads, usually naan and pita bread come to mind. But there’s more to flatbreads than just those two. Italian flatbread, piadina, is a lesser-known flatbread and yet it’s just as quick and delicious as any other! It’s typically made with lard as the fat of choice but since it’s fairly hard for me to find pure lard, not hydrogenated off-the-shelf type, I opt for olive oil instead.
For this recipe, I like to use organic white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is lighter than the regular whole wheat flour and yet it’s still 100% whole wheat just as its darker cousin. My family finds it to be less gritty and milder in taste than regular whole wheat flour so they like it better. Finding it in stores can be a pain so I order it online in bulk which makes it even cheaper.
To make Italian flatbread piadina, you will need either a cast iron skillet or griddle. The skillet will have to stay hot enough to cook the flatbread quickly, but not too hot to burn it. So keep adjusting the heat as you cook this bread.
- 2 cups & white whole wheat flour + 1 tablespoon
- 1 cup lukewarm water
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons virgin olive oil
- Sift flour, salt, and baking soda in the large bowl and stir. With clean hands, knead in the water and oil. Keep kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
- If using a stand mixer: Combine all the ingredients in a bowl of a stand mixer and using the dough hook, allow the mixer to knead for about 8 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Transfer the dough on a floured working surface and cut in half. Keep cutting each piece in half until you get pieces the size of an egg, 4 to 6 pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a thin and round bread, about 6 to 8 inches wide.
- Heat up a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Place the rolled out dough on a hot skillet and cook shortly, about 10 seconds, than flip on the other side. Let it cook for about 10 seconds on the second side before you pierce it with a fork. For the next 2-3 minutes, rotate and flip the bread frequently to prevent burning, pierce with a fork occasionally. Repeat with each bread.
- Keep cooked breads on a cooling rack until they are all done. Serve immediately while still warm.
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