The world's oldest and most universal bread — unleavened or minimally leavened dough cooked quickly on a hot surface, spanning from lavash to roti to pita; the bread that preceded the oven.
The oldest bread
Archaeological evidence of flatbreads dates to Natufian sites in Jordan and Israel around 14,400 years ago — predating agriculture, apparently made from wild cereal grains ground on stone slabs and cooked on hot flat rocks. The tortilla, chapati, roti, injera, lavash, and pita all descend from this same ancient impulse: mix grain with water, apply heat.
Why flat
Before the yeast-leavened, oven-baked loaf became dominant (roughly 4,000 BCE in Egypt), all bread was flat. Flatbreads require no oven — only a hot stone, griddle, or open flame. This made them practical for nomadic peoples and available to all social classes. Leavened bread was a luxury that required ovens and controlled fermentation.
Major types worldwide
- Pita (Middle East) — slight leavening creates a pocket
- Lavash (Armenia/Iran) — paper-thin, blistered in a tandoor oven
- Chapati/roti (India/Pakistan) — whole-wheat, griddle-cooked
- Tortilla (Mexico) — corn or wheat flour, pressed thin
- Injera (Ethiopia) — fermented teff, spongy and sour
- Naan (Central/South Asia) — leavened, tandoor-baked, enriched
Flatbread as utensil
Across much of the world, flatbread functions as both food and eating implement — torn pieces are used to scoop up dips, stews, and spreads. The bread and the dish are inseparable eating systems.
Find more foods by letter
Flatbread starts with F and ends with D. Browse other foods along the same letter.
Foods that contain a letter from "Flatbread":