Mastered the crusty loaf? Try these next...

— Find bread baking inspiration in three-part series World Eats Bread. See it 8.30pm Fridays on SBS Food, and streaming at SBS On Demand, from 14 August. —

If you’ve discovered the joy of baking your own crusty loaf and you’d like a new project to try, here are some bread recipes around from around the world that will help you learn new skills, or put your existing skills to deliciously rewarding use. (Or if you’re just diving into the world of homemade bread, take a look at Paul Hollywood’s bloomer, a great starting point.)

The recipes that follow are just some of the many in our breadmaking recipe collection. As well as yeasted and sourdough loaves and rolls, there are also soda breads, dampers and flatbreads, for when you want a quicker option.

Now, let’s get ‘on with the dough’! From spongy Ethiopian injera to salty pretzels, here are some great recipes to put on your next-up list:

Puffy pita

“When you make pitas at home, the oven is like a magician’s cave as you watch the dough puff up and transform into bread,” says Paul Hollywood. The baker, TV host and author lived in Cypress for six years and has some very fond memories of the pita bread he made and ate there (he especially likes them stuffed with pork souvlaki and Cypriot salad). ‘‘If I can inspire you to make one flatbread at home, this is the one, because it has a very special place in my heart,” he says. His top tips for puffy pockets are to roll out the dough very thinly and to put the pitas onto a very hot baking tray in a hot oven, so they’re hit with a ferocious initial burst of heat.

Simit

This circular, sesame seed-coated bread has been baked in Istanbul since the 1500s. Today, similar versions are enjoyed from Greece to Bulgaria and Lebanon, with its size and texture (crunchy or chewy) varying from region to region. “It's the ultimate street snack in Turkey and a little part of Istanbul in your home,“ says Sydney chef Sivrioglu, who has shared with us his recipe for this twisted bread ring. “It’s delicious warm with haydari (which means strained yoghurt) or simply served with butter and feta. I love to eat it as part of a breakfast spread.” If you’re looking for a dairy-free version (Sivrioglu’s dough includes cream), try this recipe (pictured below) from the Feast magazine archives. For a lovely yeast-free sesame ring, take a look at these Lebanese kaak, which are made with self-raising flour.

Mini baguettes

Most domestic ovens aren’t big enough to make a traditional French baguette, so Paul Hollywood’s recipe for two mini baguettes is the perfect solution. “The baguette’s name comes from a Latin name which means ‘the walking stick’. So it's the long stick,” explains Hollywood. “These ones are going to be able to fit in the home oven.” The dough is a wettish one, so it’s easiest if make in a stand mixer. The secrets to making a great baguette, he says, are a thorough knead to develop the elasticity of the dough; to shape it well, and to bake it in a steamy oven (he adds water to a tray on the oven’s bottom shelf). Follow along to create two baguettes with a light, crisp crust and soft interior.

Injera

Made with teff, a tiny gluten-free grain, this traditional Ethiopian flatbread is often used as an edible plate, and to scoop up food. Its spongy texture comes from the slow ferment for 2-4 days of a teff and water mixture, to create a slightly sour and bubbly batter that can be cooked in a frying pan, like a crepe.

Maori potato bread (rewena paraoa)

Try a different kind of sourdough bread in this New Zealand bread: it's made with potato starter. Cooked potato is fermented for three days before being used in the bread dough. In this recipe, the bread is brushed with butter part-way through cooking to give it a coloured crust.

Milk bread

Like a fluffy bread that is deliciously tear-able? Two examples to get you on your way exploring this corner of the bread universe: Japanese milk bread aka shokupan (read more about the traditional variations on this popular loaf here) and pan de Mallorca. This recipe for Japanese milk bread uses a two-step process and produces a biog square made up of tear-apart soft, creamy rolls. Pan de Mallorca actually hails from Puerto Rica; it’s a sweet and fluffy bread created by rolling up a butter-brushed rectangle of dough and cutting it into slices before placing in a square pan to bake (recipe here).

Pretzels

These chewy, salty rings are supremely satisfying to make, and even if it takes a few bakes to get the twist right, they’ll still taste great! Traditionally, that glossy, chewy brown outside on a good pretzel is achieved by dipping the shaped and risen pretzels in lye (sodium hydroxide) but a bicarb soda bath is a lot easier for home use. Give it a go with try this recipe from the Feast archives, or for a variation on tradition, try making barbecue-spiced pretzels, where mustard powder, cayenne pepper and paprika are added to the dough. To serve a crowd, try soft pretzel knots with beer cheese. Sourdough pretzels (pictured below) are a great one to try if you have more time.

Açma (Turkish-style buttery, soft buns)

These buttery buns can be enjoyed with sweet or savoury add-ons, or plain. "These fluffy buns are made with butter enriched dough, which makes them lovely and soft," says Ozlem Warren, who shares this recipe. "Street vendors and fırın (bakeries) sell açma all day long in İstanbul. Often eaten for breakfast, they can also be enjoyed at any time of day and are the perfect treat to have with a glass of çay (Turkish tea). Some versions contain olive paste or crumbled cheese, though they are just as lovely plain or served with jam."

Brioche garlic bread

This tear and share brioche garlic bread from Irish chef Mark Moriarty is perfect for serving with a meal. Plan ahead, as it needs about 5 hours of rising time in total.

Roti canai

This soft-but-not flatbread is popular across many parts of Asia, and perfect for scooping up curries and the like. Try Poh LIng Yeow's version (pictured below), or Tony Tan's recipe.

A top-notch pizza dough

If you’re looking for great pizza dough to use in a wood-fired oven or a home kitchen, turn to this recipe for Mauro’s perfect pizza dough, shared by Mauro Gulli on Poh & Co. Click through to the recipe to watch him cook with Poh and share his top pizza tips.

Rome-style pizza

This stretchy dough creates the famous rectangular Roman pizza, which can be topped or filled. Use Stefano Manfredi’s dough recipe to create a pizza topped with mozzarella and fried zucchini, or bake and slice to fill with his eggplant parmigiana.

Sourdough loaves, crumpets and more

Sourdough rewards patience! Read Anneka Manning’s guide to sourdough bread if you want to set up a sourdough starter (and some of her excellent recipes to use it in, including a crusty sourdough loaf, seeded wholemeal loaf, rolls and more). Or if you have a starter and you're looking for a delicious way to use up the discard, try Richard Hart's sourdough crumpets.

Something sweet

Of course there's also a world of sweet yeasted breads to try too, from panettone to tsoureki. Another lovely festive bread is this Uruguyan pan dolce, traditionally made for Christmas but perfect any time of year.