18 types of bread from around the world that should have a place on your dinner table

• Bread, at its simplest, is grain, water, and salt, and there are hundreds of global iterations.
• Most breads of the world are unleavened, meaning the bread does not rise.
• From Indian roti to Scandinavian rye bread, each is tasty and unique.
• Visit Insider's Home & Kitchen Reference library for more stories.

"I guess I could talk forever about bread," says Scott Medellin, owner of Slowfire Bakery in Charlotte, Vermont. It's hard to overstate its historical and cultural importance. For most of human history, it was synonymous with life. Bread represented home, nourishment, and safety, and the specific type of bread you grew up with was emblematic of where you came from.

From grain (usually wheat), water, salt, and sometimes yeast come hundreds of different breads around the world. Some are fermented, thanks to the addition or cultivation of yeast, but many are unleavened, meaning not allowed to rise.

We spoke with three bread experts - Medellin; Johanna Kindvell, author of "Smorgasbord: The Art of Swedish Breads and Savory Treats," based in Brooklyn, New York; and Nandita Godbole, the Atlanta-based author of "Roti: Classic Indian Breads and Sides", to cover some of the most iconic types of bread around the world.

Bagels

Origin: Poland

Bagels are a ring-shaped yeasted dough that's boiled, then baked after being treated with an alkaline solution. They're known (and loved) for their brown exterior and soft yet dense interior. Sometimes topped with seasonings like sesame or poppy seeds or featuring dough inclusions like raisins, bagels are often served with cream cheese, lox, and a myriad of other toppings. While New Yorkers and Montrealers both claim them, bagels are originally Polish in origin.

Baguette

Origin: France

"Baguettes are easily one of my best-sellers," says Medellin. Medellin cites the "sort of corn or cereal aroma" as "the holy grail that French bakers specifically look for" with their baguettes. Baguettes should have a crisp crust and an interior with plenty of holes from the slower fermentation process.

Brioche

Origin: France

Brioche is a French bread made from enriched dough, meaning milk and eggs were added to make it light and fluffy. The outside should be shiny and golden, and the inside should be spongy and soft. The eggs give it a more yellow appearance than most other breads.

Ciabatta

Origin: Italy

Though we think of it as a timeless Italian bread, Ciabatta was only invented in 1982 by a baker in Italy's Veneto region. Ciabatta means "slipper," a reference to its shape. Ciabatta has a similar holey interior to baguette and a brown, flour-dusted crust. Both its shape and the addition of olive oil differentiate ciabatta from a baguette.

Challah

Origin: Biblical/Jewish

In Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine, challah is eaten on Shabbat and on holidays, with the notable exception of Passover, during which leavened bread is not eaten. Challah can be recognized by its braided shape and its golden color that comes from the addition of eggs. Unlike its distant cousin brioche, challah is pareve, meaning it contains no dairy or meat.

Dosa

Origin: India

Godbole classifies dosa as one of the many fermented varieties of bread from southern India. There are different kinds of dosa, but most have a rice base with some sort of lentil added. The rice and lentils are soaked separately overnight, ground into a paste, combined, then allowed to ferment for eight hours or so, "depending on where you are and the weather," says Godbole. The batter is cooked on a hot griddle to form a thin crepe-like bread. The final product is light and airy.

Focaccia

Origin: Italy

Focaccia is an ancient Italian bread whose name comes from the Latin "hearth" or "place for baking." There are many variations of focaccia throughout Italy, the most famous being from Liguria and Genoa. While focaccia comes in many different textures and flavors, it's generally on the flatter side, even though yeast is added. Olive oil is generally added to the dough, which helps give it a crisp crust. In some parts of Italy, focaccia is called "pizza bianco."

Injera

Origin: Ethiopia

Injera is a spongy crepe-like bread common in Ethiopian and Somali cuisine. It's traditionally made with teff, a tiny grain indigenous to the region, but can be made with millet or barley when teff is unavailable. After mixing teff flour and water, a liquid culture called ersho starts the fermentation process. Injera is typically eaten with soups, stews, or salads.

Lavash

Origin: Armenia

Lavash is a yeasted flatbread that's found in Turkey, Iran, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. It's most commonly baked in a clay oven, but can be griddled as well, especially when made at home. An accompaniment for both sweet and savory dishes, lavash has been recognized by UNESCO as "an expression of culture in Armenia."

Naan

Origin: India

While naan is one of India's more well-known breads, its slight leavening makes it unlike most of India's other traditional offerings. Godbole says that, while it's traditionally baked in either a tandoor, a traditional clay oven, "I have been able to replicate naan in my conventional oven," which she does using a pizza stone, her broiler, and a few extra spritzes of water as it's baking. There are many variations on naan, including stuffed varieties.

Nan-e barbari

Origin: Iran

Nan-e barbari, sometimes called noon barbari, is a thick, yeasted Persian flatbread, which is often brushed with sesame seed and/or nigella seeds. It's well-browned, thanks to the addition of baking soda. Kindvell, who makes it frequently at home, says, "The crumb is very soft, similar to focaccia."

Pai bao

Origin: Hong Kong

Pai bao is a fluffy, sweet bun found in Hong Kong. Pai bao are made using the tangzhong method, popularized by Taiwanese baker and cookbook author Yvonne Chen, where a small amount of milk, flour, and yeast are pre-cooked on the stove before making the dough. This leads to a softer dough that stays fresh for longer once baked.

Pão de queijo

Origin: Brazil

Pão de queijo means "cheese bread" in Portuguese. If you've had French gougeres, these will seem quite familiar. Their tapioca flour base makes them extra crisp on the outside and airy on the inside, with an umami hit from the cheese. In Brazil, they are a breakfast or snack food - and they're gluten-free.

Rye bread

Origin: Scandinavia

Each Scandinavian country has its own version of rye bread, but Denmark's rugbrød is perhaps the most famous. Kindvall describes it as "Quite dark and moist and I think people say dense. I say more moist and nutty than dense." The dough is "more a batter than a dough," she says, and some versions have wheat flour added.

Roti

Origin: India

Roti is an unleavened flatbread made with durum wheat. It is individually prepared by rolling it out on a flat surface. "It can be flame-roasted and puffed or just cooked on the griddle," says Godbole. A similar bread is Paratha, which has a fat or ghee component to it, and is griddle-fried for extra crispiness.

Soda bread

Origin: Ireland

Though the Irish version is most famous, there are versions of soda bread from across the globe, including from Scotland, Australia, Serbia, and North America. Soda bread is a quicker leavened bread, which uses buttermilk mixed with baking soda to create gas bubbles instead of the slower yeast-based fermentation.

Sourdough

Origin: Just about everywhere

Sourdough is both a style of bread and a process that has traditionally been used to make many types of bread. The process involves using a starter that has absorbed the natural yeast from the air to act as a leavener.

"Knowing how to talk about sourdough has been a struggle since we started this," says Medellin, who cites the boom of San Francisco sourdough (which often had extra acid added to make it tart) as part of the confusion. "Sourdough doesn't mean it tastes super sour, it's the process we use to make just about everything."

Tortillas

Origin: Mexico

Tortillas are a corn-based flatbread and a staple of Mexican cuisine. A hallmark of tortillas is the inclusion of nixtamalized cornmeal, a process where the cornmeal is washed in an alkaline solution. This releases flavor and makes the nutrients more bioavailable. Though corn tortillas are the most traditional, there are flour-based variations and also ones where nopal cactus is added.

Insider's takeaway

The world of bread spans just about as far as, well, the world itself. While flour and water are all you need to make the most basic bread, recipes, cooking techniques, and ingredient additions are just about endless. From baguettes topped with brie to injera dipped in misir wot, bread is truly the foundation of global cuisine. And the best way to learn more about all these breads? Go taste them!