Description
This Simple Sourdough Focaccia recipe combines a tangy active sourdough starter with olive oil and flaky sea salt to create a fluffy, golden, and flavorful Italian bread. Perfect as a snack, side dish, or base for your favorite toppings, this focaccia uses a slow fermentation process to develop depth of flavor, with an easy method incorporating folding and dimpling to achieve its characteristic texture.
Ingredients
Scale
Starter Mixture
- 50 g – 100 g (1/4 to 1/2 cup) active sourdough starter
- 10 g (about 2.5 teaspoons) kosher salt
- 430 – 440 g (1.75 cups – 1.75 cups + 2 tablespoons) water, room temperature
Dough
- 512 g (about 4 cups) bread flour
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- Nice, flaky sea salt, such as Maldon, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Mix Starter and Ingredients: Place the active sourdough starter, kosher salt, and room temperature water in a large bowl and stir with a spatula until combined but not necessarily uniform. Add the bread flour and mix until fully incorporated into a rough dough.
- Perform a Fold: Approximately 30 minutes after mixing, gently pull the dough up and fold it into the center 8 to 10 times, turning the bowl a quarter turn between folds. This helps with gluten development.
- Bulk Fermentation: Drizzle a splash of olive oil over the dough and rub to coat. Cover with a tea towel or bowl cover and let the dough rise at room temperature (about 70ºF/21ºC) for 4 to 18 hours until it has doubled in size. The duration depends on ambient temperature and starter strength. Avoid placing in an oven with the light on to prevent overheating.
- Prepare Baking Pan: When the dough has doubled, pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a 9×13-inch pan. If using a glass pan, consider buttering it to prevent sticking.
- Shape the Dough: Drizzle the dough with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Gently deflate and release it from the bowl using your hand, then transfer it into the oiled pan. Fold the dough envelope-style from top to bottom and side to side to shape a rough rectangle. Turn the dough so the seam side is down.
- Second Rise: Rub the top of the dough with olive oil, leave the dough uncovered in the pan, and let it rise at room temperature for 4 to 6 hours or until puffy and nearly doubled again.
- Preheat Oven: Heat the oven to 425ºF (218ºC).
- Shape and Dimple: Lightly oil your hands and press into the dough with all your fingertips to dimple and stretch it to almost fit the pan. This creates the characteristic focaccia texture.
- Add Salt and Bake: Sprinkle generously with flaky sea salt. Bake the focaccia in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until it is golden brown all over.
- Cool and Serve: Remove the focaccia from the oven, transfer it to a cooling rack, and let it cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Use a straight-sided vessel during bulk fermentation to easily monitor dough doubling.
- The bulk fermentation time varies greatly depending on ambient temperature and the strength of your starter.
- If using a glass pan for baking, butter it in addition to adding oil to prevent sticking.
- The folding step improves gluten structure without traditional kneading.
- Visual cues such as dough doubling are more reliable than strictly relying on time for fermentation stages.
- Flaky sea salt like Maldon enhances the crust with bursts of salty crunch.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: sourdough focaccia, Italian bread, homemade bread, sourdough bread, easy focaccia recipe, olive oil focaccia
