Classic Focacciatall, golden, and full of dimples
Italian wet dough bread fermented in a generously oiled pan, marked with dimples and finished simply with olive oil and salt.
Classic focaccia uses a wetter dough than regular bread and ferments directly in the baking pan. The olive oil protects the base, fingertip dimples create indentations without expelling all the gas, and the simple brine accumulates in these spots during baking, leaving a golden surface and a soft interior.
Ingredients
Dough
Dough and topping
Dough, pan, and topping
Preparation
Mix the dough
Mix flour, yeast, 9 g salt, 30 ml olive oil, and 380 ml water until no dry spots remain.
10 minutesDevelop with folds
Perform four sets of folds every 20 minutes and let the dough rise until airy.
90 minutesTransfer to the pan
Oil a 25 by 35 cm pan with 35 ml olive oil, place the dough without tearing, and rest for 45 minutes.
10 minutesMake the dimples
Dip fingers in remaining olive oil, press almost to the bottom, and distribute the remaining 3 g salt.
5 minutesBake and cool
Bake at 220 °C for 22 to 25 minutes until golden; remove from pan and wait 30 minutes before slicing.
25 minutes
Substitutions
Toppings change the variation; greatly reducing olive oil makes the base less crispy and alters the focaccia’s character.
Storage
Store well sealed at room temperature and reheat in the oven; freeze portions after cooling.
Approximate shelf life: Up to 2 days at room temperature or 30 days frozen.
Nutrition values are estimates and may vary by brand, substitution and actual yield.
