Incredibly Easy Sourdough Focaccia Bread Recipe
Oh my gosh friends, I do believe I have the best, yummiest and easiest sourdough recipe ever! I think many people look at sourdough and see how complicated it must be. Well, i am here to tell you it is not! The secret to good sourdough is time. That is it. Give it the time and you will have the most amazing bread. Today I am sharing my newest recipe, sourdough focaccia! This has become my kids most favorite bread of all time.
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I think the combination fo the bread texture along with the multiple topping options it always intrigues my kids, and they just can’t get enough. Honestly, I cant either. What is exciting about this is that I can actually eat small amounts of this bread because of its long ferment! The long ferment helps to break down the gluten proteins.
LETS TALK ABOUT SOURDOUGH FOCACCIA BREAD FOR A MINUTE:
If you are new to sourdough and are just getting started, make sure to check out my comprehensive post where we cover everything from start to finish with a sourdough starter! It has tons of helpful information.
Now, if you know anything about sourdough you know it needs time, and making a schedule that works for you is important. This is what I do:
I always feed my starter in the morning. This way by the afternoon it is ready to be used. Ideally, you want to feed your sourdough and let it sit for about 4 hours before using. This is generally the height of the starters strength. Do you want to make sure your starter is ready? Take a small dollop and put it in a cup of water. If it floats, the starter is ready. If it sinks, its not.
I usually most of my sourdough breads about 6 in the evening. This works for me because I am usually home the next day and can plan to bake it off. You can also start this bread in the morning and bake it in the evening to have fresh with dinner. It will not get as long of a ferment but it will still be amazing. Lets talk about how to make this amazing sourdough focaccia bread.
This all starts with an active starter. If you want to learn more about this, read my simple sourdough starter guide.
You can watch my Youtube video below and see exactly how I make my sourdough focaccia bread!
Make sure to follow me too! I am sharing tons of fun stuff there!
Sourdough Focaccia Bread Directions
First, you need to get a large mixing bowl. It can be plastic or glass but not metal. Metal can react to the starter. I like to use a glass bowl and transfer it all into my proofing container with a lid when its time for its bulk fermentation.
Take your sourdough starter and water and mix them in the bowl(it does not need to be warm water). I like to use a digital scale to measure these out. Once they are combined, add your honey, salt and bread flour(you can use all purpose flour but i prefer bred flour). Mix this until it is well combined. I like to use my danish dough whisk but you can use a wooden spoon. At a certain point it will become easier to mix it with your hands, and this is exactly what I do.
Once it is combined well, cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and let it sit for about 30 minutes. After about 30 minutes, you want to do your first knead. With wet hands, take the dough from one of the sides of the bowl, lift it, and fold it over the dough. Repeat this, rotating the bowl and raising the dough and laying it across itself. I do this to all sides and then let it rest. This should be a very wet dough. If it is tough, add a bit more water to it. Only 1 tablespoon at a time.
Its time to let the wild yeast do its thing. You can let it sit at room temperature to let it bulk ferment, but if I have time I will make sure to repeat the kneading process a couple more times. If I make it in the evening, I have plenty of time to do this since there is not a lot of active work, it only takes about 10 minutes of my evening to get my dough going.
At this point, there are a couple different avenues you could pursue.
When to bake your sourdough focaccia bread?
If you want to bake your bread the next morning I would recommend leaving it out on your counter at room temperature, covered.
If you want to wait and bake it the next evening, I would put your dough in the fridge to allow the yeast to slow down overnight. I have woken up to dough that has burst the lid and it spilling over the side of the bowl. If you choose this route, you simply need to take the dough out a couple hours prior to baking.
So for ease with these instructions, I will be going with the first option which is what I usually do(bulk fermenting on the counter overnight). With either option you want to cover bowl with plastic wrap to prevent the dough from drying out.
In the morning, the dough should have at least doubled in size, mine often quadruples in size. This is from the longer fermentation process. This long rise is what will give your bread its amazing flavor.
Drizzle oil on the counter and gently let the dough drop out of the bowl or container onto your countertop. You want to try to avoid popping all those bubbles. I gently spread the dough, pulling the corners to make it larger. I will then fold the dough over itself once or twice. Then I will make sure to oil my 9 by 13 baking dish with a 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. You can also use a cast iron skillet if you choose!
Transfer dough carefully in the sheet pan and gently pull it so that it starts to fill the pan. You do not to stress about it too much because it will spread and once we poke those holes in it, it will fill the entire pan.
At this point I like to cover the pan with a towel and let the dough rise once again until it doubles its original size. This can take about 30 minutes to 1 hour. It will totally depend on how active your starter was.
Once it has doubled in size, I pour about 2 -3 tablespoons of the olive oil onto the focaccia dough and gently spread it over the dough with my hands. This is the best part!
Now its time to poke those holes in the focaccia bread.
FIRST PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 425 DEGREES F.
Take your fingers and gently begin pushing into the dough creating little creators or dimples. The olive oil will spill into the holes. The goal is to gently do this while not deflating the dough.
After you have have done this, its time to add some toppings to the top of dough, which are completely optional!
Just a few ingredients
Let your dough rest for a couple minutes until your oven is ready. Place the pan on the center rack in your oven and bake focaccia until the top and bottom is golden brown. You want color on this bread! It adds the the amazing flavor. This generally takes about 25 minutes for me, but every oven is different so watch your bread the first time and base your cook times in the future off of this.
You want the top of your bread to have a nice brown crispy crust. The dough should not stick to the corners of the pan. That is why we used plenty of extra-virgin olive oil. The base should crunchy too and the inside will be a light and fluffy yet chewy crumb. Take the bread out of the pan immediately and place on a cooling rack. If you leave it in the pan it will sweat and lose its crispy base.
You will be amazed at how easy this simple sourdough focaccia recipe is. I have worked really hard to create sourdough recipes that everyone can use. We often find that they can be overwhelming and you can feel inadequate to create them. I want to create recipes that are easy. You do not need to be a bread baking expert to make them. Try this sourdough focaccia bread recipe now!
Easy Sourdough Focaccia Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 3.5 oz active sourdough starter
- 1 1/2 cups water (plus 3 tbsp) also 400g
- 3 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp salt
- 4 cups bread flour
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for the bowl
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for the bread ( you can use less or more as needed)
Toppings (all optional)
- sea salt
- fresh rosemary
- fresh thyme
- parmesan cheese
Instructions
- First, you need to get a large mixing bowl. It can be plastic or glass but not metal. Metal can react to the starter. I like to use a glass bowl and transfer it all into my proofing container with a lid when its time for its bulk fermentation.
- Take your sourdough starter and water and mix them in the bowl(it does not need to be warm water). I like to use a digital scale to measure these out. Once they are combined, add your honey, salt and bread flour(you can use all purpose flour but i prefer bred flour). Mix this until it is well combined. I like to use my danish dough whisk but you can use a wooden spoon. At a certain point it will become easier to mix it with your hands, and this is exactly what I do.
- Once it is combined well, cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and let it sit for about 30 minutes. After about 30 minutes, you want to do your first knead. With wet hands, take the dough from one of the sides of the bowl, lift it, and fold it over the dough. Repeat this, rotating the bowl and raising the dough and laying it across itself. I do this to all sides and then let it rest. This should be a very wet dough. If it is tough, add a bit more water to it. Only 1 tablespoon at a time.
- Its time to let the wild yeast do its thing. You can let it sit at room temperature to let it bulk ferment, but if I have time I will make sure to repeat the kneading process a couple more times. If I make it in the evening, I have plenty of time to do this since there is not a lot of active work, it only takes about 10 minutes of my evening to get my dough going.
- If you want to bake your bread the next morning I would recommend leaving it out on your counter at room temperature, covered.If you want to wait and bake it the next evening, I would put your dough in the fridge to allow the yeast to slow down overnight. I have woken up to dough that has burst the lid and it spilling over the side of the bowl. If you choose this route, you simply need to take the dough out a couple hours prior to baking
- So for ease with these instructions, I will be going with the first option which is what I usually do(bulk fermenting on the counter overnight). With either option you want to cover bowl with plastic wrap to prevent the dough from drying out.
- In the morning, the dough should have at least doubled in size, mine often quadruples in size. This is from the longer fermentation process. This long rise is what will give your bread its amazing flavor.
- Oil the counter and gently let the dough drop out of the bowl or container onto your countertop. You want to try to avoid popping all those bubbles. I gently spread the dough, pulling the corners to make it larger. I will then fold the dough over itself once or twice. Then I will make sure to oil my 9 by 13 cake pan with a 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil.
- Transfer dough carefully in the sheet pan and gently pull it so that it starts to fill the pan. You do not to stress about it too much because it will spread and once we poke those holes in it, it will fill the entire pan.
- At this point I like to cover the pan with a towel and let the dough rise once again until it doubles its original size. This can take about 30 minutes to 1 hour. It will totally depend on how active your starter was.
- Once it has doubled in size, I pour about 2 -3 tablespoons of the olive oil onto the focaccia dough and gently spread it over the dough with my hands. This is the best part!
- Now its time to poke those holes in the focaccia bread.
- FIRST PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 425 DEGREES F.Take your fingers and gently begin pushing into the dough creating little creators. The olive oil will spill into the holes. The goal is to gently do this while not deflating the dough.
- After you have have done this, its time to add some toppings to the top of dough, which are completely optional!
- Once you have added your toppings, put the bread in the hot oven and bake on the middle shelf for about 20-25 minutes. You are looking for a nice darker golden brown color on the top and the bottom will be nice and crispy.
- When it is done, take the focaccia out of the oven, take it out of the pan and let it cool on a wire rack. Do not let it sit in the pan, it will sweat and lose its crisp, which is an amazing part of the bread.
- Once the bread has cooled you can store it in a bread bag or air tight container. Enjoy this bread with soups, make it into deep dish pizzas, with pastas, with balsamic/ olive oil dip or toasted with butter!
Check out some of my most favorite sourdough supplies and products:
This easy sourdough focaccia recipe is just one of many sourdough recipes on my website! Check the rest out below:
More Sourdough Recipes
Making sourdough bread might be along process, but it is so worth it! While it may take a long time to make them, the amount of actual active time working on it is less than 1 hour! Save this sourdough focaccia recipe for later~
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My sourdough journey over the past couple of years has been so rewarding. I am fascinated with the fact that with a simple sourdough starter, I can create so many amazing things for my family that I can eat as well.
Yum, yum and yummy! You nailed this dish. Thanks for sharing. ♥️ For 911