Simple Sourdough Focaccia: A Beginner’s Guide
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Sourdough is having a moment. Longtime sourdough bakers may cringe at this proclamation, just as our grandparents likely roll over in their graves when they hear “toast” is a thing.
But it’s true. I cannot open a magazine without seeing a feature on a bakery and its naturally leavened loaves; I cannot scroll through Instagram without seeing a crumb shot of a halved sourdough miche, a beautiful web of irregular holes, or an intricately scored, thick-crusted boule being presented like Simba to the animal kingdom.
My interest in sourdough in recent months has been spurred by a number of requests about how to make my mother’s peasant bread with a sourdough starter. Initially, I thought why? The beauty of the peasant bread is that it doesn’t require a starter or a long rise or any fussy techniques; it can be on your table start to finish in three hours. Everyone will rave.
Over the years, I’ve been able to answer questions relatively easily about how to make the peasant bread morph into something else: a boule with a thick crackling crust — thank you Jim Lahey — or a thinner round to use for pizza or something palatable for the gluten-free crowd.
But achieving that sour taste — even a subtle sour taste — is something yeast, even with a long slow rise cannot achieve. And, moreover, natural leavening is natural leavening — no yeast allowed.
So I began experimenting. I tried reviving my old starter, long neglected in my fridge, and when it proved altogether spent, I ordered one from Breadtopia. I followed the instructions to activate it, and within a day, I had a vibrant, bubbling starter.
After a bit of trial and error, I soon found a nice rhythm, mixing the dough in the afternoon, letting it rise all evening, splitting the dough into two portions and plopping each into a buttered Pyrex bowl in the morning. By early afternoon, the bread was ready to bake. The resulting loaves looked just like the peasant bread, golden crusted, soft crumbed, but with a nice subtle sourness. (Photo below.)
Using the sourdough peasant bread proportions, I decided to make focaccia, my favorite, a bread I love for so many reasons: its versatility — sandwich bread, appetizer, dinner bread — and its flavor and texture: the oil-crisped crust, the generous amount of salt, the chewy crumb.
I also think focaccia is an ideal bread with which to begin a sourdough journey. Why?
- First, it requires no special equipment — not a Dutch oven or a Baking Steel to create a thick crust; not two Pyrex bowls to create a golden, less-thick crust. You likely have a 9×13-inch pan somewhere in your kitchen. This is all you need.
- Second, it requires no tricky shaping technique on a floured work surface. Shaping free-standing sourdough boules is an art and it takes practice and repetition. It’s a beautiful thing when you get the hang of it, but it can be frustrating until you do.
- Third, it requires no scoring. With focaccia, you don’t need a razor sharp lame — you use your fingers to dimple the dough.
For those intimidated by sourdough bread baking, this recipe, as well as this simple sourdough bread recipe, are the recipes I suggest making first, both for their simplicity and flavor. Another great beginner’s bread recipe to try is this overnight, refrigerator focaccia, which requires minimal effort but yields spectacular results.
Curious about Sourdough? Let’s Start From the Top.
You need a sourdough starter, and you can make a sourdough starter from scratch in just about a week. I only recommend doing so if it currently is summer (or a very warm fall) where you are. While it is immensely satisfying to build a starter from scratch, there is no shame in buying one for a few reasons, namely: when you purchase a starter, you are guaranteed to have a strong, vigorous starter from the start.
I’ve purchased sourdough starters from King Arthur Flour and also from Breadtopia. Both were easy to feed and activate. Once your starter arrives, follow this guide on How to Activate, Feed, and Maintain A Sourdough Starter.
Four Reasons to Buy (or Procure) a Starter
- First, if you’re curious about sourdough, get to it! Making a starter from scratch takes weeks. I did it once many years ago following the instructions in Tartine Bread, and after nearly losing my mind, I literally jumped for joy when I dropped a spoonful of my starter into a cup of water, and it floated. Making a starter from scratch is a really cool exercise, and it’s something to be proud of should you succeed (or not!), but why not start experimenting with an active sourdough starter while you build a starter from scratch on the side?
- Second, feeding a mature starter will help you understand how to build one from scratch. You’ll observe how a starter rises and falls, what happens when you feed it more regularly, what happens when you neglect it, how it smells at various stages, etc.
- Third, they’re relatively cheap (or free if you get one from a friend).
- Fourth, maybe you embark on a sourdough journey and decide it isn’t for you. Why go through the trouble of building a starter till you know you enjoy the process of sourdough baking?
Begin with an Easy Recipe
As noted above, I think focaccia is a perfect sourdough-bread-baking starting point. It will teach you the fundamentals of working with sourdough without the potentially frustrating steps of shaping, scoring, and baking with a Dutch oven. The recipe below also can be baked in a loaf pan, another great option if you do not want to deal with shaping and scoring and Dutch ovens.
PS: Whole Wheat(ish) Sourdough Bread recipe
PPS: Essential Equipment For Sourdough Bread Baking
How to Make Sourdough Focaccia: A Step-by-Step Guide
Get a starter. If you don’t have a starter and don’t have a friend who can lend you one, I recommend buying one. I bought mine from Breadtopia, and I’ve managed to keep it alive for 6 months now. Score!
I store my starter in this quart container. When I’m ready to use it, I discard some of it, and add about 45 g flour…
… and 45 g water. You don’t have to be exact, but when you’re getting started, I think it’s helpful to weigh both the water and flour. Depending on how long the starter has been in the fridge, it may need one or two feedings before use.
If you stick a rubber band around your starter vessel, you’ll know when …
… it has doubled and is ready for use.
If you need reassurance as to if it’s ready, you can do the float test: drop a spoonful of starter into a glass of water. If it floats, it’s ready.
As with all bread, when mixing sourdough doughs, it’s best to weigh everything with a digital scale. Start with 100 g starter.
Add 10 g kosher (or other) salt.
Add 440 g water. (See recipe notes: If you live in a humid environment, you may want to use less.)
Stir to combine.
Add 512 g bread flour.
Stir to form a sticky dough ball.
Cover with a towel or bowl cover, and let rise for 8 – 18 hours at room temperature (times will vary depending on the time of year and how warm your kitchen is … in the summer, this may take only 4 hours):
When it doubles …
… drizzle it with some olive oil.
Deflate the dough by pulling the sides into the center.
Dough, ready to make it’s second rise, which will take 5-6 hours. Love this USA Pan.
After 5-6 hours, the dough is ready to be dimpled and stretched and salted. Bake at 425ºF for 25 minutes.
Just-baked sourdough focaccia:
Simple Sourdough Focaccia
- Total Time: 24 hours 25 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf
Description
Adapted from my favorite yeasted, slow-rise focaccia recipe — overnight refrigerator focaccia — this recipe replaces the yeast with a sourdough starter.
UPDATE: Video guidance is here! Watch up above or click the link below in the recipe card.
What you need to make this recipe…:
- …a sourdough starter. I bought mine from Breadtopia. It was easy to activate. There are no instructions on the package itself; follow the instructions on the video here.
- …time. Once your starter is ready to go, this recipe requires an initial 4- 18 hour rise, followed by a second 4- to 6-hour second rise. After the initial rise (depending on the time of year and temperature of your kitchen), you can deflate the dough, and stick it in the fridge for 8 to 10 hours (maybe longer), which might help you regarding your schedule. Keep in mind, when you remove the dough from the fridge and transfer it to a pan, it will still need to rise for another 5- to 6- hours.
- …water. Apparently, chlorine in water can adversely affect sourdough. Leaving water at room temperature for 24 hours will allow most of the chlorine to escape.When I am in the habit of making sourdough bread, I fill a large pitcher with water and leave it out at room temperature. I use this for my sourdough breads and starter. Truth be told, I’ve used water straight from the tap and have not noticed a difference.
Water quantity: Depending on where you live and the time of year, you may need to cut the water back. If you live in a humid environment, for instance, I would suggest starting with 430 g water. If you are not using bread flour, you also may need to cut the water back a bit.
Timing:
The more I make sourdough, the more I realize so much depends on the time of year and the temperature of my kitchen. In the summer, because it is so warm, the first rise (bulk fermentation) takes between 4 – 6 hours; in the winter the first rise takes 12 – 18 hours.
The key with this recipe is to make sure the first rise doesn’t go too long — you want the dough to nearly double. A straight sided vessel (as opposed to a bowl) makes gauging the first rise easier. (Note: If your dough rises above double, don’t despair … recently my dough tripled in volume during an overnight rise, and the resulting focaccia was still delicious, light, airy, etc.)
A few thoughts: If you are making this focaccia in the summer (northern hemisphere), use 50 g of starter and check the dough every couple of hours. If you are making this in the winter, use 100 g of starter, and plan for a long first rise.
Troubleshooting: If you have issues with your dough being too sticky, please read this post: Why is my sourdough so sticky? The 4 common mistakes.
Flour choice:
- I’ve been using King Arthur Flour’s special patent flour — bought a 50-lb. bag of it at Restaurant Depot. Its protein content, 12.7%, is the same as the protein content of its bread flour. I also have used all-purpose flour (11.7%) with success, but I recommend bread flour, which seems to be more reliable for people especially those living in humid climates. If you only have ap flour on hand, you may consider reducing the water a bit — bread flour absorbs slightly more liquid than all-purpose flour.
Ingredients
- 50 g – 100 g (1/4 to 1/2 cup) active starter, see notes above
- 10 g (about 2.5 teaspoons) kosher salt
- 430 – 440 g water (1.75 cups – 1.75 cups + 2 tablespoons), room temperature, see notes above*
- 512 g (about 4 cups) bread flour, see notes above
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
- Nice, flaky sea salt, such as Maldon
Instructions
- Place the starter, salt, and water in a large bowl. Stir with a spatula to combine — it doesn’t have to be uniformly mixed. Add the flour. Mix again until the flour is completely incorporated.
- If time permits, perform one “fold”: 30 minutes after you mix the dough, reach into the bowl and pull the dough up and into the center. Turn the bowl quarter turns and continue this pulling 8 to 10 times. See video for guidance.
- Drizzle with a splash of olive oil and rub to coat. Cover bowl with a tea towel or bowl cover and set aside to rise at room temperature (70ºF/21ºC) for 4 to 18 hours (the time will vary depending on the time of year, the strength of your starter, and the temperature of your kitchen — in summer, for instance, my sourdoughs double in 6 hours; in winter, they double in 18 hours. Do not use an oven with the light on for the bulk fermentation — it will be too warm. It is best to rely on visual cues (doubling in volume) as opposed to time to determine when the bulk fermentation is done. A straight-sided vessel makes monitoring the bulk fermentation especially easy because it allows you to see when your dough has truly doubled.).
- When dough has doubled, place 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a 9×13-inch pan. (I have been using this USA Pan, which I love. I have had no sticking issues. If you are using a glass pan, you may, as a precaution, want to butter it it first — I have had disasters with bread sticking when I’ve used oil alone with other baking vessels.)
- Drizzle dough with a tablespoon of olive oil. Use your hand to gently deflate the dough and release it from the sides of the bowl. Gently scoop the dough into the center of the pool of oil in your prepared pan. Fold dough envelope style from top to bottom and side to side to create a rough rectangle. Turn dough over so seam-side is down. Video guidance here.
- Rub top of dough with oil. Leave alone for 4 to 6 hours, uncovered, or until puffy and nearly doubled.
- Heat oven to 425ºF. Rub hands lightly with oil, and using all ten fingers, press gently into the dough to dimple and stretch the dough to nearly fit the pan. Sprinkle generously with sea salt. Transfer pan to the oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until golden all around. Remove pan from oven and transfer bread to a cooling rack. Cool at least 20 minutes before slicing.
- Prep Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Incidentally, this same recipe can be used to make sandwich bread. You need one large loaf pan, 10×5-inches, such as this one.
As noted above, this same recipe can be baked, like the original peasant bread recipe, in buttered Pyrex bowls. More on this soon.
Just-baked sourdough peasant bread.
Sliced sourdough peasant bread.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
1,237 Comments on “Simple Sourdough Focaccia: A Beginner’s Guide”
Wonderful wonderful wonderful!
Yay 🎉🎉🎉🎉
Hi!
I was wondering what to do if I want to leave it in the fridge overnight after the first rise. I know I deflate it but do I also transfer to the prepared baking dish, do the folds, and then store in the fridge? Or do I just deflate and do the next steps when I take it out of the fridge?
Thanks in advance!
I would simply deflate it, and keep it in its container. Be sure to slick the surface with oil, and be sure the top is sealed with plastic wrap or other airtight-ish wrap. Once you take it out of the fridge, transfer to the oiled baking vessel and proceed with the recipe.
Thank you so much for the helpful video! Thi was a yummy recipe.
Wonderful to hear, Kerry!
Hi, I made this today. The bread turned out gummy when baked and had a slight sour taste. Any idea if I did something wrong?
Hi Connie! There are a number of places where this could have gone wrong.
Questions: are you confident in the strength of your starter? Did the bulk fermentation go well? If so, for how many hours? Do you live in a humid environment?
This troubleshooting post may offer some guidance.
I’ve made this several times now and it is wonderful. I love the simplicity and the fact that it seems to be forgiving recipe. My kitchen space is limited so the fact it doesn’t require a lot of space for working the dough is also a plus. I’m experimenting with mixing in some whole wheat flour and some longer rise times in the pan before it goes into the oven. I got a beautiful focaccia out of the oven before work this morning. It had that wonderful sour dough taste and a nice springy texture . Thank you!!!!
So nice to hear all of this, Joseph! I love a little bit of whole wheat flour in this one, too — a little goes a long way in terms of adding aroma and flavor and texture. Thanks for writing!
DELICIOUS!!! First time ever using my starter and baking anything sourdough- AMAZING!! This recipe is very easy to follow and the bread is delicious. Perfect for tonight with salad and homemade roasted tomato soup. YUM!
Wonderful to hear, Sarah! Nothing better than bread + tomato soup 🙂
I have made this delicious recipe dozens of times since finding it at the end of last summer. The recipe is easy to follow and video helped a lot my first few times making this. I have enjoyed trying simple variations, including adding rosemary before the first rise, sprinkling with thyme and oregano in addition to rosemary and salt, making it in a loaf pan to use as sandwich bread. Without question, this bread makes the best croutons you’ll ever put in your mouth! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
So wonderful to hear this, Kate! Thanks so much for writing. Great to hear all of your variations have worked out well, too. It all sounds delicious 🙂
This was fantastic! Clear instructions from beginning to end. I can’t wait to make it again. Thanks for the tip on buttering the glass pan, I had no problems releasing it.
So nice to hear this, Sandi! Thanks so much for writing 🙂
I am in the middle of making this but I didn’t have time before I started the cough to watch the video. The dough is currently on its first rise. But according to the written directions, at the beginning of step 3 you say to drizzle with olive oil. Which I did after performing some stretch and folding. But after watching the video, you g do not drizzle oil on till after it’s first rise and has doubled… In the written directions, it doesn’t say to let rise after step 2… will the Focaccia turn out ok rising with oil on it?
It will be fine! I forgot to add oil when I was filming it, but it doesn’t really make a difference if you add oil then or don’t.
You helped me brave the world of sour dough baking and now I am hooked! Your video tutorials are so clear and simple; they break down the steps so that even a novice like me can follow.
As I said, I am new to this. I have made about 7 loaves of your basic sour dough bread- delicious! Today I am giving your Focaccia recipe a try.
Wonderful to hear this, Linda! Hope the focaccia turned out well … it’s one of my favorites 🙂 🙂 🙂
Just gave this a try and everything seemed to be going really well until I baked it and discovered it had stuck to the pan when I tried to get it out! I used a 9 x13 Nordic Ware pan and there was plenty of oil in there so no idea why it stuck but other than that it looks great.
Hi IB,
Olive oil alone unfortunately will not provide that nonstick barrier. With my USA Pan, I can get away with olive oil alone. With every other 9×13 pan I own, I always have to butter first. Parchment will work, too.
Yum! I’ve made yeast breads for years, but sourdough is new to me and I’ve never made focaccia. This came out with a great taste and texture! My husband had three pieces with dinner so I guess he liked it. 😉 Served it with olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping. Thanks for great directions!
Note: At 512 gr King Arthur’s bread flour, I had a goopy soup, I added flour a little at a time but a LOT more…close to double…and my kitchen is cold and dry and my starter quite strong. And tgat still made a very sticky dough. But that is bread baking…you have to go with look and feel! Having the video to see what it should look like was a big help here.
Great to hear all of this, Derri! And nice work following your instincts and using flour as needed to get the texture right. Thanks for writing!
What a great recipe. I had some almost discarded starter yesterday, but stopped short and decided to make this recipe. It whipped up really quickly. In spite of the starter having not been feed after removal from the frig after five days, it was bubbling and active once out for four hours. I decided to go for it. By this morning, the dough was full of bubbles. I needed to hold off the second rise, so put into the frig for four hours. I got it out, it raised for 3.5 hours and I decided it was time to bake it. I fingered the dough, put on the olive oil and salt, and some bruchetta herbs and baked it. It is beautiful. At just 20 minutes out of the oven, I cut a piece to taste it. It is absolutely sour dough, tender, crusty on top and bottom. I give you and me an A+. I did buy a USA 9” x 13” pan. I have two others of that brand and love them. The bread just slid out onto the cooling rack. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
So nice to hear all of this, Patricia! Love my USA pans, too … can’t recommend them enough to people. Thanks for writing!
This is the second faccacia recipe I have tried and I can confidently say I won’t be trying any others. It is absolutely perfect! Thank you for the video too, it was really helpful!
Wonderful to hear this, Connie!
made this twice! Love it! Added rosemary and even some red peppers to decorate the top. Just need to find a way not to make it stick so much to the bottom of the pan…
Hi Sarah! Olive oil alone will not keep the dough from sticking with certain pans. Try buttering your pan first next time before adding the oil. Parchment paper works well, too.
This is a great recipe! My bread came out delicious, with that perfect outer crust with the spongey, soft interior. Question regarding the second rise – The surface ended up drying out a little bit after the 6 hours left uncovered. Do you recommend I cover during this time ? It ended up making cracks in the dough (even though I slabbed a ton of olive oil)
Hi Kristy! Yes, if your dough, even though well coated in oil, developed a bit of a crust during the second rise, I would cover the pan with plastic wrap or a tea towel. A damp tea towel might help as well.
This really is the best focaccia! And so easy. Once again, thank you Ali!!
I usually make this to go with soup at lunchtime. To accomplish this, I put my dough together in the morning and let it rise during the day – usually takes 6-8 hours. I then form and put it in the 9×13 pan, spread with olive oil, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it complete it’s second rise overnight in the refrigerator. If it hasn’t completely finished it’s rise, I have time in the morning for a bit more and then bake midday for lunch or dinner.
So smart, Lindsay! Thanks so much for sharing your method/timeline — that’s so helpful for others! Thanks, as always, for writing 🙂
Love this! Super easy to follow, really appreciate your step by step photos and descriptions before the recipe card. Thanks for sharing.
So nice to hear this, Sasha! Thanks for writing 🙂
Just a quick question: I’ve just mixed this and am about to fold.
But I’ve been making your peasant bread for years now (and sharing it, and the recipe, with friends—you’re a popular gal).
If this focaccia is basically the same as the peasant bread, then (assuming 100g starter) shouldn’t you have reduced the flour weight by 50g as you did the water? (You reduced the water a little bit, but the flour remains constant—512g, same as the peasant bread.)
On a side note: I adore the peasant bread so much—one of the reasons is that it’s simple and effortless to memorize. Thanks for a great, great Web site.
Have done it many times! family favorite and really easy! Thanks so much for your detailed recipes! can’t wait to try cinnamon rolls and sprouted sandwich bread!
So nice to hear this, Annie! Thanks so much for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hi Ali,
This is a fabulous recipe!
I decided several weeks ago to experiment making a sourdough starter, I admit I was weary that I had made it correctly!
I make no knead bread all of the time but not with sourdough starter, I must say that this was somewhat of a process. However, I am going to make it again!
Now I have the process down it will not be as stressful, the bread is amazing.
Thanks for sharing.
All my best,
Vicki
Wonderful to hear this, Vicki! And I commend you on making a sourdough starter from scratch … not easy! Thanks for writing 🙂
This bread was amazing!!! So delicious! Your instructions and video were great and easy to follow. I will definitely be making this again! Thank you. 😊
Wonderful to hear this, Carol! Thanks so much for writing!
Followed this recipe, adjusted for my specfific climate and local flour… probsbly the best thing I have tasted in my life. I halved the recipe and bulk rised for 16 hrs, and second rised for 5. I ate half the foccacia within ten mins of cutting…
Make this! Thank you Alexandra!
So wonderful to hear this! Thanks so much for writing and for sharing your notes.
So delicious with balsamic vinegar! I cut the second rise last time I made this and it was still super good!
So great to hear this! Thanks for writing 🙂
Hi there! Can I half this recipe and then bake it in a cast-iron pan? Thanks 🙂
Yes!
This made the BEST home focaccia I’ve ever made. As long as you have time and decent starter, it’s a keeper. Beautiful airy crumb and good flavor with almost no work (just the time rising). I did an overnight retard after the first fermentation and that was great. Thanks!
Wonderful to hear this, Sadie! Thanks so much for writing 🙂 🙂 🙂
About how much rising time did you give it after bringing it out of the fridge?
When would you recommend adding in herbs to the focaccia recipe? I am planning to make this soon! Thank you.
Hi Sherry! You can either add them to the flour when you mix the dough, or if you want to sprinkle them over top before baking, add them with the sea salt at the end, after you dimple the dough.
Simple with amazing results! Fairly new to SD baking, received starter from a friend on New Years Day. Previous focaccia attempts disappointing but this one is a keeper! Added thinly sliced onion, capers, sun dried tomatoes and chopped kalmata olives. YUM!
So nice to hear this! Thanks so much for writing. Your toppings sound FABULOUS!!
I absolutely LOVE this recipe. It’s so easy and just ridiculously delicious. It’s become a staple in our home since I jumped onboard the sourdough pandemic train last spring. I’m curious if there’s any reason you couldn’t/shouldn’t leave the dough in the fridge for a day or two after the bulk fermentation. I’ve left dough for boules in the fridge as long as 3 days, and it gets more sour, which I like. Would the same principal apply here, or would it mess something up?
Thank you for such amazing recipes and a fantastic website! (I’m giving your “Whole Wheat-ish” recipe a try now – excited to see how it turns out tomorrow!)
Hi Kristi! Yes, you can. I did this very recently actually: after the bulk fermentation, I turned it out into a bowl, covered it with oil, tucked the whole bowl into a bag, which I tied into a knot (a produce bag). It stayed in the fridge for another 24 hours before I did the room-temp proof. I’m sure you could get away with a longer cold proof.
Hi There, I’m currently following this recipe but I was wondering why my dough is so wet? it’s pretty much like the same consistency as my sourdough starter. Its on its second rise and it is making air bubbles but I’m just wondering why its still so wet.
Hi Kristhessa! Questions for you: are you using a scale? what type of flour? do you live in a humid environment?
It is definitely a wet dough, but it’s possible that given the type of flour you are using and given your environment, you may just need to reduce the amount of water.
This troubleshooting post may offer some guidance, too.
I do live in a humid environment and decided to use 10g less than the liquid measure in your recipe. I used strong bread flour and used a scale for my measurements. My sourdough starter was runny despite me feeding it extra the night before but its very active because there are loads of bubbles in it… ive given it extra time to rise but it was definitely just slipping out of my hands, like batter consistency
OK, was it batter consistency when you mixed it or after the bulk fermentation?
It’s possible that the dough over fermented after the bulk fermentation, in which case it’s unsalvageable. OR it’s just too much water, in which case you probably can bake it, but you likely won’t get those dimples to hold.
Definitely batter after the bulk fermentation part…and was Definitely unsalvagable. This is the second time Ive attempted this recipe and want it to work so badly; but I think the problem might be my sourdough starter which is active and bubbly but I can’t get it to double in size😑😑😑
Hi Kristhessa. Yes, if your starter isn’t doubling in volume, that’s likely the issue. I have some tips on how to strengthen your starter in this post: Why is My Sourdough So Sticky?