Natural Yeast Focaccia
First of all, this bread is very easy to make. The many steps are because I'm being overly detailed. 🙃 I hope whoever uses my recipe will succeed on the first try and be able to proudly show off their beautiful results. I'll get to the main points in a moment, but first, some background. The last time I had this was on a trip to Copenhagen with a friend. We visited a well-known indoor market there, a big hall full of small food stalls where you could grab your food and sit on the side to eat. One of the stalls sold bread, and I got focaccia. That focaccia was simple—just oil and salt, no toppings—but it looked golden and tempting. Most importantly, it's a safe choice and hard to mess up. The vendor cut a large piece for us, and we finished it all. This bread has a high hydration dough, but since it doesn't need shaping and is baked directly in a pan, it's very simple to handle. Both the first and second rise can be done at room temperature, or you can opt for refrigerating one of them depending on your schedule. If you don't have natural yeast, you can substitute with a Polish starter. This bread doesn't rely heavily on the flavor from the dough itself, which makes the toppings stand out more. But if you're aiming for that oil-and-salt version like the one from Copenhagen, a bit of cold fermentation adds extra depth. 😜 Compared to harder European breads, this bread actually suits the Chinese palate better. It has oil, salt, and toppings, and the crust is golden, crisp, and fragrant. Additionally, making this bread is very straightforward. It can be thick or thin, and the toppings are incredibly versatile. You can put almost anything you can think of on top. It’s generally fermented at room temperature and hardly has any sourness from the yeast. The structure should have medium to small air pockets, which I think resembles a baked savory sponge cake. You can bake a large tray at once. If you can't finish it all, you can freeze it and reheat it in the oven later for a delicious treat. The recipe is a simple olive oil dough formula, and you can adjust the ratios of oil, salt, and water to your preference.
Ingredients
Steps
This bread can easily serve as a quick meal alongside a drink. You can make a big tray while watching TV—it’s much less fussy than European-style hard bread. 🙄
Add the flour, starter, salt, and 300g of water to a stand mixer bowl and mix on low speed until relatively smooth. At this stage, there won’t be much gluten development, but the dough should start to feel elastic and look glossier on the surface.
Continue mixing on low speed and gradually add the remaining water. You don’t have to add all of it; adjust based on the consistency. After incorporating the water, slowly add the oil. Once fully combined, mix on medium-low speed until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. It will still be soft but should look smooth and elastic.
This is what my dough looks like at this stage. Every machine is different, so I’m not specifying exact times. This part doesn’t need to be perfect; there’s room for adjustment during the folding process. Work on it more here, and you'll be able to fold less later, or vice versa.
Transfer the dough into a container for the first rise. During the first two hours of fermentation, fold the dough four times. Spacing between folds can range from 20 to 40 minutes, depending on how fast your dough is fermenting. The photo shows what the dough looks like just after transferring it. It’s soft and fun to handle, and you might need to fold it slightly to make it easier to transfer.
I worked at room temperature (23°C), folding three times at 40-minute intervals. This photo shows the dough after the final fold. After the last fold, you can transfer it directly to the baking pan. I returned mine to the container because I wanted to photograph the comparison.
I let the second half of the first rise happen directly in the baking pan. At 23°C room temperature, I let it rest for another two hours. Transfer the dough to your baking pan (mine is 22×28 cm, a fairly unique size from Silikomart). Grease the bottom of the pan with olive oil. If your pan isn’t non-stick, use more oil. Every 30 minutes, gently stretch the dough or nudge it toward the edges. Don’t force it if it’s elastic and resisting; you’ll have to stretch it across the pan several times eventually, and it will expand to fill the pan. Use wet fingers to prevent sticking.
Once the second rise is nearly complete, preheat your oven to 225°C. For most ovens, this takes about half an hour. Meanwhile, prepare the toppings. I used rosemary, cherry tomatoes, olive oil, black pepper, and herb salt (you can use regular flaky salt if herb salt isn’t available). Cut the cherry tomatoes in half, or into thirds if they’re long. For rosemary, one sprig should suffice. * Use fresh rosemary for the best texture; dried rosemary isn’t ideal. You can substitute with basil if needed. * Opt for extra virgin olive oil; if you find the flavor too strong, feel free to use a different oil you like. * For flaky salt, buy some if you don’t already have it—it’s useful in many recipes. If using fine salt, be cautious with the quantity to avoid overpowering the flavor.
Here's how my dough looked after the second rise.
Drizzle 15ml of olive oil onto the dough's surface and spread it evenly. Then, use your fingers to poke dimples into the dough all the way to the bottom, making them quite close together. Add the cherry tomatoes and rosemary on top, and sprinkle with salt and black pepper.
I baked mine at 225°C for 30 minutes. Adjust the time based on how browned you want the crust. If you prefer a lighter color, bake for less time. I love a deeply golden crust. 😄 This is truly incredibly delicious!