Yep, it's true, you can definitely make a simple sourdough focaccia bread from scratch! This is the best and most simple sourdough focaccia bread recipe I have ever found and it is easy to customize and add your own unique twist!
Plain, garlic butter, Greek or Italian, the sky is the limit. This bread is not only nutritious and easy to digest, the texture is airy and soft.
About this recipe
I am using my standard sourdough starter and dressing it up with za'atar, artichokes, kalamata olives and heirloom cherry tomatoes. Another favorite of ours is to add fresh rosemary, tomatoes, thyme, black olives, red onion and chunks of gooey mozzarella cheese. Try it and you'll forever be the most popular guest at the potluck! I plan on making this simple and from scratch recipe again and again.
six ingredient sourdough focaccia bread
Ingredients in this sourdough are as simple and basic as you can imagine. Flour, salt, honey, olive oil, water and sourdough starter. This dough takes less than five minutes to whip up, then several hours to ferment and shape. Don't let the 'several hours' part scare you, it's mostly a very boring experience of waiting while the dough rests and ferments. Before you know it, you will have a hot pan of sourdough focaccia bread!
spilling all of my secrets
- salt | use sea salt, pink himalayan salt or your favorite non-iodized natural salt to maximize the trace minerals in your diet.
- flour | in my kitchen, I keep several types of flour on hand. For this recipe, I use organic white flour. I also love using einkorn or whole wheat, however you will need to make adjustments with the water if you decide to modify.
- olive oil | I actually don't have advice on this other than buy high quality olive oil. If you go cheap, it will taste like it.
- water | now this is going to sound really picky, but avoid using chlorinated water when baking. Chlorinated water will cause the yeast to function poorly, if at all. Personally, we exclusively drink water from our Berkey filter system and this is the water I use for making sourdough. I also use water that is on the warm side, around one hundred degrees.
- sourdough starter | It is very important for this recipe that you sourdough starter be at peak activity. Simply stated, feed it and wait until it looks doubled in size and bubbly in your vessel. For more on this process, check out my post How to Make Sourdough.
- honey | just a smidge of sweetness! It compliments the olive oil and balances the tanginess of the sourdough starter. You can omit this if you don't have honey.
Other sourdough recipes you'll love!
- How to Make a Sourdough Starter
- Perfect Sourdough Loaf
- Sourdough Coffee Cake
- Cinnamon Crunch Sourdough Bagels
- Cheesy Sourdough Crackers
- Tomato Basil Crostini
- Sourdough Crepes
The final product is fluffy and soft, and naturally delicious! I hope you enjoyed this article, and think of me fondly while you are savoring this delicious bread soon!
If you make this recipe, please leave a comment below! This provides helpful feedback to both me and other readers. For more delicious recipes from scratch and homesteading tips, follow me on instagram @NinnescahHomestead
Sourdough Focaccia
Equipment
- large mixing bowl
- 9X13 baking dish
- kitchen scale
Ingredients
- 160 grams sourdough starter active
- 450 grams All-Purpose Flour
- 9 grams sea salt
- 1 ½ cup water filtered and warm
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin
Optional add-ins
- 6-12 cherry tomatoes halved
- 6 artichoke hearts
- ½ cup olives
- 1 tablespoon Za-Atar spice blend
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together starter, olive oil, honey, salt and water. Knead in the flour until it is well combined. Messy, sticky dough is normal! Form the dough into a ball, cover and let rest in a warm place for about thirty minutes.
- Next we are going to perform a series of 'stretch and fold.' Take the dough and slap it on the counter. Form a dough ball, and imagine the ball has four sides. You will lift each side, stretch it gently, then fold it to the middle of the dough ball. Repeat this process every thirty minutes over the next two hours. The dough will become more uniform and the texture will become more soft and flexible.
- Now we are ready for fermentation! Line a 9X13 pan with parchment paper and drizzle with olive oil. TIP: Sometimes I skip the parchment paper and just generously oil the pan with olive oil, but there will be areas that stick to the dish if you skip it. Shape the dough to mostly cover the bottom of the pan. Cover with a tea towel and refrigerate for 2-12 hours.
- When the dough has fermented to your personal preference, remove it from the fridge and let it warm to room temperature. The ideal temperature for the dough to be at for the next step is around 75°.
- Drizzle the dough with more olive oil, pinching and poking to create dimples. Add any desired toppings (see suggestions below).
- Prepare the oven by preheating it to 450° and lowering the baking rack to the bottom position. This focaccia has delicate air bubbles that are prone to burning if the pan is too high in the oven. Bake for twenty five minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 200°.
- Store any leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three days.
Notes
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